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The Pittsburgh Steelers travel to Philadelphia to take on the Eagles in this season's Battle of Pennsylvania. The Steelers are coming off a loss to the Dolphins that many feel they should have won. This time, they will try to deal the Eagles their first L of the season. An unlikely win here can potentially push the Steelers past the Browns in the AFC North. Here are our Pittsburgh Steelers Week 8 predictions as they take on the Eagles.
Pittsburgh has lost five of its previous six games, including a Week 7 16-10 loss to the Miami Dolphins, in which Kenny Pickett threw three interceptions.
Meanwhile, in three home games, the Eagles have outscored their opponents by 34 points, while the Steelers have been outscored by 50 points in four road games. Pickett is also having trouble with turnovers early on, which does not auger well against a Philadelphia team that has 14 takeaways. The Eagles are tied for No. 1 in that department this season.
With all these in mind, here are our four bold predictions for the Pittsburgh Steelers in their Week 8 game against the Eagles.
Deebo – #PHIvsPIT Oct. 7, 2012 pic.twitter.com/k47DVqzBVS
— Steelers History (@SteelersHistory) October 26, 2022
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4. George Pickens gets his second TD of the season
At their best, the Steelers have one of the league's most physically gifted wide receiver corps, but it lacks consistency. Diontae Johnson is still struggling with drops, while Chase Claypool can't be counted on to be in the right place at the right moment. Rookie WR George Pickens has been the Steelers' best receiver this season, but he is still a rookie with a restricted route tree. Although the ceiling is quite high for this talented receiving group, they remain very inconsistent.
Let's focus on Pickens, though. The average depth of target for George Pickens is 14.6 yards, which actually ranks 10th in the league. Again, he's pretty good, but he just has not gotten enough targets yet.
Looking ahead, Pickens' role in the Steelers offense is becoming more prominent. Despite the availability and experience of both Johnson and\ Claypool, Pickens should see an increasing number of targets with Pickett averaging 48 attempts in his two healthy starts this season. That may lead to Pickens' second TD reception of 2022.
3. Najee Harris goes over 70 rushing yards
The Eagles seem unbeatable after their bye week, though their ground defense has been a potential weakness.
Philadelphia allows 5.0 yards per carry, which ranks among the league's five worst figures. That's something the Steelers should exploit, which means this could be a big week for RB Najee Harris.
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Of course, Harris has not been particularly stellar this season, but he remains the unquestionable RB1 in Pittsburgh. Take note that he played 76.8 percent of the snaps in Week 7 and appears to be in good health. Given that he's faced the Jets, Buccaneers, Bills, and Dolphins in consecutive weeks, we believe this is a fantastic opportunity for him to break out.
If Philly's run defense remains weak in a better-than-expected matchup, Harris might be the surprise of the week. We have him going over 70+ yards for only the second time this season.
2. Kenny Pickett won't go over a 70.0 passer rating
Steelers rookie QB Kenny Pickett threw three interceptions against the Dolphins on Sunday night. The third interception came off a horribly underthrown pass that a leaping Noah Igbinoghene recovered at the goal line. Even then, there are particular throws that remind you of the rookie's promise. In particular, he had one laser to Pat Freiermuth that looked pretty good.
However, let's not forget that Pickett has been plagued by a restrictive offense troubled by protection concerns, a bottom-six ground game, and a lack of identity. He has the talent, but he needs everything else around him to come together.
Despite the loss to the Dolphins in Week 7, Pickett did pass for 257 yards and one touchdown. The 72.7 percent completion percentage was impressive, but the 5.8 yards per throw attempt shows that the rookie quarterback struggled to get anything going deep. He has logged a 70+ passer rating only twice this season, and we don't see him going over that here against an elite Eagles secondary.
1. Steelers won't slow down Jalen Hurts
Keep in mind that only the Chiefs and Bills have a higher yards per drive average than Jalen Hurts' Eagles offense (37.9). Hurts also has more talent surrounding him than Lamar Jackson, but the third-year pro has maximized his drives with his running game and inventiveness. If anything, Hurts isn't receiving enough credit for the explosive progress he's exhibited since last year. He has been on overdrive this season, we don't see the Steelers slowing him down.
Remember also that even when they are hitting on all cylinders, the Steelers have yet to score more than 23 points in a game this season. Pittsburgh has been kept to under 20 points in five of its seven games and now faces a Philly defense that has the league's fourth-best overall DVOA rating.
There is nothing short of an improbable disaster that can derail the Eagles from winning this game. The Steelers will run into a brick wall in Week 8, take their sixth loss of the season, and remain at the bottom of their division.
