Pittsburgh Steelers: Potential Week 5 Trap Game Against Dallas Cowboys

The 2024 Pittsburgh Steelers’ three-game winning streak ended in Week 4 against the Indianapolis Colts. The Steelers’ first primetime game of the 2024 season comes in Week 5 against the Dallas Cowboys. Despite plenty being in Pittsburgh’s favor, the Sunday Night Football matchup could be a second consecutive trap game for the 3-1 Steelers.

Pittsburgh Steelers Have The Injury Advantage

Injuries have been an unfortunate narrative for the Steelers early in the 2024 campaign. Nate Herbig, Troy Fautanu, James Daniels, Ryan Watts, and Cameron Johnston are all lost for the season, erasing the offensive line depth Pittsburgh considered a reliable strength.

However, despite those losses, Isaac Seumalo will be back on the field for the first time in 2024, bolstering a young unit that struggled against the Colts. Outside linebacker Jeremiah Moon is also questionable for Week 5 after being activated from Injured Reserve (IR), which gets him another step closer to making his 2024 debut for Pittsburgh.

Roman Wilson, Pittsburgh’s rookie receiver, has been a healthy scratch the last two games and is still a question mark ahead of the Sunday night contest. Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith has prioritized size and strength, especially tight ends, throughout the first four weeks. With Dallas dealing with its injury issues, Smith could again choose to field a larger group to overpower the Cowboys. While the Steelers did lose Troy Fautanu and James Daniels for the 2024 season in a matter of weeks, Pittsburgh is slowly getting healthy.

Cowboys Hampered By Injuries

The injury report is grim on the Cowboys’ side and puts the Steelers firmly in the driver’s seat. Superstar, do-it-all linebacker Micah Parsons (ankle) will officially miss the Sunday Night game. Veteran pass rusher DeMarcus Lawrence will also miss Week 5 and more, being moved to IR with a right-foot Lisfranc injury.

All-Pro cornerback DaRon Bland, who had foot surgery during the 2024 offseason, which placed him on IR, is a longshot to play. The bright spot is that star cornerback Trevon Diggs will play in Week 5 despite battling an ankle injury. If Diggs isn’t too limited, Dallas needs everything he has and then some.

Veteran Brandin Cooks (knee), playing for his fifth NFL team, will miss the game against the Steelers, as he was placed on IR. Cooks has only produced 91 receiving yards in 2024 and a single touchdown, with 2022 third-round pick Jalen Tolbert being second on the team in receiving (160 yards, one TD).

The offense will go through CeeDee Lamb, who is first in receiving (316 yards, 2 TDs) and third in rushing (33 yards, six carries) for the Cowboys in 2024. Can Dallas overcome injuries on Sunday Night Football in Pittsburgh against one of the better defenses in the league, which will play with a bruised ego from Week 4?

Offensive Line Leadership Returns

Getting Seumalo back might be more significant than many outside of Pittsburgh realize. When Daniels left during the Week 4 loss, Pittsburgh’s offensive line became a combination of inexperience, youth, and one of the more maligned offensive linemen in recent Steelers’ history. The unit consisted of Dan Moore Jr., second-year Spencer Anderson, rookie Zach Frazier, rookie Mason McCormick, and second-year Broderick Jones. Regardless of the blue-chip talent or potential, it was an uphill battle for Pittsburgh most of the day in Indianapolis.

Smith runs an offense that heavily relies on the offensive line to control the trenches, which explains the struggles without Daniels against the Colts. Seumalo brings stability to the group, which could be the difference between a statement win and another trap loss. The Cowboys’ defense will be hobbled, opening the door for the Steelers to take hold of the game and not let go until it finishes with a victory. Whether it is keeping Justin Fields upright or ensuring the rushing attack has to be respected by Dallas, the Steelers offensive line will play a vital role on Sunday night in Pittsburgh.

Najee Key to Avoiding Trap Game

Jaylen Warren hasn’t been his usual speedy, reliable self in 2024, with injuries holding him back from hitting any stride, and he will once again be out in Week 5. Offseason signing Cordarrelle Patterson showed several critical bursts down the stretch in Pittsburgh’s Week 4 loss, but he will also miss the Sunday night game. That leaves a committee that was activated to back up Najee Harris against Dallas. Jonathan Ward and Aaron Shampklin will each get to show what they can do, but make no mistake; this is Harris’s game, and the Steelers expect him to respond appropriately.

Warren is the perfect complement to Harris, and the two-headed attack benefits both rushers in longevity and production. Without Warren or Patterson to spell him, Harris will don the bell-cow label heading into Sunday’s primetime contest.

Harris is seen as a polarizing figure in Pittsburgh, considering his first-round status, but Sunday is when he has the stage to prove why the Steelers were wrong to decline his fifth-year option. Having Seumalo back is a massive boost for Harris, and if the offensive line can keep defenders out of the backfield, the running game should have a season-high day against the Cowboys.

WR Depth Still Concerning

Everyone in Pittsburgh knows how the Brandon Aiyuk saga ended, so there is a less-than-enthused response to the emerging Davante Adams trade request. The truth is that wide receiver is one area where the Steelers desperately need to make some kind of move that will bring immediate improvement to the group.

After four weeks, only three receivers not named George Pickens have recorded receiving numbers: Calvin Austin III (125 yards, seven catches, one TD), Van Jefferson (36 yards, five catches), and Scotty Miller (31 yards, two catches). Pickens needs help, or it will be another predictable Steelers offense.

Any NFL team would be hard-pressed to compete in 2024 without at least a decent complement to Pickens. When opposing defenses realize the only concern is Pickens, it impacts the offensive approach. On nearly every carry that Harris had against the Colts, it was clear that the defense was ready and waiting for a running play.

That reflects early-down play-calling by Smith and a lack of respect for the pass. Even if the Steelers change things up more, without a legitimately dangerous passing game, defenses will stack the box and continue frustrating Harris before he reaches the line of scrimmage.

In Summary

The Steelers ran into a buzzsaw early in the Week 4 loss to the Colts. Mike Tomlin tends to have three-game losing streaks in recent seasons, and the hated “Tomlin trap game” collapse against Indianapolis brought that fear back to the hearts of Pittsburgh fans. With the injury advantage leaning the Steelers’ way, it only creates a combination of factors pointing to another trap game. Outside of Prescott and Lamb, the Cowboys’ game-changers are either less-than-healthy or out entirely.

The Steelers’ 2024 offseason was all about bringing in new talent and a new attitude toward the franchise’s future. Non-losing seasons and opening-round postseason exits are no longer the status quo or a way to soothe the pain of another empty campaign. Omar Khan and Andy Weidl represent a return to the gritty, hardnosed, blue-collar way of doing things that the Steelers were once known for.

If Pittsburgh can finish a should-win Week 5 game by handing the Cowboys a definitive loss, showing continued offensive growth, and earning a fourth win early in 2024, it will be a job very well done.