Category: 2024 season Week 2 – Steelers vs Broncos

Steelers EDGE Alex Highsmith was a ‘pain in the rear’ for Denver

Alex Highsmith had one of the sacks of Broncos quarterback Bo Nix on Sunday.

When it comes to the Pittsburgh Steelers defense, edge rusher T.J. Watt steals the headlines. After him, guys like Cam Heyward, Minkah Fitzpatrick and Joey Porter Jr. get all the attention. But Steelers fans understand just how valuable edge rusher Alex Highsmith is to this defense.

Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton knows that as well. He called Highsmith a “pain in the rear” for the Broncos noting that the Steelers defense extends beyond just Watt.

What Highsmith does on defense doesn’t always show up in the boxscore but he is the guy who lines up opposite the opposing team’s left tackle all game long and gets their best.

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Highsmith finished Sunday’s game with four tackles, a sack, two tackles for loss and a quarterback hurry. He and Watt had rookie Bo Nix under constant duress in the first half and it was pressure up front that forced the game-ending interception by safety Damontae Kazee.

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Najee Harris vents about problems with Steelers offense

Najee Harris is tried of the same old same old with the Steelers offense.

The first two games of the 2024 season for the Pittsburgh Steelers have looked an awful lot like the bulk of the 2023 season. Sloppy, mistake-filled football on offense creating lackluster results and forcing the defense to play out of their minds to pick them up.

This is a detail not missed on running back Najee Harris. He vented after the team’s 13-6 win over the Denver Broncos and didn’t mince words about what all these penalties have done to the offense.

It’s tough for the running backs but shit, we just have to execute on these passes … it’s the same shit. We just have to execute. We aren’t being conservative. We are just (expletive) ourselves. We make a play and get a penalty that pushes us back and gets us off schedule. The plays you want to run you can’t run anymore because it is 2nd and 12.

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The Broncos were actually penalized more than the Steelers but there’s no doubt the Steelers’ penalties stung more. There was at least one touchdown taken off the board due to a penalty and the hold on Broderick Jones that got him benched negated a play that at minimum put the Steelers in field goal range.

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Broderick Jones airs frustrations over penalties: ‘Defenders flop. Refs throw flags’

Broderick Jones got benched after three penalties on one drive on Sunday.

The Pittsburgh Steelers celebrated a big road win over the Denver Broncos on Sunday but not everyone was excited about it. Offensive tackle Broderick Jones had a rough day including one drive where he was flagged three times. This led to head coach Mike Tomlin benching Jones in favor of rookie Troy Fautanu.

Jones was clearly frustrated after the game and aimed at least some of his vitriol at the officials. “Defenders flop,” Jones said. “Refs throw flags. That’s the end of that.”

Jones was the Steelers first-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft and performed well last season when plugged into the starting lineup. But this season has been a different story.

The Steelers were supposed to have a starting tandem of Fautanu and Jones this season but there have been multiple bumps in the road thanks to injuries and poor play. This week the Steelers welcome the Los Angeles Chargers at home and it remains to be seen who will be the starting offensive tackles.

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Steelers HC appeared despondent in presser after win

Mike Tomlin looked like the Steelers lost to the Broncos in his postgame press conference.

If you were to only study the tone of Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin in his postgame press conference on Sunday, you’d have thought the Steelers lost to the Denver Broncos. Pittsburgh held off the Broncos 13-6 but after dominating the first half, Pittsburgh started to crack in the second half and the Broncos were able to move the football.

When Tomlin talked about the game he led off with the fact he was appreciative of the effort which is his usual after a win. But Tomlin spent much of his time talking about the problems the Steelers had with penalties and sloppy play.

The Steelers are 2-0 and on top in the AFC North. Next week the Steelers get their home opener against the Los Angeles Chargers. Hopefully, the team can keep up the winning streak and put together a better performance, especially on offense.

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Steelers hold off Broncos late to remain undefeated

Pittsburgh did all they could to let the Broncos come back in the second half.

It wasn’t pretty but when is Pittsburgh Steelers football ever pretty? After dominating the Denver Broncos in the first half, the Steelers fell apart in the second half but held off the Broncos to win 13-6. The Steelers improved to 2-0 with the win and remain on top of the AFC North.

This game was a tale of two halves for the offense. In the first half, the Steelers offense was able to move the football, eat up the clock and keep the Broncos off the field. But as the second half went off the Broncos defense made adjustments and put the clamps on the Pittsburgh offense.

Defensively it was a case of this Steelers group stepping up when they needed them. After holding rookie quarterback Bo Nix to just 39 yards in the first half, they allowed Nix to throw for 207 in the second half. However, the defense finished the game with an interception of Nix.

Now the Steelers come home this week to take on the Los Angeles Chargers and the team will need to decide if they saw enough from quarterback Justin Fields to keep him in the starting lineup.

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Steelers lead at halftime despite a pair of questionable calls by refs

The Steelers lead the Broncos 10-0 at halftime.

The Pittsburgh Steelers went into halftime against the Denver Broncos with a 10-0 lead thanks to tight end Darnell Washington’s first NFL touchdown and a short field goal but kicker Chris Boswell to close out the half.

Denver is probably fortunate to only trail by 10 after two very questionable calls against the Steelers on the team’s final drives of the half. Offensive tackle Broderick Jones had three penalties called on him in a single draft with the last being a very ticky tack hold that negated a huge reception by wide receiver George Pickens.

Then on the Steelers final drive, wide receiver Van Jefferson was called for a pick that negated a Pickens touchdown catch that looked no different than a play we see every team in the NFL run multiple times per game with no attention from the officials.

The Steelers defense was masterful in the first half. Broncos quarterback Bo Nix has only 39 passing yards and Denver’s leading rusher is running back Tyler Badie who has 16 yards on one carry. Outside linebackers T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith each have a sack in the first half.

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Watch Steelers TE Darnell Washington score his first NFL touchdown

Darnell Washington scored his first NFL touchdown on Sunday.

Last season, Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington only had seven receptions and was used primarily as a run blocker. It only took until the second game of the 2024 season to see an expanded role for Washington that culminated in Washington getting his first NFL touchdown on Sunday against the Denver Broncos.

Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith set Washington up inside in his usual spot before splitting him out wide. This gave Washington an enormous size advantage over the Broncos safety and he took full advantage. Quarterback Justin Fields made a perfect throw to Washington to get his first career score and the Steelers first touchdown of the season.

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The Steelers have a trio of talented tight ends to use in this new-look offense. Washington’s size and athleticism give him a massive physical advantage and he took full advantage on the score.

Pittsburgh leads the Broncos 7-0 heading into halftime.

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Former Steelers 1st-round pick benched versus Broncos

Rookie Troy Fautanu has replaced Broderick Jones in the starting lineup.

We never thought when the Pittsburgh Steelers selected offensive tackle Troy Fauntau in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft, he would replace Broderick Jones in the starting lineup. But against the Denver Broncos this is exactly what has happened.

Jones was benched after three penalties on the same drive including a lazy holding call that negated a huge gain by wide receiver George Pickens. Veteran Dan Moore Jr. remains the starting left tackle and has played a stong game so far.

Last season, Jones replaced Chuks Okorafor in the starting lineup mid-season and played well but he’s clearly taken a step back this year.

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The Steelers lead the Broncos 7-0 with just over seven minutes left to play in the first half.

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Steelers vs. Broncos: Russell Wilson among inactives for Week 2

As expected, Russell Wilson (calf) is inactive for the Pittsburgh Steelers Week 2 matchup versus the Broncos in Denver. He’s been declared the emergency quarterback and will only play if something happens to starter Justin Fields and backup Kyle …

As expected, Russell Wilson (calf) is inactive for the Pittsburgh Steelers Week 2 matchup versus the Broncos in Denver. He’s been declared the emergency quarterback and will only play if something happens to starter Justin Fields and backup Kyle Allen. So, when you see Wilson suited up, that’s why.

Here are the Steelers Week 2 inactives:

Steelers can change history with a win in Denver

The Pittsburgh Steelers can change history with a victory in Denver versus the Broncos this afternoon.

The Pittsburgh Steelers can change history with a victory in Denver this afternoon.

Denver has not been a kind place for the Steelers. It’s been a decade and a half since the Steelers left Mile High Stadium with a win in 2009. So, as you can imagine, the roster looks dramatically different now. Ben Roethlisberger, Troy Polamalu, Hines Ward, Heath Miller, Santonio Holmes and LaMarr Woodley still played in the Black and Gold.

Two three-yard touchdowns to Ward from Roethlisberger and a 25-yarder to Mike Wallace gave Pittsburgh a 28-10 victory, their last in four trips to Denver.

Mike Tomlin knows all too well the difficulties of playing at Mile High.

“The first thing that I think about when I think about going to Denver is the environment, particularly at this portion of the season,” Tomlin said in his Broncos preview press conference. “It is a hostile and challenging environment in a lot of ways — from a crowd noise perspective, from a conditioning perspective. … We need to prepare with those things in mind this week to get ourselves in the very best position to perform.”

The Steelers can change history with a win, and quarterback Justin Fields may have an opportunity to change the future.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported this morning that sources tell him that if Fields has the hot hand, he could remain in the driver’s seat after this week and next.

“If that happens, don’t be surprised if Tomlin continues to have Fields start, sources say, even if Wilson has recovered from his aggravated calf injury,” Rapoport wrote. “It would not necessarily be a benching, but more of a continuation of what is working under center.

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