Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Battle: Patriots and Steelers Renew Rivalry | Can Vrabel Outsmart Tomlin?

Starting point is 00:00:00 It's a battle between one-and-one teams when the Steelers visit the Pats this Sunday. He's Chris Carter. I'm Nick Cattels. This is a crossover edition of Lockdown Patriots and Lockdown Steelers. You are Locked-on NFL crossover, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network. Your team every day. What's happening? host of Lockdown Patriots, Nick Cattels. And today I'm joined by the host of Lockdown

Starting point is 00:00:33 Steelers, Chris Carter, for the latest edition of our lockdown crossovers during this 2025 NFL season. And on this week's crossover show, we'll give you the key matchups to focus on the game. We'll also tell you how each team can walk away two and one with our three keys to the game on Sunday. But first, it's all about the city's headlines heading into Sunday. We appreciate you joining the show, making us your first listen. And for being an everydayer. Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe as you watch, Lockdown Patriots, Lockdown Steelers Podcasts, proud partners of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. And this crossover Thursday is presented by prize picks. Download the prize picks at the day. Use code Lockdown

Starting point is 00:01:14 NFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup. Chris, first time I get to do this with you, man. Very happy to do it. How you doing and how you feeling? Feeling excited as always. Any week I get to cover football is a good week in my book. So it's a pretty exciting time. Both these teams come into this game with high hopes. Both these teams have had their ups and their downs. But certainly it's going to be interesting with some matchups and potentially we get some young stars back on the defensive side of both sides of the ball.

Starting point is 00:01:45 We'll talk about Christian Gonzalez in the sec. But the Steelers get Derek Harmon back at practice. He was their first round pick out of Oregon, their defensive tackle. Now, personally, and I explain this in a short on our YouTube page for Locked on Steelers, I don't think Derek Harmon's going to play in this game, but it's a very good sign that he's practicing this. We even, albeit in a limited capacity on Wednesday, the Steelers run defense has been rough.

Starting point is 00:02:07 He was brought here to be a big force for the Steelers up the middle, and they've needed answers. And without him, they've been struggling with some of the backups that they've been floating in there. I don't think he plays this game, but if he's at least back for the Ireland game against the Vikings the week after, that could be huge for the Steelers and getting him back. What's the word on Christian Gonzalez?

Starting point is 00:02:25 Well, yeah, Christian Gonzalez finally back at practice today, and, you know, as we record this on Wednesday night, he was back at practice on Wednesday, and he was limited. He was limited today, but he has not practiced in about six weeks. So it is certainly a step forward. And, of course, you caught up with D.K. Metcalfe in the locker room today and asked him about Gonzalez. When you study him on tape, what does Christian Gonzalez do that you got to prepare for it to be having a good Sunday? I mean, a great young player, you know, he has a size that, you know, a lot of. that teams want, you know, going against a big receiver, you know, in this league.

Starting point is 00:03:00 So he definitely has a size of band. He's smart. And, you know, he's a tough kid to go against. Now, Chris, here's the thing. I mean, this defense has been struggling through the first two weeks. It's been pretty bad. I don't think Christian Gonzalez is going to be the end-all, be-all. If he plays on Sunday, that's still an unknown.

Starting point is 00:03:18 But if he's out there, I don't think he's a magic elixir. The defense has been bad. Linebacker has been terrible. Robert Spalane, Christian Ellis, not only missed tackles, but also terrible in coverage. And for Steelers fans, you know, this weekend might be interesting because not only was Gonzalez back at practice but limited, so was Caleban Chase on, so was Carlton Davis, so was Harold Landry, so was Marte Mapu. Christian Barmore was not at practice, or at least he was limited, but it's not injury related. That goes back to the blood clots last year. They've been managing him.

Starting point is 00:03:52 So this defense has been shook from day one of this season. And they're trying to write the ship. Gonzalez could help, but they still get some major, major issues, Chris. They do. But, hey, I think Steelers fans, we could just tell you, hey, don't worry. The Steelers got their own defensive issues. You know, you look at the overall stats. The Patriots, sure, they rank 20th and 47 points allowed.

Starting point is 00:04:13 The Steelers rank 29th and 63 points allowed. The Patriots, sure, they rank 25th and 747 yards allowed. The Steelers rank 29th and 789 yards allowed. And for the Steelers, they're missing guys, too, like Joey Porter Jr., still not practicing. Alex Highsmith, hurt right now. He's not practicing. They've been missing Derek Harmon, Deshawn Elliott. Their safety's been out, and they've been dealing with other injuries here and there.

Starting point is 00:04:37 They've been having things, but this is still supposed to be the defense that was going to be a top five unit in the NFL this year. What we heard all throughout training camp when we talked to these guys, and that's what the Steelers are hoping that they can eventually get this unit to being. The last three years, they were a top 10 unit. And that's been a big, a big thing for the, for the Steelers. I don't think it's been particularly because of their stars. I think it's been more so because they're, they're trying some very new approaches to how they want to play defense with this, with this current group. And there's a lot of new faces. And meanwhile, there's a lot of new faces.

Starting point is 00:05:09 There's a lot of injuries. And so trying to get that cohesion and that chemistry to be smooth but aggressive at the same time, it hasn't been easy for them. And it's going to be another challenge with the Patriots coming up this week. and it's always hard winning in a Boxborough. Yeah, it's fascinating. I hear you talk about the Steelers defense. It feels the same way with the Patriots to a point, not only the overall stats,

Starting point is 00:05:29 but, you know, week one against the Raiders, they came out very aggressive. They blitzed a ton. Week two, they hardly blitzed Miami at all. Mike Vrable is a game plan defense kind of head coach. So I don't know what they are going to do this Sunday against the Steelers. They could blitz a lot. They might lay back.

Starting point is 00:05:46 I'm not sure. But I do know the Patriots offensively the top story. is can they follow what they did last weekend up against the Steelers? Because we know, Chris, that the Dolphins defense is easily one of the worst defenses in football, and that was great news for the Patriots last Sunday. Drake May, I think, had his best NFL game last weekend. And now the question is, can he follow it up? What does he look like, you know, in week three?

Starting point is 00:06:11 Can you give you back-to-back really good weeks? Or will he have a hiccup because he's still young? Will he have those bumps in the road? And I'm fascinated. I don't know about you, but I was watching the Steelers game against the Seahawks, and I am fascinated to see what the Steelers do, what the Steelers do against Drake, May, because I know the Steelers like to blitz. They've blitzed a ton this year so far.

Starting point is 00:06:34 That could be playing with a little bit of fire with May's ability to run and extend plays and get out of that pocket. So offensively, it's can May follow up. How about you offensively? I know Aaron Rogers has been taught about Jalen Warren, but what are you looking for offensively as the top story this weekend? from the Steelers point of view. Well, that's just it.

Starting point is 00:06:52 One thing I asked Aaron Rogers, I noted in a film study I did for the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, how the Seahawks, in week one, Aaron Rogers through three touchdown passes off of play action because the Seahawks, or excuse me, the Jets in week one, were biting up on play actioning because last year, the Steelers loved to run the football,

Starting point is 00:07:08 even when it didn't work. And so they were saying, we're not going to let them run the ball. And so Aaron Rogers took advantagement, three touchdowns on play action passes was a big part of their offense. This week against the Seahawks, they couldn't get the ball. the play action going because the X-Hawks just said, go ahead, run it.

Starting point is 00:07:22 Yeah, please do it. And then they didn't bite. And so Aaron Rogers had to work around without the play action. And so I asked Aaron Rogers in the Steelers locker room on Wednesday. And I said, like, hey, like, you know, we talked about this after the game. You noted they're too high shells zone coverage. If the Patriots come out, what do you guys have to do to do that? And he says, run the football.

Starting point is 00:07:43 That's the way when teams are in two high shells, I have to recognize it. And we have to check into it and get the. the ball to one of our guys, block well, and get yards. And he said, that's the way how you beat things. And that's where I think this Steelers offense is really trying to be. Aaron Rogers is not coming to the Steelers to be prime, fourth time MVP, Aaron Rogers. He's coming in to be the conductor that says, hey, we're a balanced off. He won the ball, balance that with a good passing attack, do those well, and then they play off of each other. And then that way, you're not asking D.K. Metcalf to beat double teams all the time. You're not asking Jalen Warren to run into

Starting point is 00:08:17 crowded boxes. You're catching teams. where they're not. And that's what I think the Steelers want to do. Ultimately, it'll be up to the Steelers to those to see how do the Patriots come out and then counter it and try to find when are they soft against the run, when are they aggressive, and when they can they use that to their advantage to use play action. All right. So those are some of the biggest stories that we're looking at this week,

Starting point is 00:08:39 getting ready for this game. Again, between two teams that are 500 right now, one and one. This game will be at Gillette, Pittsburgh, traveling to New England. Coming up, Chris and I will give you the marquee matchups that will decide this game on Sunday. It's a lockdown Patriots and Steelers crossover, and we are part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team, every day. Let's talk about Mazda. Mazda crafts cars for those who do more than simply move. Mazda delivers confidence with every ride with more I-IHS top safety pick plus awards than anyone else.

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Starting point is 00:10:14 are doing the crossover Patriot Steelers style as we get ready for Sunday's game. And obviously, Rogers and Metcalf trying to get it going, Vrable and the defensive staff, trying to figure things out on their side of the football as well. To you, what is one of the marquee matchups in this game on Sunday? Well, to me, it's going to be about things that the Patriots try to capitalize on that the Steelers have not done well. And I think, you know, we talked about it briefly in the last segment,

Starting point is 00:10:43 the Steelers. Aaron Rogers said, we have to run the ball. Well, the Patriots have the third best rushing defense in the NFL. This would be a heck of a week for that to chime in. Now, Jalen Warren isn't the issue for the Steelers run game. He's very much, very talented. He had a 65-yard catch and run the other day where he made like four guys missing the Seahawks defense. That was a ridiculous play. That was a ridiculous play. Jalen Warren is a very good player and they're very confident in him as their featureback for right now while they develop Caleb Johnson as a rookie and Kenneth Gainwell, sort of their veteran third down guy slash extra guy they like to use in the passing game.

Starting point is 00:11:15 But I think the big thing is really the offensive line versus this Patriot's front because the Steelers offensive line is still very young. Roderick Jones, though, in his third year, it's just his third game starting at left tackle. Troy Falton, he went his second year, getting his third game starting at right tackle. He missed all of last season with an injury. Zach Frazier, your second year starting center, Mason McCormick, your second year, starting right guard.

Starting point is 00:11:39 This is a group that's still figuring each other out. And that's where I think that this is going to be a big matchup going against this Patriot's teams, Tonga, Milton Williams, who's just been a beast and a heck of a signing for the Patriots to start this year, Christian Barmer. And then the linebacker Spillane, who the Steelers are very familiar with, the guy that hits hard and plays fast, they have to be able to get these guys off the ball. If they're able to just, I'm not saying dominate the run game, but if they can get it to the point where when they're running the ball, if the Patriots go in two high shells and. the Steelers can run the ball and get four yards of pop on those types of plays, that's going to force the Patriots eventually into a situation where, okay, we're going to have to bring some guy down to help at some point. And if you can do that and just as well, it's that balance,

Starting point is 00:12:26 then more of the play action will help. Then you can catch Spillane and, you know, in Landry and Ellis. You can catch those guys maybe taking a couple steps forward as they wait for the run and then they try to back up and then you're hitting Pat Bramuth over the middle or D.K. Metcalf on a slant. that's something that has to happen but for the play action to work the run game has to be a real threat

Starting point is 00:12:46 there's no doubt in my mind I respect Mike Brable a ton no doubt in my mind that he's looking and he's saying make them prove to us that they can run the ball before we start falling for that. You know I talked about the defense being bad. It's been bad but that's mostly been a linebacker secondary issue. The defensive line

Starting point is 00:13:02 has played better. It's been the better of the three levels by far. You mentioned Milton Williams. He's been very good the first two weeks. Christian Barmore still knocking off some of that rust from last year we was out for most of the season with the blood clots. Harold Landry looks like the Harold Landry of old. He's got that quick first step back, looks more comfortable in this defensive scheme that he did last year in Tennessee. Caleb on Chase on has done a pretty decent job as well. And you mentioned the guy

Starting point is 00:13:28 who's kind of the gem. It's Kyrie's Tonga. He was brought in to maybe be a run stopper, but he's been really good at pressuring the quarterback through camp. And even in the first two games, his pass rush win rate is pretty impressive for a guy who's not known as a pass rush interior defensive lineman. So, you know, they've done a good job. It is interesting. They've had issues from time to time in the first half against Miami. They got gashed against the run, but in the second half, they shut it down.

Starting point is 00:13:55 And one guy I do wonder if you'll see more of on Sunday is Anthony Jennings. He played only 11 snaps against Miami. But I'll tell you, Chris, when you look at that game in Miami, he started the second half on the edge. and he single-handedly came up with two to three run stops right away, and it just kind of changed the tone of that defense and that defensive front against the run. I'd also say, you look at last week, which was fascinating, in the first three quarters, Chris,

Starting point is 00:14:22 the Patriots got no pass rush on Tuatung of Ioloa, that they could not touch him. I think their pressure rate was 14%. But in the fourth quarter, their pressure rate was 66%. They dominated that Miami front in the fourth quarter, which is fascinating because, they're down in Miami.

Starting point is 00:14:39 They've got the heat. And you would think the better conditioned team would be the dolphins. But it felt like in the trenches, it was actually the Patriots. Now, for me, top matchup, the guy I'm watching is Jalen Warren. You brought him up. That 65-yard catch and run against the Seahawks was spectacular. He made, I don't know, felt like he made 20 dudes miss on that one play. And I look back and I see a guy who caught 61 passes in 2023.

Starting point is 00:15:03 The Patriots have had issues against running backs that can catch the football. that are dangerous in the open field. They had a terrible time against Devon A. Chan last week in Miami. Spillane missed at least two or three tackles, Ellis Smith tackled. So I'm looking at Jalen Warren as somebody who could get loose for the Steelers' offense this weekend. And the Steelers wouldn't mind that, right? Like they want the run game to work, but however they get Jalen Warren loose, they'll take it. And Kenneth Gainwell isn't someone to sneeze at there either.

Starting point is 00:15:32 I say that, as I say three sneas, give three sneezes here on camera. but Kenneth Gainwell, it's going to be tricky how they use him because there were a couple of plays where he was really in great position as a receiving back that kind of didn't just turn into anything last week. One was on a third and two early where they started in the back field. They motioned him out. They will motion him into the slot a lot and then say, what are you going to do? You want to put a linebacker out there with him? You're going to put a corner around. You put a corner over there. You might run into some problems somewhere else. And they had him run a quick out. Now on the play, there was quick pressure that was

Starting point is 00:16:05 Troy Faltona was beaten, and so Aaron Rogers had to throw the pass away. But Kenneth Gainwell cleanly beats his guy for an out and is open beyond the sticks. Then on another play in the red zone, it was the touchdown pass to DK. Metcalf. But if you look at the All-22, Kenneth Gainwell, one on with his guy, runs a Texas route, cooks his man, and it's just like walking to the end zone. Now, Metcalf scores, so that doesn't really matter. But he is a receiving threat. And that's something I saw all training camp when I was covering the Steelers was they want Kenneth

Starting point is 00:16:32 Gainwell in because he can line up in the backfield and do better. things, pick up blitzes and just catch a quick pass off the backfield. But they love motioning him out and getting him into routes and having him match up against linebackers. So it is definitely in my brain that Arthur Smith as an offensive coordinator is saying, hey, let's get these linebackers in space. Let's get them on Kenneth. Let's get them on Jalen. And let's let Aaron Rogers decide what he wants to do because there's a lot of trust in

Starting point is 00:16:57 him in finding those mismatches. And I think that would be the nightmare for this Patriots defense is if they start getting those one-on-ones against the running backs, they have not been good. in that kind of a situation. I wonder if Vrable will try to react to that. Will they actually play more corners on passing downs? We'll see because the linebackers have been so bad. And you brought up Arthur Smith.

Starting point is 00:17:17 Interesting. Obviously, we have the relationship between Smith and Vrable. They know each other very well. And they probably have a very good idea as to what the other guy wants to do on Sunday. And now offensively, I want to ask you about the Steelers defense. Because to me, you're looking at Morgan Moses, who's banged up. He left the game. Well, he left the locker room.

Starting point is 00:17:35 last Sunday with a walking boot. He was limited in practice today. I would imagine he's going to try to gut it out. I don't know if he's going to be able to go full time on Sunday. And if not, the Patriots have seventh round pick from this past draft just a few months ago, Marcus Bryant, who is more of a raw project guy, he would be the next guy up if Moses can't move around. And I'm just wondering, I've seen some, I've seen some people talking about T.J. Watt, not getting off to the greatest of starts this season. But defensively, what are you looking at as far as the marquee matchup and how the Steelers could attack this Patriots offense?

Starting point is 00:18:13 Well, as far as TJ Watt, what, I say this is a lot of my show. Watt is impacting play simple because the first two teams, the Jets and the Seahawks, their entire plan was don't let him beat us. There was a play where Jack Sawyer, a fourth round rookie at Ohio State for the Steelers, got his first sack of his career. But when you watch the replay, Jack Sawyer walks to the quarterback. Meanwhile, there are three Seahawks blockers, a tackle, a tight end, and a fullback, all just right on Watt.

Starting point is 00:18:41 And the funny thing was is Watt got past all of them. And if Sawyer doesn't get the sack, Watt's getting it. And so T.J. Watt is still a very good player. He doesn't have a sack for his first two games, and it's now six straight games that he hasn't registered a sack. So a lot of people are hitting the panic button in Pittsburgh. I'm not. I still see him doing a lot of the very good things that he normally does.

Starting point is 00:19:02 But I do think that a lot of teams have a playbook as far as, hey, we need quick passing. We need a good run game. And when we run, we're running it the other way. We're taking it the other direction. Don't run it to the right, run it to the left and keep it away from T.J. Watt. And that's where I think the Steelers are going to need to counter is that they need their front to take advantage of this, of this Patriots front. It hasn't happened yet. Cam Hayward is still with the Steelers.

Starting point is 00:19:26 He's still playing well. He hasn't dominated yet, but he's been a good player. But again, no Derek Harmon, that's been hurtful to the Steelers. Keanu Betten hasn't played well. In fact, I think he's actually played very poorly in his first two outings. He's dealing with some sort of an elbow injury. We're waiting to see if there's any more designation on that. Y.A. Black, a fifth round rookie out of Iowa, has been good in spurt, spurs,

Starting point is 00:19:48 but he has also kind of had some bad moments where he's gotten pushed around. The Steelers need to find a way to stuff to run on defense. Because if they do that, they are confident that if they can get the Patriots in third and longs and more predictable situations that they can win those. Now, granted, they need to win those because they did that a few times to the Seahawks and still came up short. There was a third and nine on the Seahawks final touchdown drive of the game where the Seahawks, the Steelers had everything dialed up.

Starting point is 00:20:15 They called up the right blitz. Patrick Queen had Sam Donald dead to rights. Sam Donald spins out of the pocket and Queen missed him. And that allowed for a completion, big game. And they were able to keep a drive alive that ultimately sealed the game. That's what the Steelers have to do in this game. When they get those opportunities, they have to. pounce. Whether it's a blitz, and they are the fourth highest blitz rate in the NFL right now,

Starting point is 00:20:34 whether it's a blitz, whether it's max coverage and try to fool may into a mistake, you have to find a way to win. You've invested too much into this defense, not to. And I think one of the main things is going to be really interesting is wherever Jalen Ramsey lines up, how aggressive do the Steelers let him be? Because he has been playing a sort of off coverage these first two games where it worked week one. But week two, the Seahawks, saying, okay, you want to just play trail technique on our guys, we're going to trust that you're going to allow them to have inside leverage and that we can throw a ball that you can't get to. And that happened several times. He allowed nine catches on 11 targets last Sunday

Starting point is 00:21:14 against the Seahawks. And I have to wonder, and looking at that tape, will the Steelers switch up how they do that? Because on several of those plays that turned into third down conversions or one, he was even a touchdown, if Jalen Ramsey just lines up in a natural form, hey, we're in man coverage. I'm taking inside leverage. I'm making sure that I'm staying in front of you. If you're running a crossing pattern, you're going to have to find a way to get around me. But instead of him conceding it and thinking, okay, I'm going to play trail technique so good. I'm going to jump this pass.

Starting point is 00:21:42 But if he takes that away, it forces quarterbacks to hold onto the ball more. There were several times where if Sam Donald just had to hold on to the ball for not even a second more, T.J. Watt would have had a sack. There were times Patrick Queen would have had a sack. There was times other guys. There were about like four or five sacks left on the board because of the those opportunities. And so that's where I think the Steelers need to see more here. That's going to be curious, how does that match up? Jalen Ramsey has also been lining up everywhere.

Starting point is 00:22:08 He's not just lining up in the slot or just in the outside. He's playing a little bit safety. He's doing that less without Joey Porter Jr. But does he take on Stefan Diggs in this game? Do they say, hey, just take him away. We'll have Darius Slay and everyone else worry about Matt Collins and everyone else. That's going to be a big thing for me. It's going to be where is Jalen Ramsey lineup and how do the Steelers let him play in this game, considering the times the Seahawks were able to catch him kind of trying to play a little bit of off coverage. It's going to be a fascinating matchup for sure with plenty of marquee matchups. I know Drake May has faced it's like over 80 percent zone defenses to the first

Starting point is 00:22:43 two weeks. You wonder if that's going to impact the Steelers game plan or not. So a lot to look forward to on Sunday. And coming up next, we'll give you our three keys that can turn this game on its head. That's next. We continue. with today's crossover episode of Lockdown Patriots and Lockdown Steelers, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Caffeine just got a flavor upgrade. Five-hour energy shots deliver tasty caffeine and 17 bold flavors. Each two-ounce shot packs the caffeine of a premium 12-ounce cup of coffee plus B vitamins

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Starting point is 00:25:14 So a little peek behind the curtain here last night. I was texting with Chris and I said, I don't like doing predictions so early in the week. I like to hold my prediction until Friday, and Chris said, I agree with you, my man. And so we're going to sit on the predictions until our next episodes, so you want to wait for that. But let's get to quickly. We've got to run through these a little bit, Chris. Let's get to three keys. What is your first key for the Steelers on Sunday?

Starting point is 00:25:39 They have to stop the run. They cannot let Trayvion Henderson take over this game and make things easier for Drake May. If they do, it's going to put this game in such a crazy mode. and they're going to be at risk for allowing another three touchdown plus performance. Steelers cannot afford to let that happen. By all means, stuff the run. I mean, still respect Drake May. This isn't saying, oh, man, if they stuffed the run,

Starting point is 00:26:02 Drake May is done and he can't do anything. But you cannot allow any quarterback in today's NFL the chance of having that balanced offense where the run game is just getting chunks. Like last week, you know, you're going to look at the overall numbers and say, oh, well, you know, they did stuff the run sometimes. But a good bit of those was because they stopped Zach. Jack Charbonnet for the Seahawks for less than a yard per carry, but then they allowed Kenneth Walker to run like eight yards per carry. They cannot allow Henderson or whoever on the Patriots

Starting point is 00:26:28 roster to run for anything like that. They got to keep this in a game where the run game isn't such a reliable factor, whether it's Henderson or Stevenson or whoever, don't allow them to take over. That's key number one for the Steelers. What's key number one for the pets? Yeah, handle the blitz. Handle the Blitz. I know Pittsburgh's aggressive. They love to send their linebackers, a queen and her big blitz a number of times when I was watching. in that Seattle game. So they've got to make sure that they handle the blitz. Pittsburgh's top five in the NFL and blitz rate, 45.7% blitz rate last week against Seattle and Sam Donald. And Drake May is going to be in command. He's got to make sure that he knows exactly what

Starting point is 00:27:04 to expect and when to expect it, point out the protections to his guys. A clean pocket is great news for Drake May. So they have to handle the pressure of the Pittsburgh Steelers. What's your second key, Chris? Second key is establish that balance on offense. We talk. about it earlier in the show, but Aaron Rogers said, we got to run the ball, but we see those two high shells. They have to put the fear of the run actually hurting them into the Patriots defense. If they do, then all of a sudden, you'll see the middle part of the field open up a little bit more. The Steelers don't have, you know, three prime wide receivers that are like, you know, they don't have, you know, Jamar Chase, D. Higgins, where they can just

Starting point is 00:27:38 say, hey, we're rolling out these guys. We don't care what coverage you. We're just going to throw it up to them and they're going to beat you. They, D.K. Metcalf is a very good wide receiver, and they trust that he's going to win a lot of his one-on-ones. But Calvin Austin, Roman Wilson, Scotty Miller, even the Titans, Pat Brown with Johnny Smith, they're all good players, but they want to create more easier pockets for Aaron Rogers to not have to throw as many pinpoint super passes that he can still throw and he still does put passes on the money. But they want to create those easier spaces. And that's what Arthur Smith is really trying to do with this offense. So get that run game going so that

Starting point is 00:28:10 there can be a balance. And then if you have that balance, it makes the offense that much more fluid. What's key number two for the Patriots? Yeah, they got to limit the yards after the contact. They got to limit yards after the catch. The missed tackles have been a huge issue for this defense. D.K. Metcalf can hurt you in that category. Jalen Warren can hurt you in that category. Jonu Smith can even hurt you a little bit in that category if they get the football to Johnu on Sunday. So they're just going to make sure that you wrap up. Don't give up an extra five, six yards, 10 yards. Don't let a 15-yard gain turn into a 25-yard gain. The Patriots have had issues with these explosive plays for the first two weeks. They've got to make sure they

Starting point is 00:28:48 limit the yak. Your third and final key, Chris. Don't allow the explosive plays to control this game. Right now, the Steelers are allowing the highest rate of explosive plays in the NFL through two weeks, and that is a huge part of this. And this kind of plays into stuffing the runs that balance doesn't be there for the Patriots. But when they do make a play, tackle the guy. Last week, Kenneth Walker gets the ball in third and goal from the 19, and they just pitch it out to him thinking, oh, he'll just get a couple yards set up a night's field goal. He runs it in for a touchdown. They can't allow moments like that where they have everything lined up. They have

Starting point is 00:29:23 things ready to go, but someone takes a bad angle. Someone just doesn't finish the play. And then all of a sudden, there's a big gap in the defense or someone stumbles at the wrong point. You got to limit those big plays. You take those big plays away and then you force the Patriots to earn every single third down conversion, first down, moving the ball. And then they work their way into the red zone. It's like, hey, you know what? If you hit on 9, 10 really good plays in a row, good for you. But the Steelers have to play away that's going to force you to do that time in and time out. And with anybody, it's tough. With younger quarterback, it's also tough.

Starting point is 00:29:53 That's, we got to be a key, though. Limit the explosive plays so that you're not giving away easier points to the Patriots. What's key number three for the pets? Well, that sounded a lot of, that sounded familiar to me, what you just went through with all of the missed tackles and the bad angles and just clean up the game. You know, a clean operation. One of my surprises here is that through the first two weeks, I expected Mike Rable, team to be more disciplined. The Patriots have 21 penalties this season tied for the second most in

Starting point is 00:30:22 the NFL. They had 12 last week in Miami. Clean up the penalties. You have a clean game and that should help you on both sides of the football and on special teams. They've had a couple of penalties on special teams as well. So clean it up, clean up the penalties. All right, that wraps up this crossover edition of Lockdown Patriots and Steelers. Thank you for making us your first listen and for being it every day. Don't forget to throw a comment in on the YouTube channel. Hit that like button and of course don't forget to subscribe as well for your second listen get a double dose of the lockdown NFL podcast with tyler the madman rolling and tony wiggins find lockdown NFL on youtube or wherever you listen to podcasts have a great day chris and i will see

Starting point is 00:31:01 all of you tomorrow

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