HR 1: What Could the Steelers Look Like without George Pickens and TJ Watt, Hard Knocks Episode 3 Recap

If the Steelers play their remaining schedule without TJ Watt and/or George Pickens you can basically chuck this season up as a failure because there's almost no chance when they get to the playoffs the Steelers will win without those guys. It wasn't as much fun watching this week's episode of Hard Knocks sine it was the first time since the show started the Steelers had lost a game.

The Steelers will likely be without George Pickens on Saturday in Baltimore so what should we expect from the offense without their biggest star. However, TJ Watt should be good to go therefore there is legitimate reason to believe the Steelers defense will once again be the kryptonite to Lamar Jackson which could lead to a teeth and claw win for the Black and Gold.

The Chargers beat the Broncos last night in an AFC West divisional matchup and plenty of AFC playoff implications came with it. The Steelers/Ravens and Texans/Chiefs games on Saturday are two of the best matchups of the week. Tom and Jacob share who they got for the Triple Play and they pick a winner for Steelers/Ravens.

The Falcons announced they will bench Kirk Cousins for rookie Michael Pennix Jr, and the Browns announced they will bench Jameis Winston for Dorian Thompson Robinson. Tom and Jacob rank their to ten teams heading into the sixteenth week of the season.

As predicted, the Steelers offense struggled mightily without its biggest weapon George Pickens. The Philadelphia defensive front was having a field day against the Steelers offensive line so Najee Harris once again struggled to get going. Mike Tomlin's critics had a lot to say about his clock management at the end of the first half and his decision to punt down 14 points in the fourth quarter.

The refs were under a heavy spotlight after a bad performance that was led by the decision to not flag a single Eagles player during the fight that broke out in the first half. The Chiefs remained the number one seed in the AFC but Pat Mahomes now has to deal with a high ankle sprain, and the Bills held onto the number two spot as they went into Detroit and Josh Allen added more film for his case to win the MVP.

The Steelers seemingly have their backs up against the wall this week in Philadelphia. Saquon Barkley and AJ Brown are as talented as any offensive duo in the NFL, plus the Eagles have arguably the most balanced defensive roster in the league. It will take big time efforts from Russell Wilson and Cam Heyward to thwart the Eagles talent on both sides of the football.