This is what it can look like. The question is whether this formula can take them where they want to go.

The Steelers snapped their two-game losing streak in decisive fashion in Sin City with a 32-13 win over the Raiders, leaving them at 4-2 with plenty of room to feel good about the way they did.

On offense, they entered the game with the same starting five along the offensive line for the second time in a row – the first time all season – and the running game responded with its most productive performance of 2024 with 183 yards (over 40 yards better than 141 vs. Denver), an average of 5.2 (more than 1 full yard better than the 4.1 vs. Indianapolis, and 3 rushing touchdowns (1 more than the 2 vs. Indianapolis).

With all due respect to the blocking generated by the combined efforts of those same five linemen plus tight ends Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington and the nice work of the guys on the perimeter, it was Najee Harris who did the heavy lifting. Actually, a better description would be that Harris did the carving.

Yes, Harris finished with 106 yards, a 7.6 average and a 36-yard touchdown, and it’s also true that after entering the game ranked fourth in the NFL in broken tackles, he lost his total added up. But it should be noted that Harris’ 14 carries included gains of 13, 15, 26 and 36 yards, which are nice amounts for a 242-pound man.

And whatever the Raiders defenders had next, Justin Fields sucked the remaining life out of them. Fields finished with 59 yards on 11 carries, but once you subtract the kneel-downs in victory formation, he had 7 carries/scrambles that played a huge role in securing the win. He converted a second-and-10 with a 14-yard run; a second and 13 with an 18-yard run. And to cap off the 6-play, 30-yard drive that followed a takeaway, Fields ran 7 yards on first and 10 on the Raiders 12-yard line; and for 3 and a touchdown on fourth-and-1 from the 3-yard line.

NFL quarterbacks can typically be categorized as mobile, a scrambler or a runner. Since entering the NFL in 2021, only Lamar Jackson has more rushing yards than Fields, and only Jalen Hurts and Josh Allen have more rushing touchdowns than him. Fields is a runner.

“I just thought it was a collective effort, not just from the bigs, but from the people on the perimeter,” coach Mike Tomlin said of the team’s running game. “And obviously Najee and everyone else. But I thought anytime you have a run output like that, it’s not an individual, it’s a collective. That breakaway run (Harris’ 36-yard touchdown), I think (Pat Freiermuth ) sealed the corner and let it go. Looking at it, I just felt the collective energy and effort it took.

The question is whether Fields can even be in the same zip code as Jackson, Hurts and Allen as passers-by, because navigating an upcoming schedule is still a home-and-home vs. the Ravens, Bengals and Browns, plus one -offs against Washington, Philadelphia and Kansas City will need more than 14 of 24 (58.3 percent) for 145 yards, with no touchdowns, no interceptions and a rating of 75.9.

That’s because the defense sometimes has three takeaways: one of them was a fumble on the opponent’s 30-yard line, one of which was a forced fumble on the 1-yard line, and one of which was an interception and return to the 30-yard line. yard line. the opponent’s 7-yard line – but usually not. And sometimes special teams will contribute a blocked punt, as was the case against the Raiders recovered on the opponent’s 9-yard line, but most of the time that won’t be the case.

In those cases where the defense and special teams don’t make these types of contributions, the Steelers need an NFL-level passing game, and right now the word that best describes Fields’ passing is “sometimes.”

Sometimes he sees it and throws on time and on target, and sometimes one of those three elements is missing. By all accounts, Fields is a hard worker who is coachable and a good teammate, but can he become a guy who upgrades to seeing and making throws on time and on target, and is it even fair to expect that to happen ? now. Because now the Steelers can field a defense with dynamic players at every level of the unit, plus special teams with a punter who averages 47.6 yards per player, a placekicker who converts 95.2 percent, and units who can make a field goal and blocking a field goal. point in the last 2 games.

For the first time this season, Russell Wilson was the No. 2 quarterback, and he wasn’t awarded that title based on perfect meeting attendance. Wilson was medically cleared to participate fully in practice, and coach Mike Tomlin liked what he saw.

“First and foremost, my No. 1 agenda was I wanted him to be able to demonstrate his health, his ability to not only move but protect himself. I felt really comfortable with what I saw there,” Tomlin said . “The rest of the equation is about removing the rust and getting a good rapport, a relationship with the battery receivers and things like that. And from that perspective, I thought it was a really good week.”

Eventually, Tomlin will reach the point where he has seen enough of Wilson to put the original plan in motion regarding the quarterback position. As a refresher, here’s what Tomlin said about it a few days before the August 17 game against Buffalo:

“(The depth chart at quarterback) is probably in the same spot I’ve been describing him all spring and summer. Both guys are competing for the role. Russ is in pole position because of the collective body of work, the entirety of the body of work he’s put into the situation. Both guys are new to us. We’ll get a chance to get to know them through this process. Now that Russ is fully healthy, it’s going to be exciting in the coming weeks, and I’m excited to see it happen.”

That heat was cooled considerably by a recurrence of Wilson’s calf injury, suffered the day players reported to training camp, and the veteran with 9 Pro Bowls and a Super Bowl win on his resume was an afterthought. But there are things about Wilson – the way he sees the field, his ability to make anticipatory throws, his infectious been-there-done-that personality combined with an inclusive mindset and an upbeat approach when it comes to his teammates – which put him in pole position and kept him there throughout the off-season program. His new teammates elected him captain.

It looks like there will come a time to reexamine all that. Soon. And that’s because of ‘now’.

This is when the Steelers must attack an 11-game stretch on a schedule that is more challenging than any other team in the same span. This is when they have a defense and special teams that look capable of living up to their end of the bargain. Now they’re starting to get some of their walking wounded back. As it is, racking up enough wins in those 11 games to get where they want to go and do what they need to do once they get there will take more from the offense than a continuous play.

Finding out if Wilson has what it takes to make a difference makes too much sense. It’s going to happen because it has to happen. In the meantime, it’s always fun to beat the Raiders at their spot when it’s taken over by Terrible Towels.