Believe it or not, there are two very hot seats in the city of Pittsburgh. One belongs to the Steelers defensive coordinator Tyrel Austin and the other to his boss, head coach Mike Tomlin. After the first five games Pittsburgh had won four of those. With the Baltimore Ravens off to a terrible start and the Cincinnati Bengals losing multiple games, the road to winning back the AFC North division title seemed imminent. Then the bottom dropped out of the defense.
In the past two games Pittsburgh’s defense has allowed 68 points to be scored on them. Very little adjustments have been made and while the players have not made the plays necessary, the coaching staff is responsible for coming up with a game plan and changes to turn the boat around. This has not happened so with the red hot Indianapolis Colts coming to Pittsburgh for game number eight, another 30 plus points scored by the Colts should put an end to at least Austin’s job.
While Teryl Austin is responsible for the defense, Mike Tomlin who came from a defensive background is the bottom line for not just the defense but the entire team. What he is anticipating for week nine is a team that is scary good and equally dangerous. The defense would certainly have to bring their “A” game for any chance to not only compete but to possibly come out with a win.
As indicated Jonathan Taylor and Danny Jones, who has absolutely resurrected his career, lead the offensive attack. The Colts lead the NFL in total offense averaging 385.3 yards per game. 250.9 of come off of are Jones’s arm. Led by Taylor, Indianapolis is sixth in the NFL with an average of 134.4 yards per game. As for Jonathan Taylor’s individual stats, that’s where it gets concerning for the Steelers. Thus far in 2025 he has run for 850 yards. Taylor has scored 12 touchdowns and his per carry average is 5.9 yards. He leads the league in rushing attempts with 143, meaning he touches the ball from handoffs about 18 times a game. His per game rushing average is just over 100.
Out of the backfield Jonathan Taylor also has caught 25 passes just 15 short of his career high and with 206 yards receiving he needs just another 154 the rest of the way to tie his all-time high. His average per reception is 8.2 and he has two touchdowns to boot. Another receiving touchdown and he will have surpassed his career high. As for the passing game, to reiterate, Danny Jones has been reborn. He is fourth in the NFL in passing yards with 2,062 within striking distance of the players in front of him (Dak Prescott-2,069, Patrick Mahomes-2,099, and Justin Herbert-2,140).
Jones has thrown only thee interceptions in 243 passing attempts and has completed 71.2 percent of those tosses. That is his highest mark for his career that he spent entirely in New York with the Giants. Jones has thrown for 13 touchdowns in his eight starts. The Colts absolutely made the right choice at quarterback, making Danny Jones the starter and not Anthony Richardson. In front of Jones is his offensive line that has protected him well made obvious by his low number of sacks which stands at nine. Jones’s QBR of 79.3 is also a career high.
Defensively, Indianapolis is not as impressive as their offense ranking 24th in the league overall. Their passing defense is 29th overall but in defending the run they rank eighth yielding just 93.1. The same things can’t be said for the Steelers. The Black and Gold defense is somewhere near the middle of the pack giving up 112.7 yards rushing per game. But passing? Dead last in the NFL allowing opposing passers to average 273.3 yards per game.
Offensively, the Steelers are again in the middle with an average of 202.9 yards per game and running for about 94 yards each time out. Overall, they are closer to the bottom of the pack accumulating about 297 yards of offense for an average. A big disappointment for the defense is not just how poorly they have played but their turnover ratio which a few games ago was near the top of the league now they have dropped to ninth with a ratio of +4. It seems like games ago when they last got themselves a turnover.
In looking at the history between these two teams and the games they have played against each other, that began when the Colts were in Baltimore and the first matchup took place on November 3, 1957, as the Steelers won 19-13. Earl Morrall was the quarterback for Pittsburgh, and the great Johnny Unitas was on the other side for the colts. Morrall would also play for the Colts at one time. The Colts were on the verge of becoming one of the best teams in the NFL with stars like Unitas, Lenny Moore, Alan Ameche, George Shaw, and Raymond Berry.
There have been 33 more games since that first meeting, and the Pittsburgh Steelers have won 25 with five in the playoffs, all won by the Black and Gold. During one stretch from 1985 until 2002, the Steelers won nine consecutive matchups. Then starting on September 9, 2011, another eight in a row were won by Pittsburgh. The Colts have never won more than two in a row, but they can break that mark in week nine with a win which would be their third straight in the last three games. Indianapolis has won the last two games 27-24 last season and 30-13 two seasons ago.
When the Colts have the ball
What should the Steelers’ defense expect? EVERYTHING. Any team playing Pittsburgh from here on out has watched the film from their previous games and can feel confident that this Black and Gold defense can be run on, thrown on, and while providing some quarterback pressure the defense has been unable to get to the quarterback on a consistent basis. Last season Jonathan Taylor rushed for 88 yards and a touchdown as the Colts beat Pittsburgh 27-24. Prior to that, Taylor ran on the Steelers in 2022 with 86 yards rushing. In his rookie campaign in Pittsburgh, Taylor rushed for 74 yards and two scores.
This season, Taylor is a different animal. As for Daniel Jones, when he was a Giant in 2024, New York lost to the Steelers 26-18, a game that saw Jones complete 24 of 38 passes for 264 yards with one interception. He also had a home game in his sophomore season in the opener in the season opener facing the Steelers as Pittsburgh won that one too and Jones was 26 of 41 for 279 yards throwing for two scores but getting picked twice. The Steelers sacked him three times in that game.
Expect the Colts to come out handing the ball to Taylor and see how he can stack up against what has been a porous defense. Daniel Jones will test the Steelers secondary for sure but if Pittsburgh can’t keep Taylor contained the running game will be the bulk of the Colts’ offense. Knowing Deshon Elliott is injured the Steelers traded for ex New England Patriots safety Kyle Dugger. The newest Steeler is already listed as questionable for the game Sunday, but his stats are nothing to write home about.
When the Steelers have the ball
The 2025 Steelers offense is well defined. We know what to expect. If not for the failures of the defense the Pittsburgh Steelers record would probably reflect differently. The cry in the offseason was the call for better quarterback play. The wait for Aaron Rodgers was worth the wait. While he is not playing like the old Rodgers did, he has been efficient and productive. He has done more than what was expected and has weapons to go to.
The Steelers are averaging 25 points per game. That should be enough to win a lot of games IF their defense had done their job. Only because of the games they won the defense is keeping opposing teams to 25 points as well. Take into consideration just the losses, and the defense is averaging a yield of 33 points in the three losses. What we can expect from the Steelers is a mix of Jaylen Warren rushes with Kenneth Gainwell pitching in. The throws to the tight ends will continue as well as working passes to the main target DK Metcalf and then Calvin Austin but keep your eye on Roman Wilson who has been coming on.
Intangibles
As mentioned before, the Steelers will need their “A” game and perhaps more to win this one. All signs point towards Pittsburgh being outgunned and not prepared for what could be an onslaught of offense from Indianapolis. This could actually get ugly if the Steelers defense doesn’t right themselves. After this another difficult game follows in Los Angeles with the Chargers waiting for Pittsburgh’s arrival. Last week proved home field advantage means nothing.
Prediction
In my opinion, Tyrel Austin’s job is on the line with this game. Is the Pittsburgh defensive coordinator up to the task to come up with a game plan to stop the blazing hot Jonathan Taylor? Taylor’s numbers are off the chain. Pittsburgh’s defense has been unable to stop any dangerous weapons from any of the teams they have faced let alone most offenses. I’ve been picking the Steelers in every game this season but now the tide has turned. Colts 31 Steelers 24.
