Steelers vs Patriots Preview: Predictions and Best Bets | NFL Week 3

Steelers vs Patriots Preview: Predictions and Best Bets | NFL Week 3

It’s NFL throwback week for us here at CBS. Here are the week three game announcement crews. Four games in the early window including Steelers and Patriots where Ian Eagle, JJ Watt, and Evan Washburn will be on the call. Then we have another late window double header both on the West Coast in Southern California and in the Pacific Northwest. But let’s check in with Evans going to be at Gillette in Foxboro for Steelers and Patriots. And boy, we got to start with the injuries for this Steelers team. Decimated by so far. It matches some of those like pharmacy receipts, Evan. I mean, this is a list right here, my guy. Um, give me the latest on what this team might look like on Sunday. Yeah, there’s there’s no discount with this this list right now for Pittsburgh. This is very concerning on so many levels as defensively they try to figure things out. But we’re looking at six starters and because of the Harmon and now Louder McMill injury. You’re at your third defensive interior defensive lineman at that position. Harmon is I guess questionable at this point in the week. So there’s positive momentum there for Harmon, Deshawn Elliot, and Joey Porter Jr. All of whom missed last week’s game against Seattle. But I think what it’s done is it’s forced a lot of young guys to play in this Pittsburgh defense and play a lot of snaps. And defensively and offensively in Pittsburgh, they like to really let their rookies and young players ease into a season. But now they’re throwing a guy like Jack Sawyer into a prominent role, just to name one there. And he’ll be a big part of replacing Alex Heismith. That’s a huge loss. That bookend with TJ Wattton. Highmith so good not just rushing the passer but defending the run as I know we’ll get to that’s been a big concern. So this is not ideal for any team but especially a defense that even going back to last season has really tried to red define what their identity is and get back to the core of what they do which is stop the run and then get after the quarterback. Coach T won’t have that luxury of easing those young guys. And let’s just continue that conversation of what you’re talking about. One of the matchups that you’ve targeted for this game, the Pittsburgh defense against that New England offense. But can those Steelers man up, I guess, if you will, with the with the run defense. It hasn’t been very good this year, but going up against that New England unit. Well, that’s where I think this game’s going to come down to the line of scrimmage, as it often does, Tommy. But I’m I’m really interested to see what Pittsburgh does, how they throw all of their resources both schematically and from a personnel standpoint at what New England wants to do because New England is not even the Jets in terms of run team. Seattle showed with Kenneth Walker last week just how effective they can be. They have Charbanet as well. New England ran the ball well against Miami, but that has to be put into a bit of a vacuum. Miami has been really poor defensively this season. So, is that really who New England is? Is Raman Stevenson going to have that amount of an impact on this game? Drake May making plays with his legs. You have to think New England’s going to want to stick to that, at least achieve the balance they showed in that win over the Dolphins, something they didn’t do in week one. But Pittsburgh needs to stop the run because all of their assets in terms of where they’ve invested a lot of money is on getting after the passer and defending the pass. Whether it’s Jaylen Ramsay, Darius Slay, but most notably TJ Watt, he doesn’t have a sack in the last six games and everybody’s being somewhat critical of Watt. But unless they stop the run, there’s no defined pass situations that he can then pin his ears back and get after the the the quarterback. So, this is a situation where everything trickles down from their ability to stop the run. And I’m curious to see if New England can have the type of success that the Jets and the U Seahawks had last week. So, quick followup that from a New England perspective. Now, it’s only been two games, but the rookie running backs, especially ones that have been drafted with high capital, haven’t gone off to the best of starts. Time share with Raandre Stevenson and Trayvon Henderson, or what are you anticipating in terms of what Mike Vel and company are going to try to get going here? It’s a good question, Tommy. Obviously, we haven’t had the opportunity to sit down with Mike Drabel, Drake May, or even Josh B. Daniels at this point. It does seem like Tayvon Henderson, who was the star of training camp in the preseason, having some of those growing pains that come with being a rookie back in this league, most notably in pass protection, an area that is a strength for the rookie, but he’s dealt with some holding calls and just kind of finding his his rhythm as as a rusher. It’s a young offensive line, too. That entire left side is led by rookies, most notably Will Campbell, the first overall pick. So, by no means is New England right here sitting with a opportunity to just let their run game lead the way and have two backs going uh at it as they probably would like with Stevenson and Henderson. But again, I think what we saw in week two from New England was that balance where they weren’t just leaning on Drake May’s arm. And I think that’ll be a big part of what they want to do against Pittsburgh again to prove that they can stop the run. Something they haven’t been able to do the first couple weeks. Speaking of Drake Mays coming off his best game as a pro from a rating perspective and as you know Evan and many football fans know, people believe that this Patriots team was poised for a jump in large part because of the growth of Drake May. Again, two games into his sophomore season. What are you anticipating this weekend? I still think he’s he’s a very young, impressionable quarterback in all the positive ways, but with that comes some of the negatives. I just thought in that Miami game, which statistically, as you pointed out, the best of his pro career, was the most calm and poised that he’s looked and it was his ability to manage the pocket, manage the line of scrimmage, make some throws when necessary, but maybe more importantly, tuck it and run. I mean, he had 10 rush attempts for some critical yards, a touchdown, and that’s the balance that he’s having to play with. We saw it in his rookie season where more often than not, he was kind of running for his life, and that led to some some injuries or some situations where he’s taking hits he doesn’t need to. But I don’t think we can talk enough about just the dynamic of Drake May and Josh McDaniels. And I I really believe and people are realistically and understandably critical of Josh McDaniel’s the head coach, but I still think he is one of, if not the best offensive coordinators that we’ve had in the last decade plus. And he’s a quarterback developer. And I think they’re still figuring out and he’s probably figuring out, all right, what’s the best version of a game plan for Drake May as he’s still gaining command of what I want to do offensively. So, I think you saw glimpses of what it could be against the Dolphins. And as challenging or as bad as it’s looked at times for Pittsburgh, I think they will provide a stiffer test than he got in Miami. So, it’s hey, what do you have for a uh for a follow-up to what was a pretty special game for him? I’m with you with McDaniels on that front there. And then when we talk about uh the Pittsburgh or rather the New England defense, Christian Gonzalez has been absent so far this season. We know how good he is. So perhaps the thought is that Aaron Rogers and company might be able to attack that secondary. However, Evan, you’ve targeted the running game here for Pittsburgh being a key for their matchup here with the Pats. Well, I think Tommy that Pittsburgh wants to be able to run the ball more effectively than they have the first two weeks of the season. It’s part of what Arthur Smith does so well in designing it. And it’s also just what that organization led by Mike Tomlin has done well over the years. A lot has been made about Jaylen Warren becoming the lead back. Naji Harris moving on to the LA Chargers and Jaylen Warren presenting more as your third down option. Can he really be a lead back? I think that that’s still the juryy’s still out on that. But I don’t expect that Pittsburgh’s just going to be stubborn about trying to run the ball if they’re going up against a secondary that has been pretty suspect, I would say, through the first couple weeks of the season. And going up against Miami, as rough as it’s looked down there, they’re still a challenging group to defend in the back end with Wadd and Tyreek Hill. Gonzalez, we’re just hearing, is going to be back at practice doing some things. If he’s back, I still think he’s in a position of vulnerability having not played live action really at all this season. I he got hurt the first day of pads in late July. But I think Pittsburgh wants to get the run game going, Tommy. But they might put that off for another week if they feel like their edge is attacking that secondary that’s inexperienced and shown to be vulnerable for New England. Before I let you go, it is throwback weekend for us here at CBS. You have a lot of things planned for what should be a fun view for the viewer to watch your game or any of the others that we’ll have on Sunday. Can you shed some light in terms of some of the wrinkles that we will see this weekend? Well, look, I I’ll tell you this, Tommy, and you’re a man of style. We are embracing the style decisions of the mid to late 70s and and some of the the folks that laid the groundwork for what we do now. So, uh, Rich Valenza and the wardrobe department and and handling a lot of the the gear has been great. So, I think uh people should be excited not just to see what they get from the studio crew that obviously is going to embrace it in full force, but even us out on the road doing some of these games to tip our cap to to the uh the early days of the NFL today and even into some of the production elements too to kind of try and take the viewers back to a time that was a bit simpler uh NextG and all the other numbers that were popping up on the screen. At sometimes it was just nice to know, hey, who who am I looking at? How many times have they run the ball for how many yards or or thrown for how many yards and what’s their number? So, some of that stuff I think will be pretty cool, too. Just uh taking us back to somewhat simpler times. Yeah, excited for that. The old score bug and we seemingly change that. All the networks do it looks like every year, but to see what it looked like back then, part of the aesthetic that we’ll see uh on the throwback weekend here at CBS. Evan, certainly appreciate it. Have fun this weekend as we know you will there. and we’ll enjoy your call there this weekend with your cohorts. Okay, a reminder about there. There it is right there. The NFL Today throwback slate Sunday at 12 Eastern leading into that 1 p.m. Eastern window on CBS and streaming on Paramount Plus. Additionally, we’re hearing several NFL clubs have announced they’re wearing throwback uniforms including the Patriots, Jags, and Bucks. to a more contemporary look of what we’ve got on Sunday. Again, four games in the early window, including Evans, Steelers at Patriots, and a double header at 4:05 Eastern with Chargers and Seahawks on CBS and streaming on Paramount Plus.

Evan Washburn joins CBS Sports HQ to preview the NFL Week 3 Matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New England Patriots.

(0:00) Steelers defense long injury list
(2:02) Matchup to watch
(3:53) Importance of Patriots run game
(5:10) How well will Drake Maye perform?
(7:00) Can the Steelers run the ball?
(8:41) Throwback Sunday preview

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