While the Pittsburgh Steelers have at times looked far from their best this season, they still find themselves in the thick of the AFC North race at 4-2. That’s definitely better than many may have thought after a week one beat down in Baltimore. This week they make the cross-country trip to Arizona for a matchup with former Super Bowl winning offensive co-ordinator Ken Whisenhunt’s Cardinals, who at 1-4 look to be out of the divisional race with the San Francisco 49ers racing ahead of the NFC west with a 5-1 record. If they are to have any hope at getting back into the race for a playoff spot, they need a win on Sunday. With that in mind, here are the three areas to focus on in this matchup.
.
1) Pittsburgh’s Pass Rush vs. Arizona’s Offensive Tackles
The switch to right outside linebacker to cover for James Harrison hasn’t gone well so far for Lawrence Timmons (-3.5). Timmons has registered just one hit from 54 rushes in the last two games, leading him to the two worst graded games of his career. When you combine all of that with the fact that Larry Foote is struggling in Timmons’ place at inside linebacker, you wonder if it would be worth it for Pittsburgh to put in one of their young linebackers on the outside so that Timmons could move back to the inside linebacker position that he played so well in last year. On the other side, Lamarr Woodley (+0.9) leads the team in total pressures with 15 but he isn’t dominating the way Harrison does. Despite Timmons’ struggles and Woodley’s lack of consistency, they are going up against a pair of offensive tackles who have allowed a combined 45 total pressures this year. Brandon Keith (-11.9) has been poor and Levi Brown (-20.8) is our worst rated offensive tackle through six weeks. How Kevin Kolb has only missed 8 snaps so far this year is a minor miracle.
.
2) Larry Fitzgerald vs. Ike Taylor
Despite the Cardinals’ struggles, Larry Fitzgerald is on pace for over 1,200 receiving yards this year. Fitzgerald (+5.8) has a reception of more than 20 yards in every game this year, and he is well on his way to a 15.8 yards per reception average. This week he’s likely to see a lot of Ike Taylor (+1.8) who has allowed just five catches on 29 targets on six games this year. To sum up, Taylor has allowed less catches all year than Fitzgerald is averaging on a weekly basis. That number shows us why it was so important for Pittsburgh to re-sign Taylor in the offseason, and it sets us up for a fantastic matchup on Sunday.
Mike Wallace
It’s worth noting just how good of a season that Mike Wallace is having. Our third rated wide receiver, trailing only Wes Welker and Calvin Johnson, is averaging over 100 receiving yards per game with four touchdowns and only one dropped pass. He has also forced six tackles. It should go without saying that Wallace is a deep threat, but if you need any further proof take a peek at this stat. Wallace has a catch of more than 40 yards in each of his last five games. That’s a play stretching nearly half the field that Wallace gives the Steelers once a week. He has truly blossomed into the Steelers number one receiver and has now established himself amongst the best receivers in the league. I had a look back at some of his plays and while he has plenty of big plays, there was one in particular that stood out. With 1:52 remaining in the third quarter against the Seattle Seahawks, Wallace beat Brandon Browner downfield before hauling in a 53-yard pass with his fingertips. It’s worth keeping an eye on Wallace on Sunday to see if he can continue his strong start to the season.
.
.
Follow Gordon on Twitter: @PFF_Gordon and check out our main Twitter feed : @ProFootbalFocus
.
.
.
.
.
© 2025 PFF - all rights reserved.