Obscure Statistical Time: The Pittsburgh Steelers are 6-2, which was their record after eight games in all three seasons they went to the Super Bowl in the Ben Roethlisberger era. After a solid offensive performance against the New York Giants, Pittsburgh sits atop the AFC North heading into their bye week. Here’s who stood out in Week 8

Varsity

QB Russell Wilson

Wilson built on his stellar performance in Week 7 and carried it over to Week 8. If not for two touchdowns taken away, he would have thrown for over 300 yards and three scores as the Steelers scored 40 points. However, with 20-of-28 for 278 and a handful of beautiful deep balls, the job was done for the Steelers.

RB Najee Harris

This was Harris’ third straight 100-yard game as he totaled 114 yards on six yards per carry. It has come to life in the last month and is running as well as ever. This is the guy Pittsburgh wanted when they took him in the 2021 first round.

W. Calvin Austin III

What a game from No. 19. He had the first touchdown of the game on a 73-yard punt return, and later doubled down by catching a touchdown pass from Russell Wilson. He caught three passes for 54 yards and had two scores in what was by far the best game of his career.

W. George Pickens

Pickens should have had two touchdowns in this game, and now he’s having up to three scores deducted because of a penalty or the dumbest rule in football: dragging the same foot twice doesn’t count as a catch. Anyway, he caught four passes for 74 yards, including an absolute thong on a crosser from Wilson for 43 yards.

W. R. Van Jefferson

What about Van Jefferson these past two weeks? He had his first touchdown as a Steeler last week, and in Week 8 he made a very good back-shoulder catch for a 36-yard gain on third-and-long. He had four catches for 62 yards on the night, both by far the most he has had in a game this season.

EDGE TJ Watt

Yep, that was vintage TJ Watt. Seven tackles, two sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. He’s the best defensive player in football and right now I don’t feel like anyone is a close second.

EDGE Alex Highsmith

Highsmith really could have had three sacks that night, as his spin move on Watt’s first sack was flawless and immediately put pressure on Daniel Jones. He also had two sacks that night and had six hits off Daniel Jones.

LB Patrick Queen

Queen was quick on the ball and looks day and night better than in the first month of the season. He finished with eight tackles, which was the highest total on the team for the night.

CB hat bishop

Another interception for the undrafted rookie. That’s three in two weeks, this one sealed the victory.

Junior Varsity

Defense

Aside from a small handful of defenders and defensive plays, the defense was largely poor. The Giants had four plays of 25 yards or more, Tyrone Tracy rushed for 145 yards on more than seven yards per carry, and Darius Slayton beat them twice for big gains, finishing with 108 yards on four catches. Against a Daniel Jones-led attack, I expected a much more dominant performance.

Finishing

Once again the offense consistently gets into the red zone and makes stops. Granted, one was taken away due to a Broderick Jones penalty (shocking), they had two other drives that ended with field goals in scoring position. They’re getting so close, and 26 points is certainly nothing to be upset about. However, they will need touchdowns in these games and once the playoffs arrive.