Week 6 could be season-defining game for this struggling Steeler
As the Pittsburgh Steelers prepare to return to action Sunday against the Cleveland Browns, one inevitable matchup looms large. Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett is once again leading a strong defensive line in Cleveland, even if the team's 1-4 record doesn't reflect it.
The Steelers' offensive line will be tasked with giving Aaron Rodgers the time required to dissect the opposing secondary, with whoever Garrett is lined up across from shouldering the biggest responsibility.
While the former DPOY does move around a bit, he has primarily lined up on the defensive right side, meaning it will be left tackle Broderick Jones who must handle him in most scenarios. The struggling tackle knows just how difficult this week could be for him, and how he performs could define his third season in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh Steelers' Broderick Jones has opportunity to change the narrative around his 2025 season
Jones' struggles this season are well-documented, most notably his three sacks allowed in Week 1 against the New York Jets. He has settled down quite a bit since then, but noticeably bad reps are still littered throughout his tape.
He has failed to show the promise he did as a prospect ever since the Steelers drafted him in the first round of the 2023 NFL draft. His athletic tools and natural ability are still evident when watching him, but his blocking technique and football IQ have yet to reach the level of his physical talents.
Keeping Garrett at bay is a tall task for even the most polished pass protectors the NFL has to offer, let alone a struggling young player like Jones. The NFL, just like life, is rarely fair, though. Expecting him to truly win the matchup this week is a tough ask, but at least battling and getting a few clear wins could go a long way towards building his confidence.
Self-belief is an underrated aspect of playing offensive line. Nobody really talks about you when you just do your job; it's only when you make an obvious mistake that you get noticed in the trenches.
Jones needs to string together clean games to settle in as the potential long-term answer at left tackle, and doing it against an All-Pro like Garrett would only add to his level of confidence. Plenty of help from tight ends and running backs will likely be coming his way, but it's up to the former first-round pick to show why this front office had so much faith in him when they picked him 14th overall back in 2023.
Dan Campbell is proving his elite status despite coordinator changes
The Detroit Lions gave us a scare in Week 1, but since then, it's clear that this team is as well-coached as there is in the NFL. It's rare for a team to lose an offensive and defensive coordinator in the same offseason. That happened to the Detroit Lions in 2025, as Aaron Glenn and Ben Johnson earned head coaching jobs with the New York Jets and Chicago Bears.
It's been a mixed bag for those two, as their teams are a combined 2-7 through nine games, but Johnson's Bears seem to be on the right track. Well, the Lions replaced each with John Morton, formely of the Denver Broncos, and Kelvin Sheppard, who is a former NFL player and has spent his entire coaching career with the Lions.
The team's Week 1 loss against the Green Bay Packers was about as bad of a game as we've seen this Lions' team play in quite some time, and the chatter about Detroit regressing only got louder. Well, in the month after that, Detroit has gone 4-0 and now found themselves at a sensation 4-1. It's clear that despite both coordinator losses, the Lions' ship is stable with Dan Campbell at the helm.
Dan Campbell is taking his coaching to the next level in 2025 with the Lions
The last time an NFL team saw both coordinators leave in the same offseason for head coaching jobs was the Philadelphia Eagles after the 2022 NFL Season. Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon both got poached for jobs, and the Eagles proceeded to regress big-time and went one-and-done in the postseason.
And in this last offseason, there were a ton of predictions that had Detroit set to endure a notable regression. Fortunately, though, that hasn't happened, and the Lions are still so good that they're likely to beat both the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the coming weeks.
I will be the first to admit that I was quite 'out' on Dan Campbell from the beginning, as it felt like he was all bark, no bite. However, he could not have proven me any more wrong thus far, and his toughest year of coaching with the Lions is indeed 2025.
Keeping both sides of the ball at their previous level despite losing Aaron Glenn and Ben Johnson would have been a tall task for any coach. While the Lions are among the most talented teams on paper in the NFL, they will only go as far as a coach will take them.
For Campbell, that seems to be pretty far, as the 4-1 Detroit Lions feel like the best version of Campbell's Lions that we've seen.
