2024 season Week 4 – Steelers vs Colts

Steelers show colors in failed comeback attempt vs. Colts

The Pittsburgh Steelers showed their colors: If the defense can’t chip in, it will be a long game and a longer season.

Midway through the Pittsburgh Steelers Week 4 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts, the question became: Can Pittsburgh come from behind to win if they are down 14 points at the end of the first half versus Indianapolis? Playing with a lead through the first three games, the Steelers hadn’t been in a scenario that required a comeback, and historically, they’ve been dismal when it was.

Pittsburgh’s top defense wasn’t playing like one, and, in the first half, the offense was a scoreless mess. Arthur Smith‘s squad isn’t built to come from behind, but they rallied and made a strong attempt that fell short by a field goal that would’ve tied the game.

The defense, which came into Week 4 with a first-ranked line, had no answers for the Colts’ offense. There was no answer for Anthony Richardson, who went three-of-four on what would be his only pass attempts of the game. The unit still had no answer when Joe Flacco came in to pass for two touchdowns and 168 yards.

Indianapolis did not play like a one-win team and was foaming at the mouth to defeat the undefeated Steelers. The Colts’ offensive line kept the Steelers’ line, including T.J. Watt, totally in check.

The defense fell flat on its face, and Fields nearly orchestrated a comeback. But with a banged-up running back room and little help from his receivers, Fields couldn’t help make it happen. The Steelers showed their colors: If the defense can’t chip in, it will be a long game and a longer season.

Next up on the Steelers’ agenda are the Cowboys in Dallas for Sunday night football.

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Steelers fans react to disappointing Week 4 loss

The Pittsburgh Steelers officially fell victim to the infamous trap game. Fans react to their team suffering first loss of the season.

Well, in classic Pittsburgh Steelers fashion, the trap game took shape early, and the team suffered its first loss of the season in Week 4. The blame game is an easy game to play after a heartbreaking loss. The truth of the matter is that the defeat falls on everyone’s shoulders. Some die-hard Steelers fanatics may have a different idea on who to blame, such as the defense, Mike Tomlin, Arthur Smith, the offensive line, the referees, Justin Fields, or even George Pickens and his red-zone turnover.

After a game that was absolutely winnable against an injured Colts team that simply had more heart, Steelers fans are understandably upset. However, some are also optimistic as to what the future holds. Neither side is wrong, and no one can take away from how dominant the Steeler looked in the first three games of the season. Here are some of the fan reactions to the Steelers’ Week 4 defeat in Indianapolis:

https://twitter.com/Varcolac/status/1840503924773564547

https://twitter.com/CountFuqua/status/1840503970617319645

https://twitter.com/2HighCoverage/status/1840506427519181260

https://twitter.com/Jody_McFly/status/1840505183295668631

https://twitter.com/HofSpillane/status/1840502943767769171

https://twitter.com/jorge_sanchez_/status/1840506887214870629

https://twitter.com/iamjoshdouglas/status/1840506111407042809

https://twitter.com/SucksBurfict/status/1840505692588777931

https://twitter.com/McGuireSteelers/status/1840504184418045953

https://twitter.com/Steelers6dh/status/1840503146847551774

https://twitter.com/Blakee_Walkerr/status/1840507717418377663

https://twitter.com/AdamBSteelers/status/1840507660569051547

https://twitter.com/daminals76/status/1840507046304870685

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Steelers rally comes up short, mistakes force first loss

The Steelers fell too far behind in the first half to come back against the Colts.

The Pittsburgh Steelers dug themselves a 17-0 hole in the first half against the Indianapolis Colts and tried to dig their way out with a second-half rally. Unfortunately, unforced errors and missteps continued to bite the Steelers in the butt and the team fell to 3-1 after a 27-24 loss to Indianapolis.

In the first half, the Steelers could do very little to slow down or stop the Colts offense. Even after starting quarterback Anthony Richardson went down with a hip injury, the ageless Joe Flacco came in and shredded up the Steelers defense.

On offense, quarterback Justin Fields and the Steelers offense couldn’t get out of its own way on offense with penalties and turnovers that stalled out drives.

But to his credit, Fields came on strong in the second half, throwing the offense on his back and using his arm and his legs to three second-half touchdowns. Fields rushed for two scores and threw for one to tight end Pat Freiermuth in the second half.

Unfortunately, when you spot a team with 17 points at home due in large part to unforced errors, it is hard to be too surprised when you can’t rally. The Steelers now must return to Pittsburgh and prepare for a much better Dallas Cowboys offense in Week Five.

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Steelers Week 4 recap: What happened to the defense?

Usually a strong point for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the defense struggled throughout the contest, resulting in Pittsburgh’s first loss.

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense was the best in the league. They were number one in total scoring defense, total yardage, and second in rushing defense. However, this week against Indianapolis was a different story.

The Colts put up more points in the first quarter than any of the previous Steelers’ three opponents had. Pittsburgh was allowing an average of approximately 70 rushing yards per game, and Indianapolis broke that number with only two drives.

An injury to Alex Highsmith, and defensive line struggles in Week 3 could be responsible for the setback. However, it wasn’t just the edge rushers and defensive line, the secondary allowed Pittman to have 100 receiving yards by the end of the first half, and 113 yards total in the contest. The offense was able to rebound towards the end of the game, the defense, however, gave up another 10 points in the second half.

Pittsburgh has a tough stretch of games coming up. However, the Steelers appear to have a small glimmer of hope for their Week 5 matchup, where their opponent, the Dallas Cowboys, may be without star player Micah Parsons.

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Steelers come out flat, Colts control the 1st half

The Steelers trail the Colts 17-3 at halftime.

The Pittsburgh Steelers came into Indianapolis hoping to beat the Colts, improve to 4-0 and quiet the critics. Most NFL pundits were considering the Steelers pretenders at 3-0 and based on the first half today, they were right. The Steelers and Colts head into halftime with Pittsburgh trailing 17-3.

Pittsburgh came out of the gate flat and listless while the Colts came out fired up and ready to play. It showed as the Colts dominated the Steelers in all phases, even after losing their starting quarterback to injury.

The Steelers couldn’t stay out of their own way in the first half with penalties, turnovers and mistakes on both sides of the football. Joe Flacco came in to replace Anthony Richardson and he looked like a young man throwing the football all over the vaunted Steelers defense.

Pittsburgh will get the football to start the second half and seemed to get some traction heading into halftime with a late field goal.

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Referees are making their presence felt early in Week 4 game versus Colts

The officials of the Steelers versus Colts are making their presence felt early, throwing several Flags that impacted the game.

The officiating and their love of throwing flags has been a topic of conversation for Pittsburgh in the past few weeks. There has been terrible calls that took major plays away from the Steelers, officials apologizing for flags, the benching of Broderick Jones over penalties, and now in Week 4, the refs are making their presence felt early.

After the Colts stormed down the field with an opening drive that resulted in a touchdown, the referees changed the course of Pittsburgh’s opening drive not once, but twice.

Justin Fields was driven to the ground on a Steelers third down play, which would have resulted in a sack and subsequent punt.

https://twitter.com/NFLscheme/status/1840440194949923250

The referees would then incorrectly credit Broderick Jones with a late-hit flag, with Spender Anderson being the true culprit of the 15-yard penalty. Pittsburgh looks to get the ball rolling against the Colts after giving up 14 points to Indianpolis in the first quarter.

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Colts missing 6 starters versus the Steelers

The Colts defense is thin versus the Steelers this week.

It is only Week Four of the NFL regular season but the Indianapolis Colts are already pushing their depth to the limits, especially on defense. When the Colts square off with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, they will do it without six starters, five of which are on defense.

In looking at the Colts defenders that are out, it’s clear the Indianapolis defensive line is the spot for the Steelers to attack. Pittsburgh’s rushing attack is still getting up to speed and a hobbled defensive front might be the boost running back Najee Harris needs.

Here is a full rundown of the Colts starters out this week versus the Steelers.

*C Ryan Kelly (neck)

*CB Kenny Moore II (hip)

*DE Kwity Paye (quad)

*DT DeForest Buckner (ankle)

*CB JuJu Brents (knee)

*DE Samson Ebukam (Achilles)

The only Steelers starter out for this week is guard Isaac Seumalo. He is being replaced in the starting lineup by rookie Mason McCormick.

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Anthony Richardson doesn’t fear Steelers’ defense—but he should

Anthony Richardson may not fear the Steelers defense, but with a unit led by T.J. Watt, one of the greatest to ever do it, he may want to reconsider.

While Anthony Richardson was recording his second consecutive game with a passer rating under 50 against the 1-2 Chicago Bears, the Pittsburgh Steelers were busy holding one of the league’s best rushing attacks, from the Los Angeles Chargers, to negative five total yards in the second half of Week 3’s contest.

Richardson spoke with reporters during media availability and stated that he wasn’t “concerned” about this Steelers defense and that he could actually care less about “who’s on the other side.” As a leader, while it is understandable to believe highly in yourself and your teammates, it makes zero sense to motivate the league’s best defense, led by T.J. Watt.

I think Richardson needs to wake up and smell the Primanti’s—he’s thrown one touchdown in the last 2 games, while also throwing five times as many interceptions. Maybe it is time it is time to start worrying about who the other team has on defense.

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Steelers add second rookie to starting offensive line vs Colts

Mason McCormick gets the start at left tackle tis week.

When the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Indianapolis Colts in Week Four, they will do so with two rookies on the offensive line. According to Steelers beat reporter Gerry Dulac, guard Mason McCormick will get the start at left guard over Spencer Anderson.

McCormick replaced Anderson in the lineup last week against the Los Angeles Chargers and played well. According to Dulac, Anderson could still rotate in with McCormick.

The Steelers selected McCormick in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL draft out of South Dakota State. Most pundits considered the selection of McCormick a bargain for the Steelers and the pick was highly regarded as solid value.

https://twitter.com/gerrydulac/status/1840390217326293190

The Steelers also have Zach Frazier in the starting lineup as a rookie at center and if he didn’t go on IR, it’s like a third rookie, offensive tackle Troy Fautanu would be starting this week against the Colts as well.

McCormick gets the start while starting left guard Isaac Seumalo continues to inch his way back from a pectoral injury. There was some hope that Seumalo might play this week but he was ruled out late.

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Steelers vs. Colts broadcast map for Week 4

Here’s a look at where the Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Indianapolis Colts matchup will be aired.

The Pittsburgh Steelers (3-0) will take on the Indianapolis Colts (1-2) Sunday afternoon at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Should the Steelers finish with a win, it’ll be their first time going 4-0 since the 2020 season. The Colts won their first game of 2024 by defeating the Chicago Bears last week. Experts like Pittsburgh to upset Indianapolis on their turf.

Let’s see if the Steelers will be on in your neck of the woods.

If you live in the yellow region of the map, you’ll see Steelers-Colts on your local CBS affiliate (via 506sports.com).

The game will be called by Spero Dedes (play-by-play), Adam Archuleta (analyst) and Aditi Kinkhabwala (sideline reporter).

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