Steelers-Jets Preview: The Revenge Tour

For Steelers Nation, the anticipation for the waiting for the Pittsburgh Steelers 2025 season to begin is over. On Sunday, September 7 Aaron Rodgers makes his debut in what may very well amount to the final season of his career, and it comes against the team he last played for. The New York Jets will host Pittsburgh and start the game with a quarterback that did the opposite of Rodgers. Justin Fields gets the start against the team he last played for having started the first six games for the Steelers in 2024.

Pittsburgh may have very well made the most personnel changes in the league in the off-season, bringing in 13 new faces either by free agency or via trades. Nine of those made the 53-man squad. Some of those men will be starters on September 7. The Jets fan base has high hopes for Fields and for the team to become a winner this season but for Steelers Nation this is a confident group that believes another winning record is on track for Mike Tomlin but more than anything else, they want a playoff victory. 

What we might expect follows.

When the Steelers have the ball:

• Will he, or won’t he? That is the question for Aaron Rodgers as to how the game plan pans out for this game with Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith. More passing or focus on the running game. The New York Jets had the fourth best passing defense in the NFL last season, but Rodgers knows their secondary and he knows this team having just played for them. That works in Pittsburgh’s favor and despite his age, Rodgers still has a rocket arm with excellent accuracy.
  
  The Jets’ defense in 2024 finished in the middle of the pack for defending the run allowing 121 yards per game on the ground. Jaylen Warren is now Pittsburgh’s starting running back with Najee Harris joining the Los Angeles Chargers and while Warren only had 511 yards rushing last year his per carry average was 4.2. He also caught 38 passes for 310 yards and a reception average of 8.2. Keep your eyes on Warren’s backup rookie Kaleb Johnson. I believe he is special and would not be surprised if he supplants Warren as the starter before the season is over.
  
  Where I think the Steelers are going to attack the Jets is in the air by use of the tight end. Pittsburgh now has three superb players at that position, beginning with starter Pat Freiermuth and having ex-Miami Dolphin Jonnu Smith at their expense along with the massive Darnell Washington. Arthur Smith has pledged the use of the tight end more this season and what better way to put that option into play than on opening day? This trio just might be unstoppable. 

When the Jets have the ball:

• For the Green and White, they have yet another new starting quarterback. Much like the Cleveland Browns and Chicago Bears, the New York Jets have struggled to find their franchise quarterback. Now they have signed ex-Steeler Justin Fields. Last season the Steelers were near the bottom in pass defense but that was before Jalen Ramsey, Darius Slay, and Juan Thornhill were signed from other teams. With Joey Porter Jr. having those new faces in the secondary, Fields will find it difficult to pass on them especially since his specialty deals more with his feet.
  
  When it comes to running the ball, the Steelers were sixth best in the league in 2024, but no one will forget how they were run over by the Baltimore Ravens in the wild card game. To rectify that, Pittsburgh drafted Derrick Harmon first overall but due to an injury, he will not be available for this game. Still, the defensive front remains strong and Yaha Black who was drafted with Harmon will get playing time and I believe will be an effective weapon in stopping the run and defending the pass.
  
  If the Jets running game gets past the defensive line, that shouldn’t be a problem with this current set of linebackers for Pittsburgh. Breese Hall is the Jets primary runner who finished with 876 yards a season ago and I don’t believe he will be a major threat to Pittsburgh’s defense. If New York decides to let Justin Fields use his wheels that’s a risk against this hard hitting, great tackling linebacker set he will see on this day.
  
  In the air, Garrett Wilson is the Jets’ primary target coming off a 1,104-yard season but he is small at six foot tall and weighing just 183 pounds. I believe the Steelers’ defense is up to the task against this offense and should handle New York with great success.

Intangibles

• Keep this in mind the history of when these two teams meet. Since these two teams first met in 1970, there have been 28 games, and the Steelers have won 21 of those. That’s domination. Two of those games came in the postseason and Pittsburgh has won both. The Steelers won 16 of the first 18 games. The Jets have shut out the Steelers just once in 2003 and that was by a final score of 6-0. Pittsburgh has only one shutout to their credit was well winning 13-0 in 1989.
  
  The Jets have never scored more than 24 points on a Steelers’ defense, but the Pittsburgh offense put up a 45-point spot on New York in 1986 winning 45-24. Four times the Steelers went over 30 on the scoreboard. Last season Pittsburgh was the victor at home in a blowout 37-15. In the last 10 games these two teams have split 5-5. In the games the Steelers lost in those last 10 the difference was all less than seven points. Pittsburgh on the other hand had several blowouts.
  
  This game will boil down to how well Pittsburgh’s new look offense can perform, that will be the difference in the game. 

Prediction

• I think many are underestimating the Steelers on the whole and Aaron Rodgers and I believe they will be smacking several teams in the face. That begins in New Jersey.



Steelers 34 Jets 13.