NFL Week 14 reactions and overreactions

Talking some football.

Checking in with my weekly look at the Pittsburgh Steelers and the NFL as a whole. Let’s get to it.

1. Nobody should change their opinion regarding the Pittsburgh Steelers following their 27-22 win over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. They are what they are. An average, to maybe slightly above average team that can beat most teams on a given week and lose to most teams on a given week. They are a nine or 10-win team, can maybe win a playoff game if they can avoid Josh Allen, and that is probably their ceiling.

Nothing regarding that outlook changes based on Sunday’s win. A lot of people should be changing their opinion on the Ravens after that game, because it just showed what I have been suspecting about that team for weeks (and most of the season) — it just is not a very good team. It most definitely not a very good team when quarterback Lamar Jackson is less than 100 percent, which he very clearly is. That Ravens team still has a couple of more losses in it this season.

2. The one thing that did truly shock me about Sunday’s game is the way the Steelers actually connected on some downfield passes. Going into that game they had no completed a pass that traveled more than 20 yards in over a month. They had barely even attempted any. Then on their first play from scrimmage Aaron Rodgers and DK Metcalf connected on a 52-yard play down the sidelines that was about as picture perfect as you can get.

I have complained about the Steelers attempts to pass more than they run in recent weeks (because everything about their play was screaming for more running and less passing) but it finally all clicked on Sunday. Where did that come from?

Was that a sign of things to come? Was it a testament to how bad the Ravens defense is? Was it just a future Hall of Fame quarterback having a brief moment of brilliance? The next four games and beyond will answer those questions.

3. You better believe I can understand the Ravens frustrations with that touchdown being taken away. If that happened to a team I cheered for I would be livid. Then I remembered, that DID happen to a team I follow. If Jesse James did not catch it, neither did Isaiah Likely.

Also, like the Steelers in the Jesse James game, the Ravens still had plays after that to do something else. The Likely play was not fourth down. It was not the final play of the game. They had three more plays on that series and did not score. They had another possession after that and took their sweet ass time getting down the field despite knowing they only had one timeout and needed a touchdown. You still have to adapt and overcome. The Steelers did not in the Jesse James game. The Ravens did not in this game. It happens.

4. Speaking of that play, Joey Porter deserves a lot of credit for getting his hand in there and punching the ball away from Likely. Whether you agree with the call or not, that was a substantial play in the game and it does not go that way if he does not jar the ball loose. It was a game-changing play. It also was a much-needed play for Porter because the penalty troubles that have defined so much of his career have started to creep back in, and it was a big problem on Sunday.

Porter can be a very good man-coverage corner, and in his defense, he has played pretty well in that regard over the past few weeks.

But the penalties are significant, and a problem. Physical play is a big part of his game, but he needs to be able to do something and cover without holding people or putting himself at risk for penalties.

5. Overall the secondary has not really played out as planned this season. Darius Slay did not get through the season in Pittsburgh before being released and potentially just walking away from football. Juan Thornhill is also out the door. Jalen Ramsey moved from cornerback to safety. Brandin Echols and James Pierre have become their most impactful and arguably most reliable cornerbacks. They have also been very good. Echols has been making a lot of splash plays in recent weeks and has been one of the few bright spots from all of the additions made this past offseason.

6. The Steelers run defense is still a major concern. Getting Derrick Harmon back will help, but one rookie should not make-or-break the entire run defense. It was a big problem a year ago, and it is worth asking if they did enough to address it.

When Harmon plays they are actually an outstanding run defense. When he does not, it is an awful run defense.

That is a good sign that he might be a difference-maker. But again …. one player should not make-or-break that much.

Relating to points five and six here, I think if there is a damning indictment of Mike Tomlin and the front office it is not necessarily just that the defense is bad. It is that they thought they had a great defense. They thought they had the people and the players to be a dominant, historic defense. It is a significant problem in talent evaluation, which goes back to a point I made earlier this season. Still might be a good to very good coach. The talent evaluation, however, is getting worse. On both sides of the ball.

They will have a big test on Monday night against a Miami Dolphins team that has been on a little bit of a roll in recent weeks. Especially if De’Von Achane is ready to play.

Let’s talk about the rest of the NFL going into this weekend, including Philip Rivers and the Indianapolis Colts, Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals and more.