Washington vs. Pittsburgh: 3 keys to an upset victory over Steelers on Monday

Let’s be upfront and honest about this week’s game against the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers if we’re fans of the Washington Football Team, okay? It could get ugly. That’s not being a pessimist, but rather a realist. We’ve seen in weeks past that when things get bad for Washington, they get really bad. That was definitely the case in a 30-10 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, as it was with the Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns, and Arizona Cardinals as well.

With all of that being said, there are a number of reasons that we actually have some confidence when it comes to Washington’s chances this week. For one, they have had twice the amount of rest that Pittsburgh has had since playing their last game — Washington last played on Thanksgiving Day, while the Steelers are coming off of a game just this past Wednesday. Secondly, Washington is looking as good as they have all season, with their first win streak of the year under their belts and a 3-2 record over the past five games.

Regardless of the ultimate outcome, we believe that Washington can at least keep this game close, if not come out with the upset. Here are a few keys that they will need to pay attention to in order to do so.

Keep the ball in Big Ben's hands

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Many times when you are going up against one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, the common mantra is the 'keep the ball out of his hands' as much as possible and limit the offense's ability to do damage. This week, however, Washington needs to try and do everything they can to keep the ball in Big Ben Roethlisberger's hands, making it possible for the defensive line to get home on rushing attempts and force some chaos in the pocket. One of the things that Big Ben does best is to get rid of the ball quickly. This year, working with a surgically-repaired elbow, Roethlisberger leads the league in TTT (Time to Throw) with a 2.29 average. This often leads to quick-routes from a young and impressive receiving corps in Pittsburgh, and a frustrated defensive line who time and again sees its rushing attempts come up short. Roethlisberger has been sacked just 10 times this season, which is tied for the 33rd most in the NFL. Washington rookie Chase Young knows that they are going to have a big test on their hands when it comes to getting home on rushes, but they have been working hard to remember that they can't let up early just because they think the ball might be coming out quickly. https://twitter.com/PeteHaileyNBCS/status/1334627168974991364 While the focus will be on the defensive line getting pressure, a lot of the pressure will be on the secondary to keep tight coverage early in the play and not give Big Ben a place to go with the ball. That's a lot to ask when you're dealing with receivers like JuJu Smith-Schuster, Chase Claypool, and Diontae Johnson. If Washington is going to be successful this week, the defense is going to need to work together and play off of each other. The secondary needs to stay in contact with receivers, allowing the line to get home and get pressure. Similarly, the DB's are going to need to be ready to clean up any mistakes that the defensive front can force out of Big Ben if they do get home on a rush and force an errant throw. It's a balancing act that is asking a lot, but it's a major key to this game.

Run 'em until they're tired

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There is a common stat in the NFL that gets tossed around as a joke among analysts, simply because it sort of explains itself, and is pretty obvious once you put some real thought into it. The stat is the correlation between rushing attempts and victories. NBC Sports Washington's JP Finlay made note of the stat earlier this week, pointing out that Washington is 4-0 this season when they carry the ball 30+ times, and 0-7 when it's less than that. ...it makes sense, right? Obviously, when you're winning the game, you're going to run the ball more to try and drain the clock; when you're losing, you're going to pass more to get back the lead. It should go without much explanation, but it is still a fun way to frustrate NFL writers. With all of that being said, Washington needs to do what they can to get the running game going this week against the Steelers defense, which ranks among the best in the league in several different categories. Notably, Pittsburgh is 2nd in the NFL against the pass, and 8th in the league against the run. By process of elimination, and considering the personnel that Washington has, they're likely to find more success in the running game. None of this is to say that Washington has to be so committed to the run that they scheme up 50 plays on the ground and stick to the script no matter the situation, but they should absolutely try and pound the rock in between the tackles when the opportunity presents itself. We've seen rookie RB Anotnio Gibson continue to break out over the past several weeks — 8 of his 11 touchdowns have come since Week 7 — and that trend can continue if Washington stays committed to giving him the ball. On top of that, LT Cornelius Lucas is expected to return to the starting lineup this week, which pairs the trusty duo of RG Brandon Scherff and RT Morgan Moses back together on the right side, which could be a major boost when needing a push up front. If they fall behind early, it may be tough to hold onto this game plan of running the ball often, but OC Scott Turner needs to stay committed if he can.

Hold onto the ball, Alex!

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If there's one thing that the Steelers are incredibly good at on defense, it's forcing turnovers. Granted, they're good at just about everything on defense, but where they really excel is in the turnover department, mainly forcing interceptions. Through 12 weeks, they lead the league by a healthy margin with 16 interceptions, and they have 9 forced fumbles as well. In order for Washington to have any chance this week, a lot of pressure is going to ride on Alex Smith's shoulders to stay smart and conservative. Luckily, those are probably two of the most common words used to describe Smith, who has made a career off of managing games and never getting out over his skis. This also plays into a larger key for Washington, which is that they absolutely can't get in their own way on Monday. A common problem that we've seen in losses this season has been that either the offense or defense finds a way to shoot itself in the foot, be it by dumb turnovers or costly penalties. If there's any week where they absolutely can't afford to make a mistake, it's this week, so let's look for them to be sound and selective in the shots they take this weekend.