Steelers' TJ Watt Gives Encouraging News On Pittsburgh's Preparation Against The Packers
The Pittsburgh Steelers were recently defeated by the Cincinnati Bengals 33-31 on Thursday Night Football in a showing that made it look as if the Steelers hadn't shown up on defense. The Steelers gave up 342 passing yards to Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco and another 108 rushing yards to Bengals running back Chase Brown. This was on top of allowing Bengals superstar wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase to record the single-game record for receptions with 16 on 23 targets. Overall, the defensive effort was incredibly poor, being unable to stop the Bengals all night long no matter what they did, ultimately leading to the unit failing to stop the Bengals' final drive that came with 2:21 left in the game. Ultimately, the Bengals were able to kick the game-winning field goal to seal the deal.
There were more answers given to the questions about preparation on defense against the Packers when Steelers All-Pro edge rusher TJ Watt stepped up to the podium to discuss their efforts this week. Watt went on to explain the effort put into the gameplan against the Packers on 93.7 The Fan and made it rather simple, yet encouraging to Steelers fans who hope to see the defense bounce back.
"Stop the run, stop the run, stop the run," Watt stated. "And obviously try to affect the pass as much as we possibly can. I mean, we're not gonna get taken two weeks in a row, there's just a lot of things, guys doing their job individually, allowing us to play the best we possibly can collectively, and get back to what we do."
Watt's emphasis on stopping the run will definitely be a crucial element to the upcoming matchup against the Packers, as Packers running back Josh Jacobs has been an effective piece of their offense within the past month. Keeping him limited to small gains on the ground will be one of the best ways to keep the Packers from moving the ball effectively. The Steelers' defense has shown that they have the ability to keep elite players like Jacobs contained, but haven't been able to put up consistent efforts week to week, which has ultimately led to comments like Watt's taking center stage.
However, Watt's remarks also show a sign of confidence that the unit is collectively working on improving themselves, which would be coming at the right time considering how considerably difficult the schedule becomes for the Steelers -- even after this Sunday night against the Packers.
Steelers' Defense Needs To Gain Consistency With Increasingly Difficult Games Soon
As the Steelers enter one of the more difficult stretches of their season, starting this Sunday night against the Packers, Watt's comments about players working individually to perform at a high level to enhance the collective play of the unit as a whole will come into focus. The entire defense will need to begin putting up consistent performances against teams like the Packers if they want to be taken seriously as Super Bowl contenders. If the Steelers can go into Sunday night and put up a strong showing on defense, making the Bengals game seem more like an apparition than their real level of play, then there won't be many left that would be able to doubt the strength of the Steelers' defense going forward.
Kyle Dugger Absence vs. Browns Strains Patriots Secondary
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — With their Week 8 matchup against the Cleveland Browns set to kick off at Gillette Stadium, the New England
The Patriots (5-2) enter this matchup on the heels of a dominant 31-13 victory over the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium. Cleveland (1-5) also won its Week 7 contest against the Miami Dolphins by a score of 31-6 at Huntington Bank Field.
With just over an hour until the 1:00 p.m. ET kickoff, the Patriots and Browns have released their lists of inactives:
PATRIOTS INACTIVES:
S Kyle Dugger
LB Caleb Murphy
WR Efton Chism, III
DE Eric Gregory
DE Keion White
G Caedan Wallace
QB Tommy DeVito (3rd QB)
What it Means for the Patriots:
Dugger entered the weekend as questionable for Week 8 with a knee injury. The Lenoir-Rhyne product did not participate the the Pats final practice of the week and was the lone Patriot to be listed on their ultimate injury and practice participation report.
This season, Dugger has appeared in all seven games [making four starts] while compiling 17 total tackles. Due to his preseason and early-season struggles, the former Pats’ team captain has been the subject of both trade and release rumors — the former of which are expected to continue up to the NFL’s
Throughout his five-plus seasons in Foxborough, Dugger has appeared in 81 regular season games, making 69 starts. He also started his only playoff appearance in 2021. The Decatur, Georgia native has compiled 441 total tackles, nine interceptions and two fumble recoveries, while scoring three defensive touchdowns. His extensive knowledge of the Patriots playbook made him the logical choice to serve as their starter with veteran Jaylinn Hawkins being sidelined for the past two games with a hamstring injury.
Despite having just been signed by the Patriots on Oct. 15, defensive back Richie Grant’s elevation from the practice squad may indicate that he is likely to inherit some of the reps normally allotted to Dugger. The veteran safety was signed by the San Francisco 49ers as an unrestricted free agent this past offseason but was released prior to the start of the season. Throughout his four seasons in the NFL, the 6’0” 200-pound defensive back has played in 67 games with 33 starts and has accumulated 264 total tackles, three sacks, three interceptions, 17 passes-defensed and 11 special teams tackles.
The Patriots may also turn to second-year defensive back Dell Pettus, perhaps the more-likely choice to receive Dugger’s reps. Pettus has logged 10 total tackles, one forced fumble and one run-stuff in reserve duty this season.
BROWNS INACTIVES:
QB Shedeur Sanders
CB Jarrick Bernard-Converse
S Damontae Kazee
RB Raheim Sanders
G Zack Zinter
T Cornelius Lucas
DT Adin Huntington
