Mitch Trubisky tops the Steelers offensive PFF grades in Week 3

In the grades provided by PFF, the Steelers quarterback was at the top of the list in Week 3.

The Pittsburgh Steelers dropped their second-straight game as they traveled to Cleveland on a short week. The offense showed some life in the first half, but the ability to get key first downs cost them down the stretch. As for the defense, the sheer volume of rushing attempts they faced shot up the yardage despite the Steelers being the more efficient team on the ground.

But how did the individual players grade out?

For this exercise, we will be looking at the player grades from Pro Football Focus (PFF) for the Steelers Week 3 performance. Remember, these are just the grades for the Steelers for this past game and not combined with their previous performances. Before going any further, I must give the typical disclaimer that PFF grades are subjective. While some people rely on them heavily, others are quite skeptical of the process in which they are determined. It is completely up to each person as to how much stock they put into PFF’s grades. For me, I often look at the grades to see if my own “eye test” lines up with what others viewed as how a player performed. If nothing more, the grades create a discussion about how accurate, or inaccurate, they are each week.

Instead of looking at the entire team at once, we break up the scores into offense and defense. First up this week is the offense. Included will be all the players who played at least one snap and the total snap counts for each player will be included. For reference sake, the Steelers once again played 59 snaps on offense in Thursday’s game.

Overall

Top 5 (regardless of position)

QB Mitch Trubisky: 80.3 (59 snaps)
C Mason Cole : 79.3 (59 snaps)
RB Jaylen Warren: 79.0 (12 snaps)
TE Pat Freiermuth: 78.4 (45 snaps)
G James Daniels: 70.5 (59 snaps)

Bottom 5 (regardless of position)

WR Gunner Olszewski: 57.9 (3 snaps)
WR George Pickens: 56.8 (45 snaps)
WR Chase Claypool: 56.0 (55 snaps)
TE Zach Gentry: 55.3 (23 snaps)
TE Connor Heyward: 34.3 (6 snaps)

Quarterback

QB Mitch Trubisky: 80.3 (59 snaps)

I don’t know how well this is going to go over with Steelers’ fans. Those who don’t put much stock in PFF will definitely pull that card. But perhaps fans might want to look inside themselves and ask if they are just so anxious to see Kenny Pickett if they are not giving an accurate assessment of Trubisky. But it should be noted this is the highest PFF grade given to a Steelers quarterback during the regular or postseason since Ben Roethlisberger had an 83.1 in Week 1 of 2020 against the New York Giants.

Running Backs

RB Jaylen Warren: 79.0 (12 snaps)
RB Najee Harris: 66.1(47 snaps)
FB Derek Watt: 60.0 (1 snap)

Finally PFF gave Jaylen Warren an adequate pass blocking score of 76.3. While that was a vast improvement and more in line with how he’s actually been blocking, it was his 94.2 grade in the passing game which put him in the top five for the Steelers. Najee Harris had his grade docked because of his pass blocking score of 47.2 as he was the player credited with giving up the sack during the game.

Receivers

TE Pat Freiermuth: 78.4 (45 snaps)
WR Diontae Johnson: 70.1 (58 snaps)
WR Gunner Olszewski: 57.9 (3 snaps)
WR George Pickens: 56.8 (45 snaps)
WR Chase Claypool: 56.0 (55 snaps)
TE Zach Gentry: 55.3 (23 snaps)
TE Connor Heyward: 34.3 (6 snaps)

Pat Freiermuth moved from the bottom of the list back into the top five this week thanks to a strong run block in grade of 72.6. Even though he didn’t get involved in the passing game until the fourth quarter, Freiermuth still had a 74.7 grade. What is ultimately disappointing is the bottom five scores consists of either tight ends or wide receivers. Connor Heyward was at the bottom due to a 40.6 run blocking score, but Chase Claypool’s 34.7 score in that department was actually the lowest of the team. Despite George Pickens making an incredible catch, his passing score was only 57.0 as he was credited with two drops.

Offensive Line

C Mason Cole : 79.3 (59 snaps)
G James Daniels: 70.5 (59 snaps)
OT Chuks Okorafor: 66.7 (59 snaps)
G Kevin Dotson: 65.1 (59 snaps)
OT Dan Moore Jr.: 63.6 (59 snaps)

Not only was every player on the Steelers offensive line above the 60.0 average, three of the five players saw improvements from the previous week. Chuks Okorafor came back down to earth a little bit after his superb score in Week 2 but still just missed the top five. Kevin Dotson saw a slight dip from the previous week as well with the false start penalty likely being the biggest factor. The one player who should be outlined is Dan Moore Jr. Despite being the only offensive lineman who had one of the individual grades below 60.0 as he scored a 57.3 in pass blocking, it should be noted his progression since last season and taking on Myles Garrett. With a 28.6 overall score in his first match up with Cleveland in Week 8 of 2021, Moore saw an improvement up to 45.7 in Week 17. But moving up to a 63.6 when having to face Myles Garrett once again seems to show Moore is trending in the proper direction in this key AFC North matchup.

It just doesn’t seem right that I almost left out the top performance on the offensive line in Mason Cole who saw a nice jump in his third game with the Steelers. It was Cole’s 83.8 pass blocking score which was best on the Steelers coupled with his 76.8 run blocking score which also was best on the team. Cole just edged out James Daniels for the best pass blocking score as he was just behind him with an 83.2 for the game.

So, what do you think of the above grades? Do they pass the eye test? Let us know your thoughts on the Steelers’ defensive grades in the comments below.