Cardinals-Steelers Keys to Victory
The Arizona Cardinals enter their game at Acrisure Stadium against the Pittsburgh Steelers with a 2-10 record and having lost back-to-back games. If they plan on beat Pittsburgh on the road this week, they'll need to have a good game plan.
The Cardinals aren't a team that's going to be sneaking up on anyone this season, but that doesn't mean they can't get some upset wins (see their week three win over the Dallas Cowboys).
It's not impossible for the Cards to stroll into the Steel City and get the upset, but they have to execute a safe, yet aggressive game plan to do so.
Here's how I would attack the Steelers to get that sweet, sweet W.
Play it safe on offense
The Steelers enter this game with 20 turnovers through 11 games, tied for the fourth most across the league. The biggest culprit of those turnovers has been T.J. Watt, who has record four turnovers by himself. Pittsburgh also has 12 interceptions on the year with 10 different defenders recording at least one pick.
Pittsburgh also has 32 sacks on the season, albeit Watt has 13.5 of them. It's a pass rush that has taken a step back this season, but nonetheless is dynamic.
If the Cardinals want to win this game, they'll need an offensive game plan that doesn't take many, if any risks. This means no trick plays and getting cute. Rather, they need to turn to James Conner as their bell cow and try and pound it out on the ground. The Steelers are 20th in the league in run defense, allowing 118.4 yards per game. It's a beatable unit.
Bottom line, don't overthink your offensive play calling.
Pressure Kenny Pickett
The Steelers offensive line has played some very quality football this season when it comes to allowing sacks. On the year, Pittsburgh has only given up 25 sacks in 11 games, tied for the ninth-fewest in the league. It's a massive improvement from what we've seen in recent years.
For the Cardinals to take down the Steelers, however, they'll need to crash the pocket and get Kenny Pickett off his rhythm.
The Cards are middle of the pack in terms of sacks with 32 per game, tied for 12th across the league. They'll need guys like B.J. Ojulari, who has been heating up recently, will need be massive factors in this game. It's not impossible, but they'll need one of their finer performances of the season.
Don't give up the deep ball
The Steelers are anything but a great passing team, as they enter the match averaging just 178.9 passing yards per game, the fifth-least amount across the league.
That being said, this can't be the week that they get everything going.
Kenny Pickett has some solid weapons at his disposal., including George Pickens. Pickens leads the team in receiving yards at 662 including 14 plays with catches of 20 or more yards. On top of his massive 16.5 yards per reception, he's the definition of a big-play receiver with deep ball prowess.
The Cardinals will have a difficult task of bottling up Pickens, but it's not impossible with bracket coverage. Some may think Pickens isn't good enough for that kind of scheme, but is it worth risking big plays? I don't think so...
