Raiders Opponent Scouting: Pittsburgh Steelers Offense

The Las Vegas Raiders are going to play their first home game of the season this Sunday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Steelers rebounded from a 30-7 Week 1 defeat to the San Francisco 49ers by defeating the Cleveland Browns on Monday Night Football on the back of a strong defensive performance.

However, focusing on the offensive end of the ball, they scored only one offensive touchdown in their Week 2 victory. However, the Steelers have plenty of offensive weapons who could cause problems for Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham and the Raiders.

Matt Canada is the offensive coordinator for the Steelers, a coach who has been subject to criticism from Steelers fans. Canada spent more than 20 seasons coaching at the college level in various roles, including being the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for seven college teams, including recent stops at Maryland, LSU and Pittsburgh.

Canada joined the Steelers in 2020 as the quarterbacks coach and took over as offensive coordinator in 2021. He runs a zone blocking offensive scheme, which is when an offensive line works in unison as opposed to each linemen having a predetermined assignment.

His zone blocking scheme is also split zone, which is where the tight end or H-back comes across the opposite side of the offensive line to block the unblocked defender. This allows running backs extra time to find a running lane.

That running back often is Najee Harris, a former first-round pick who already has two seasons of more than 1,000 rushing yards. Harris is a well-built back who is tough to bring down once he finds space to run. Harris has rushed 16 times for 74 yards this season, but has yet to find the end zone.

At wide receiver, second-year player George Pickens is in the midst of a breakout season after flashing his rookie season. Pickens has elite ball skills as a receiver and is physically overwhelming for defenders to stay with.

Tight end Pat Freiermuth has not gotten involved in the offense yet this season, but he has developed into one of the most reliable tight ends in the league, catching 10 touchdown passes in his first three seasons.

This Steelers’ offense comes to Allegiant Stadium having scored only two offensive touchdowns this season, so it's a chance for the Raiders’ defense to get back on track. The Steelers might not be efficient on offense right now, but they have the talent to start scoring, so the Raiders will have to be ready to slow down the talented skill position players on their team.

The Silver and Black return home to Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas to play the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, Sept. 24, at 8:20 p.m. EDT/5:20 p.m. PDT.

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