The Pittsburgh Steelers authored a signature win on Sunday. Pittsburgh defeated Cincinnati 30-27 thanks to a complete effort from both sides of the football. One Steelers playmaker made the win possible by putting together an incredible performance in Week 3.
Steelers running back Jaylen Warren had an incredible game against the Bengals. He logged a career-high 176 scrimmage yards, powering Pittsburgh to a narrow three-point victory. Warren finished with 17 carries for 127 rushing yards along with three receptions for 49 receiving yards. He may not have gotten into the end zone, but Warren truly was the engine for the entire offense on Sunday.
One reason why Warren was so successful is because of his incredible elusiveness. He forced a total of 10 missed tackles on 20 touches against the Bengals, per Next Gen Stats. That shows that Warren did a lot of work creating opportunities for himself.
But it was also the first game where Pittsburgh’s offensive line made life easy for Warren. Of those 127 rushing yards, 69 of them came before contact. That represents how much of Warren’s yardage was simply blocked up for him by the o-line. It was a stunning improvement, as Warren total -14 yards before contact in his first two games of the season.
Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy said after the game that Warren was “a focal point” in the offense, per Steelers reporter Chris Adamski. McCarthy also called Warren’s contributions “huge” after getting such an important divisional win.
Warren was originally listed as questionable with a shoulder injury. Fortunately, the Steelers felt confident enough in Warren to give him the green light against the Bengals.
Remember, Cincinnati spent a lot of resources upgrading their defensive line during the offseason. The Bengals spent big to add players like Dexter Lawrence and Boye Mafe. That unit looked truly fearsome through the first two weeks of the season. But they could not put a lid on Warren at any point in Week 3.
Pittsburgh is now 2-1 on the season and very much in the AFC North division race. It will be exciting to see if they can keep the wins coming in Week 4.
Next up for the Steelers is a road game against the Browns.
