The Steelers head to Indianapolis this week to take on a Colts team that is coming off a 21-16 win over the Bears for their first victory of the season.
The Colts held the Bears to just 63 yards rushing in the win, something they will once again aim to do this week against the Steelers.
But Colts Coach Shane Steichen knows it will be a challenge for both their defense, and offense who will face the Steelers top ranked defense.
With the 3-0 Steelers headed to Indianapolis, Steichen message to his players is simple.
"You've got to prepare to win the game," said Steichen. "That's what it is. You've got to prepare to win the game and have the will to win the game, but I think preparing to win the game is the most important.
"But if you add the will to win, I mean then it becomes scary. But it all starts with the preparation during the week to get it done on Sunday."
The Colts weighed in on a variety of topics this week, including a lot of talk about linebacker T.J. Watt.
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Head Coach Shane Steichen on how cognizant you have to be with T.J. Watt on the other side:
"Very. The guy is a phenomenal football player. He is always around the ball. He has a relentless motor. He plays 100 miles an hour on every snap. So, we've got to have a plan for him. They're playing good defense right now. I know it's three games in, but I think they are only giving up eight and a half points a game or something. So, it will be a heck of a challenge. I know our guys are fired up for the challenge going against them. It will be fun come Sunday."
Steichen on if you have to get the tight end and others involved with Watt across the line:
"Yeah, you've got to have a plan. You've got to have a plan for him for sure."
Steichen on if they have a plan for Watt:
"I hope so."
Defensive coordinator Gus Bradley on facing another mobile quarterback, this time Justin Fields:
"Well in some ways, he was very mobile last week. Now it was a difference, right? It wasn't mobile in terms of him (and) designed runs, but in the pocket, you saw the one where (Laiatu) Latu spun out of there and we lost contain. He ended up making a play.
"So, it's along those same lines. I think what Justin Fields also has is the ability to have designed runs for him. So that would be – any time that the quarterback runs the ball, it creates an extra gap, and you've got to be really sound. Sometimes it's by design – the defense, you can take it away. Other times, it's going to create – there's another gap created. So, it's effort plays by the defense. I think it's back to our mindset. We must play fast. I think we played faster this past week than in previous weeks, and we're going to need that again this week."
Steichen on Justin Fields:
"He's playing good ball right now. They are doing a good job offensively and defensively, and he's playing good."
Quarterback Anthony Richardson on his concern facing the Steelers defense:
"We do have to acknowledge that they're a great team. They have a great scheme over there, have great players. We all know that, but we don't know necessarily have any concerns. We feel like we can match up with anybody. So, we're just trying to play our offense and just execute play by play, not really thinking about who's on the other side."
Richardson on what he has seen from the Steelers defense:
"They're playing great right now – lights out. They're flying to the ball. Guys are making plays. So, we've just got to make sure we're on top of our details and just making our plays."
Offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter on the balance between preparing to go against T.J. Watt and running your own offense:
"It's one of the key questions in this league for every offensive coordinator, every offensive staff because in this league there are these just phenomenal players on some of these defenses, and T.J. Watt is certainly one of those. We've got to know where he's going to line up and how he's likely to align within their scheme – sort of what his role is likely to be defensively each play, and how we can go best attack the defense just like you said. I mean shoot, you nailed it. How can we best attack the defense while also sort of having awareness of this great player out there and sort of trying to limit his impact?
"In this league, there are guys that are very, very high-level good players. You've got to really pay a lot of attention to them offensively, at least coaching wise as we're sort of prepping for these guys, making sure we know how we're setting this whole thing up and how we've got a good game plan – that we put our guys in the best position to go succeed.
"When we're out there, our guys just have to go execute their jobs. And ultimately, for our guys, they ought to go play ball. Whatever the job is on that play, the job will be, but we sure kind of take pride in evaluating each defense that we play and the great players on the defenses that we play and trying to minimize their impact like you said. Easier said than done sometimes. Like I said, T.J.'s, a phenomenal player – has been for a long time, but we'll certainly have a plan for him."
Richardson on what he sees from Watt on tape:
"Man, I mean everybody knows he's a potential Hall of Famer. He's a great guy – high motor, a lot of effort. He's pretty strong, physical. So, we definitely have a few things for him so he doesn't get to the quarterback."
Richardson on if he needs to know where Watt is:
"At all times. It was kind of like last year, playing against Aaron Donald. You can't just leave him one-on-one. So hopefully, our scheme schemes up nice."
Steichen on what the hallmark of the Steelers defense is:
"I think physical. They are really physical. It starts upfront with obviously Watt. (Cameron) Heyward has been doing it for a long time. Getting (Patrick) Queen over from Baltimore, a good player. (Joey) Porter Jr. is playing good on the outside, (Donte) Jackson, Minkah (Fitzpatrick) on the backend.
"They've got really good football players. They've been doing it there for a long time. Mike Tomlin, I've got a lot of respect for him and what he's done there in his career for sure."
Bradley on the Steelers not giving up more than 10 points in a game and does that impact the way they scheme defensively;
"We always try to keep the points down in every game we go into. But I do think that we recognize – it's kind of like an offense. When you're facing a high-powered offense, what can you do to keep them off the field for the defense? I think it's the same thing. We've got to create as many opportunities for our offense – series, on the field. It can't be 'Well, offense only had eight series this game.' We've got to try to find a way to get off the field (and) give them multiple series to give them the best opportunity to score."
Linebacker Zaire Franklin on what the primary concern is with the Steelers offense:
"(Justin) Fields, he definitely seems very rejuvenated. He's been playing really great to start off this year, just very efficient. You can tell that with the confidence of the coaching staff and his teammates, his play is just elevated. You can just see him working through his reads, using his feet to make plays not only in the running game, but also in the passing game.
"Obviously, they have (George) Pickens, who's an extremely talented receiver in this league. They've got a tough running game. You know what comes with playing a Mike Tomlin coached team. It's going to be a fistfight. So, we've just got to be ready to go."
Bradley on what they do to avoid complacency and satisfaction this week against the Steelers after a strong performance against the Bears run game last week:
"I don't think we're in any position to be complacent. I think our guys are on edge about that. They know it was one game, and I think all you have to do is put on the film. They're running the ball better than they did last year. The back is playing better than he did last year. They're a good physical front. So I think if you just turn on the tape and watch these guys run the ball – and the quarterback is always a threat to run it. So, we're back into that mindset again. This is going to be a challenging game for us, and it's going to be hard to make them one dimensional. But we've got to do a great job from the very first play with this running back and with this offensive line and some of the schemes that they do."
Cooter on passing numbers being down league-wide and rushing numbers up:
"We have a little more brain space during the offseason than we do a game week to get those big trends. But we have heard certain things. We do sort of notice bigger trends like that. I can't tell you exactly what the why is because obviously each group is different. But I will say that a bunch of years ago, teams were really heavy running teams in this league, and maybe the formations looked a little bit different – a lot more two-back, those type of things. There was an advantage in throwing the ball, or at least, you could chop the numbers up and the analytics and all that would tell you should throw it more right on first, second down – some of those situations that had traditionally been running situations in the league. So, I think people took advantage of that offensively and leaned on it a little bit more. And as so often happens, defenses adjust and they're realizing that some teams are throwing it more in certain situations. So maybe they're playing the pass a little bit more in those situations. So, it's another one of those cat-and-mouse games. Sometimes it's interesting in this league, what happens on a week-by-week basis in that sort of cat-and-mouse manner, which a lot of that is sort of we're game planning somebody right now and they're game planning us, and here we are. We're trying to figure out what they think we're going to do and blah, blah, blah, vice versa. The really interesting ones are the long-term trends like that. What are 32 different offensive and defensive coordinator/play callers putting together in the offseason, working through, emphasizing?
"It's really a fascinating question to dive into. I'm sure there's a lot of work going on out there to try to figure it out, to get ahead, but it's fun to think through. But ultimately for us, we get to lock in on these Pittsburgh Steelers and they've been so good on defense this year. They've been so good on defense there for such a long time that we've got our hands full studying them a little bit more than the long-term trends. But it is an interesting thing that's happened. And I would say like most trends, they'll probably be a little ebb and flow with it, and you may see it sort of go back and forth as the year goes. But it's a really – it'd probably be a fascinating study. I'm looking forward to kind of hearing where you end up on it."
Franklin on if he is looking forward to the matchup against the Steelers:
"No question. I know the Pittsburgh fans, they're going to be trying to come in here. They like to travel, so I'm looking forward to us fighting back. But again, it's always a talented and tough team when you're playing Pittsburgh. Again, we know they bring the football that they like to play, but it's our house and we make the rules."
Steichen on what he has seen from Mike Tomlin that has led to his success:
"I think the culture he's created there, just over and over again. I don't think he's had a losing season there since he's been there. That's a credit to him and what he's done and the players that they bring into that organization. They've done a phenomenal job."
Bradley on what he appreciates about what Tomlin has been able to do in Pittsburgh for so long:
"Back when I was in Tampa, I heard stories about Mike Tomlin and just how much of an impact he had with the DBs there during the Monte Kiffin era. I think there's a term consistency creates credibility, and he has been so consistent and his credibility throughout the league, and what coaches think of him, and what he's done with that with that organization is off the charts.
"So, I think that's someone I hold in very, very high regard just because of things I heard about him in Tampa. And now having a chance to face him a couple times and just seeing what he's done as a head coach, it's not surprising to anybody that was with him at Tampa to see the success that he's had."
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