Steelers’ TJ Watt sends message after ‘smashing’ Colts’ run game
Pittsburgh Steelers star T.J. Watt knew exactly what won them the game. Minutes after a 27–20 win over the Indianapolis Colts, Watt laid out the blueprint that flipped the game: “It started with smashing the run first and foremost. Playing fast, playing physical football, playing simplified football,” he said in an interview shared by reporter Mike DeFabo on X.
Pittsburgh mauled the trenches, held Indianapolis to 55 rushing yards on 19 attempts, and turned Daniel Jones into a turnover machine. The Steelers forced six takeaways and piled up five sacks, a throwback brand of chaos that powered 24 unanswered points after trailing 7–0. Jaylen Warren finished the drives with two short touchdowns, while Aaron Rodgers managed the game with 203 yards and a 12-yard strike to Pat Freiermuth.
The sequence that changed everything looked familiar to Steelers fans. Watt knifed around the edge for a second-quarter strip sack, Alex Highsmith kept the heat on all afternoon, and the secondary feasted. Rookie linebacker Payton Wilson and cornerback Joey Porter Jr. grabbed interceptions as Pittsburgh turned short fields into points and a two-score cushion it never lost.
Numbers back it up. Jonathan Taylor, the league’s leading rusher coming in, managed 45 yards on 14 carries. Jones stacked yards late (342, 1 TD) but coughed up three interceptions and two lost fumbles under relentless pressure. Pittsburgh’s offense didn’t need style points; it needed mistake-free football and field position. It got both.
If there was a single “turning point,” local radio pegged Watt’s strip sack as the spark that woke up Acrisure Stadium. From there, the Steelers’ rush and coverage tied together, the tackling tightened, and Mike Tomlin’s group closed like a veteran unit.
The message afterward was simple. Pittsburgh cleaned up the run fits, hunted takeaways, and played on its terms. For a defense that took it on the chin the past two weeks, this was a needed course correction and a reminder of the ceiling when No. 90 sets the tempo. Smash the run, speed the game up, and let the ball find you. On Sunday, it did, six times.
Browns has a surprising trade deadline plan: NFL insider reveals the team plans to be buyers at the deadline and trade for young players
The Cleveland Browns are off to a 2-6 start, but the team has a surprising trade deadline plan.
Cleveland has been linked to trading the likes of David Njoku, Jerome Ford, Denzel Ward, and even possibly Myles Garrett, although that seems unlikely.
Although the focus for the Browns was expected to be trading away assets, that is not the plan for general manager Andrew Berry. Instead, NFL insider Adam Schefter reveals the team plans to be buyers at the deadline and trade for young players.
“While Cleveland already has completed three trades in the past month — acquiring offensive tackle Cam Robinson, sending quarterback Joe Flacco to Cincinnati, and swapping cornerbacks with Jacksonville — most sources believe that the Browns will be buyers more than sellers before the deadline,” Schefter wrote.
“The Browns do not sound inclined to trade tight end David Njoku, but they have been calling around the league, still looking to add quality young players to their roster.”
Cleveland being a buyer would be a massive surprise, as the Browns are off to a slow start. If the team can add some young players to the roster, perhaps Berry will make a move.
But, regardless, it sounds like Njoku will remain on the Browns roster past the Nov. 4 NFL trade deadline.
Browns Wouldn’t Get Much for Njoku
Part of the reason why Cleveland is unlikely to move Njoku is due to the potential return.
Njoku has lost his starting role to Harold Fannin Jr., but the trade return likely wouldn’t be high. Browns NFL insider Zac Jackson revealed that Cleveland would only get a fifth or sixth-round pick for Njoku.
“It’s hard to imagine Njoku bringing back more than a fifth- or sixth-rounder, though any potential deal might follow the model of last year’s Smith trade and the early October Browns-Bengals Joe Flacco deal in which the teams swapped draft picks on each side,” Jackson wrote. “On Monday, the Browns claimed tight end Brenden Bates off waivers and signed tight end Caden Prieskorn to the practice squad.
“Those moves don’t necessarily mean the Browns are preparing for a post-Njoku existence, but they do raise an eyebrow. In an Njoku trade, the acquiring team would only take on the prorated amount of his $1.26 million base salary for 2025. Njoku, 29, is eligible for free agency after the season but is due to count about $24 million on next year’s salary cap from the Browns using an up-front cash payment to stretch out his deal in 2023.”
So, due to the lack of return, perhaps that is why the Browns will be buyers ahead of the deadline.
Kevin Stefanski Explains How Offense Can Get Better
The Browns’ offense has struggled, as rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel hasn’t been effective in his starts.
During the bye week, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski explained how the offense can be better going forward.
“To have success as an offense, you have to be efficient in what you’re doing, and you have to be explosive in what you’re doing. And in order to do that, we have to put guys in certain spots, put them in whatever position it may be at – wide receiver, tight end, running back, if you will, and find ways to maximize their skill set,” Stefanski said.
“So, when you’re not having the success that we need to be having and we’re working towards, obviously we’re not doing enough. You’re constantly looking at different players, different ways that routes that they can run, run concepts that they can run. So, you have to continue to search for those things so that you can be efficient and then ultimately explosive.”
The Browns will go on the road to play the New York Jets in Week 10.
