The Pittsburgh Steelers are in the midst of the 2024 regular season, and with it being the team’s latest game fans’ hopes remain high heading into the second half of the season. The hope is there is a winning performance on the horizon on Sunday in Week 10 when the team travels to play the Washington Commanders.

What exactly do the Steelers need to do to on offense to claim their seventh victory of 2024? Let’s break it down…

Offense

Run the Rock

Let’s take a look at the following averages to see if we can connect some dots:

WAS Defense

Rush YPG: 143 (28th)
Pass YPG: 183.3 (5th)

PIT Offense

Rush YPG: 138.1 (8th)
Pass YPG: 190 (26th)

You see what I see? Yeah, the advantage leans the Steelers favor in the ground game. With Zach Frazier back at center, and coming off the bye week, the Steelers should be able to impose their will on a porous Washington run defense. If Washington loads the box, Russell Wilson and company should know what to do.

Protect the Football

The Steelers have only turned the ball over 5 times this season, and they aren’t facing a team who is known for taking the ball away. Washington has 8 takeaways on the season (3 INTs, 5 FR), and if the Steelers cough up the football in any way they will allow the Commanders to increase their likelihood of winning.

Think back to the last game on Monday night vs. the Giants, Russell Wilson’s fumble opened up the door for the Giants to potentially pull off the upset. T.J. Watt took care of it, but you don’t want to put yourself into those situations.

Convert when it Matters

Washington’s 3rd down defense is getting off the field 41.8% of the time, and their red-zone defense is currently tied for 28th in the league, allowing touchdown conversions 69% of the time.

On the flip-side, the Steelers red-zone offense currently ranks 30th, converting 46.4% of their red-zone trips into touchdowns.

If the Steelers want to win their 4th game in a row, and their latest road game, they have to convert when it matters. They were 0-for-4 vs. the Giants in the red-zone, and that performance can’t be repeated.

I talk about this, and MUCH more on the “Let’s Ride”, and you can hear that podcast in the player below this article. In the meantime, be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the team as they gear up for game time!