Zach Wilson is back!!! After coming off of a tough loss at Metlife Stadium last week against the Bengals, the Jets hit the road to take on the struggling Pittsburgh Steelers. With Zach Wilson returning today for the Jets, it will be a major offensive boost back into the lineup. It will give the Jets the opportunity to get back to the .500 mark record wise through their first four games of the year as well, as we head into October. Even though they are struggling with injuries early in the year, so are the Pittsburgh Steelers, having lost star LB TJ Watt for the season.
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| Today, it will be the matchup of QB Zach Wilson (Left) and Mitch Trubisky (Right) |
For today's injury report, starting with the Jets, the most significant injury worth noting is the knee injury to Zach Wilson, who has been cleared and is set to make his debut in his sophomore season here in the league. LB Quincy Williams is out today with an ankle injury after he came out of last week's game against the Bengals with that injury. Along with Williams, OT George Fant has now been placed on IR and is back on the injury board once again, and CB Brandin Echols is listed as questionable today with a hamstring injury. He more than likely will end up playing today. For the Steelers, CB Akhello Witherspoon is out with a hamstring injury, and he is the only Steelers player on today's injury report.
For today's preview of the Steelers, we start offensively, where there have been struggles despite having some talent. They will be led by veteran QB Mitch Trubisky, whose inconsistencies have given the Steelers some early season issues while trying to win games. Despite this, the Steelers are strong in the backfield with good protection on the offensive line for RB Najee Harris. The former Alabama product is a major part of this offense, and the Jets must expect the run game to be used heavily today.
Along with Harris, all three Steelers' starting WRs today are all big playmakers and extra coverage in the secondary may be necessary to contain their pass game as well. The "Big Three" are Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, and rookie George Pickens, who made one of the craziest catches in the Steelers' last game on Thursday Night Football in week 3. All three of these guys are immediate threats and even with Trubisky as their QB, they still can be difference makers without a doubt.
Defensively, the Steelers have been one of the stronger looking teams so far. The big pass rushers are DE's Larry Ogunjobi and Cameron Heyward, but notably, LB Alex Highsmith will be someone rushing Zach Wilson a lot today as well. Highsmith leads the league in sacks so far this year with 4.5 sacks (ESPN.com) and has been able to pressure opposing QBs very well early in the 2022 campaign. The Jets depleted Offensive line must keep their eyes on him at all times depending on what Teryl Austin's defense wants to throw at them. Jets rookie OT Max Mitchell will pick up yet another start this week with Fant's absence, so expect the Steelers to come with pressure towards the blind side of Wilson a lot today while trying to expose the rookie Mitchell in the process.
The captain of this Steelers' defense is the former Dolphins' safety, Minkah Fitzpatrick. He is truly a dynamic player in the league and sees the field very well. He will take on an even bigger assignment today too with the Steelers not having Akhello Witherspoon set to play.
For the Jets to win this game today, penalties and utilizing the ground game and the passing game evenly will be key. Yes, Zach Wilson is back and ready to go, but having RBs Breece Hall and Michael Carter available will give the Jets some relief from having to throw the ball deep downfield as often. The Jets have been very pass heavy with QB Joe Flacco under center the first three weeks. This will need to change today, and better hybrid use of the pass and run game will be key to the Jets having offensive success against a hungry Steelers defense.
For today's prediction, it comes without saying that even despite the Steelers' struggles, this will be no easy game for the Jets to win. The late game and second half execution on both sides of the football has to be there and without it, the Steelers will and their fans will keep on waiving those truly terrible towels. With QB Zach Wilson under center yet again, the Jets offense gets a huge advantage and hopefully, it will lead to the on field success in "Blitzburgh" today. I expect this game to be competitive throughout, but unfortunately, don't see the Jets out on top. Wilson needs to adjust back into season mode and it might take a week or two for him to "get the kinks" out. I have the Steelers beating the Jets today by a score of 24-14.
-Miles Chamberlain
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| Breece Hall (Left) and Michael Carter (Right) will need to be utilized as a 1-2 punch in today's matchup in order to take some edge off of Zach Wilson (Middle) |
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