This week’s Patriots-Steelers game clearly has huge playoff implications. I think Pittsburgh is the second best team in the AFC, behind the Jets, and ahead of the Titans.
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| Tedy Bruschi and the Patriots handled Hines Ward and the Steelers 34-13 last Dec. 9 in Foxborough. (Getty Images) |
Pats offense vs. Steelers defense
I would look for New England to come out in three- and four-receiver sets and go with their no-huddle offense and throw the football. If they try to run the ball from a normal set, they will not have much success.Where they have an advantage over Pittsburgh is with their receiver corps matched up against the secondary of Pittsburgh. I do not think Pittsburgh's corners can stay with Randy Moss and Wes Welker.
The Steelers must double cover Moss. You must be physical with Moss at the line of scrimmage and bang him around. When you do this he will not fight through it all of the time. The teams that have had the most success against him have done this and also kept a safety over the top.
Welker is a move-the-chains type of receiver. That means he is tough to cover when you give him a two-way go, and he is very good with running with the ball after the catch. You should try to be physical with him at the line of scrimmage to disrupt the timing of his routes and also because he is not a very big receiver.
The Steelers don't have anyone who can cover Welker one-on-one. If they try to cover him that way and Cassel reads it correctly, the Steelers will be in trouble.
However, when you double Moss and Welker, a couple of things open up for the offense. It puts tight end Ben Watson in single coverage and he can beat the Steelers safeties or linebackers. Also it leaves receiver Jabar Gaffney in single coverage, and he also can exploit the Steelers corners.
It also opens up running lanes for Cassel, something he has taken advantage of the last couple of games.
Spreading out Pittsburgh offers the potential of removing one of their excellent OLBs from a pass-rushing position. The Steelers will try to find ways to avoid this and use LaMarr Woodley and James Harrison as pass rushers on a consistent basis.
The Steelers’ edge on defense is that their strong line can stop the Patriots running game, which they have done against better running teams like the Giants and Redskins. Their other edge on defense is their OLBs match up as pass rushers vs. the Patriots offensive tackles: Matt Light and Nick Kaczur. Neither one of these tackles can block Harrison and Woodley on a consistent basis.
The biggest improvement in the Patriots’ offense the past few weeks has been the development of Cassel. The way he has progressed in running the no-huddle offense and making quicker decisions has given the Patriots’ offense a much-needed jolt, allowing them to go back to their spread offense. The no-huddle offense with the spread formations puts a lot of pressure on the defense and it makes the reads simpler for the QB.
This will be Cassel's toughest test to date. The Steelers front seven is better than the Patriots’ front, and Pittsburgh will clearly try to rattle Cassel with blitzes.
Early in the year Cassel tended to hold the ball and would feel the rush and take sacks. He has improved steadily in both of those areas. He still will miss some reads on open receivers but he is improving.
