by Bo Marchionte
@bomarchionte | College2Pro.com
Published October 25, 2026, 11:09 AM

Steelers Winners of Three Straight 

Paris offered the scenery. New Orleans provided the victory. Somewhere between the Eiffel Tower and the French Quarter, the Pittsburgh Steelers discovered that winning football games doesn’t necessarily require an offensive masterpiece.

Sometimes a little muscle, a little patience and a defense that refuses to surrender are enough to get the job done.

Pittsburgh’s 16-10 victory over the New Orleans Saints pushed Mike McCarthy’s Steelers to 5-2, winners of three straight and increasingly comfortable making opponents miserable.

It wasn’t beautiful. It wasn’t explosive. But it was effective.

And nobody aboard the flight home was going to complain about the final score.

The Steelers arrived overseas with an offense still searching for consistency. They departed with another victory, having controlled the clock for 31:02, converted 10 of 16 third downs and rushed for 149 yards.

That isn’t champagne football. It’s more like a cold domestic beer after mowing the lawn. Nothing fancy, but it gets the job done.

The Offensive Explosion That Never Came

Aaron Rodgers completed 19 of 30 passes for 212 yards and one touchdown without an interception. His 95.4 passer rating was respectable, although Pittsburgh’s offense never developed the kind of sustained fireworks that make defensive coordinators reach for antacids.

Jaylen Warren supplied the muscle.

The Steelers running back finished with 101 yards on 18 carries, averaging 5.6 yards per attempt. Rico Dowdle chipped in another 41 yards on nine carries.

Together, they helped Pittsburgh establish the kind of offensive balance that doesn’t necessarily dominate television highlights but wins the argument at the line of scrimmage.

The Steelers finished with 344 total yards and 20 first downs.

New Orleans managed just 18 rushing yards on 17 attempts.

Eighteen.

That’s not a rushing attack. That’s a parking violation.

Patrick Queen collected 10 tackles and a sack, while Payton Wilson added six tackles and an interception. T.J. Watt also recorded a sack as Pittsburgh’s defense squeezed the life out of the Saints’ running game.

The Steelers weren’t spectacular offensively. Fortunately, they didn’t need to be.

Freiermuth Understands the Assignment

Before Pittsburgh’s overseas adventure, tight end Pat Freiermuth offered some perspective on what it takes to get McCarthy’s offense operating smoothly.

“We gotta just continue to execute at a high level. Understand our roles,” Freiermuth said.

He expanded on the importance of players understanding the entire offensive concept rather than simply memorizing their individual assignments.

“I think when everyone’s understand the concept of the play and you know where you are in the read and the progression and what your role is in that concept, I think that’s when the offense is firing all cylinders.”

The Steelers haven’t reached that point consistently.

But they’re winning while trying to get there.

Freiermuth also pointed toward something that doesn’t appear on a statistical sheet: familiarity.

“It’s also, you know, we’ve been together for a year and a half, two years now. So with a lot of the skill guys, so it was just familiarity.”

Against New Orleans, Freiermuth caught two passes for 20 yards.

Nothing spectacular individually, but the larger picture continues to improve.

Zach Frazier and the Art of Wearing Down Opponents

Center Zach Frazier offered another interesting observation before the trip, discussing why Pittsburgh’s offense had previously found success late in games.

“I think also it’s just like wearing on them,” Frazier said. “Kind of when you get in overtime like that, someone’s gonna get tired, and if it’s not you, then it’s a good thing.”

That’s offensive-line philosophy stripped of unnecessary decoration.

Keep leaning on people. Keep making them tackle. Eventually, somebody gets tired of the conversation.

Against New Orleans, Pittsburgh’s running backs combined for 142 rushing yards. The Steelers controlled possession and consistently moved the chains on third down.

The offensive line didn’t deliver perfection, but it provided enough opportunities for Pittsburgh to dictate portions of the afternoon.

And with Warren running behind Frazier, the Steelers have a physical identity worth cultivating.

Paris, Pittsburgh and the Business of Winning

The international trip also offered something considerably more glamorous than offensive-line meetings.

Paris.

Neither Freiermuth nor Frazier sounded particularly excited about spending hours squeezed into an airplane.

“Nah, not typically. I don’t usually sleep that well,” Freiermuth said when asked about traveling.

Frazier, meanwhile, was preparing for his first visit to Paris.

“Never,” he said when asked whether he’d visited the city.

Both players anticipated limited opportunities to enjoy the destination.

“We have a couple hours Friday night,” Freiermuth said.

Then came the reminder.

“Yeah, it is a business trip.”

Business accomplished.

The Steelers can now return to Pittsburgh with three consecutive victories, a 5-2 record and another reminder that style points don’t count in the NFL standings.

The offense still has plenty to clean up. The passing game remains inconsistent, and Pittsburgh hasn’t transformed into an offensive juggernaut overnight.

But there’s something appealing about a football team that knows how to win without everything going according to plan.

Paris supplied the memories. New Orleans supplied the win.

And Pittsburgh gets to enjoy both on the long flight home.

Photo Credit Frank Hyatt/College2Pro.com