CARSON, Calif. -- "We have to do a better job with running the football and we have to stop the other team from running the football on us."
That wasn't Mike Tomlin in his post-game press conference following the Steelers' 24-17 win over the Chargers Sunday night at Dignity Health Sports Park. That was the other head coach in this one, Anthony Lynn, highlighting the importance of a strong running attack in his opening statement.
But, man, does that sentiment hit home for anybody following this Steelers team all year or what? James Conner's struggled, entering Sunday night's game with just 194 yards on 3.3 yards-per-carry. Jaylen Samuels had seen spotty action at best and is now out for a month. Benny Snell is untested and raw as a rookie.
And the entire offensive line?
They just weren't creating lanes. They weren't winning their battles or executing their assignments. The dominant force the Steelers enjoyed in years past was nowhere to be found. It all added up to just 67 team rushing yards per game entering this one and a lousy 1-4 record as a result.
But tonight?
"We had to come out with the initiative to set the run up, and then it didn't matter what they gave us," Ramon Foster was telling me at his locker after the game. "We were going to have to run the ball. And that's what it's gotta be from here on out. We're down in a lot of spots. And we, up front, tight ends, wide receivers — everybody's gotta be able to help with the run game. Because that opens up everything else. That's a part of this game right now, is establishing what we're good at. And right now we gotta set the run to set the pass."
"Set the run" these Steelers did, to the tune of a season-high 124 yards on the ground, including 75 of those on 17 carries from Snell, the heaviest load of his career to date. With Samuels down, Snell knew his role was about to expand in this game, and he seized the opportunity in full, no run better than this 20-yard rip through a gulf created by Matt Feiler and Zach Banner:
"He's going to be a good kid," Foster said of Snell. "He's a kid that played big ball in the SEC, and he loves it. And James supports him all the way. This has been a beautiful journey right here. I mean, the 1-2 punch — 1-2-3 now when Jaylen gets back — it's pretty cool."
It wasn't just "pretty cool," as Foster put it. It was necessary.
"Man, we didn't have a lot of other options," Tomlin said when I asked him what powered the Steelers' rushing attack Sunday night. "Sometimes, that's life when you're backed up against it. We needed that, and they delivered."
The players rose to the challenge, having more than a little fun in the process.
"It was real exciting. It was really fun," Snell added. "I was [there] every step of the way to back up [James Conner] whenever he needed it. He did a good job of preparing me this week."
Snell couldn't avoid mentioning Conner, and rightfully so. Conner did this:
And this:
It was the Conner Steelers fans remember from his Pro Bowl 2018. While the stat line vs. the Chargers wasn't mindblowing — 16 rushes for 41 yards and a touchdown alongside seven receptions for 78 yards and a score — Conner's work was vital to the team's success.
With third-string quarterback Devlin Hodges getting the start, Conner had to set the tone to help alleviate some pressure — and that's exactly what he did.
"We knew we couldn't give 'Duck' [Hodges] a lot of exposure to the defense, so we had to do some things to the other areas," Tomlin said post-game.
Foster put it this way:
"That's the same way when [Mason Rudolph] gets back," Foster said. "We gotta support those guys. Defenses want to go after them because they think they're young and inexperienced. We gotta be a group up front, especially to settle them in. Let them make their plays as they come, and controlling the run's gotta be a huge part of it.
"You don't want the whole game on a young guy like that, and I don't care what anybody says. That's young quarterbacks across the league. You have to be able to help them out, and that [comes] in the run game."
The importance of it all wasn't lost on Conner either, when I asked him about it after the game.
"Yeah, man, as long as we can convert on third downs, we'll be able to get the running game going or be able to do long drives and stuff like that," Conner told me. "So as long as we can convert on third down, the run game will be there and it's just huge for the momentum to open things up."
Conner wasn't patting himself on the back too much, though. So JuJu Smith-Schuster did it for him.
"He was running the ball well and catching the ball well, pretty much doing everything right," Smith-Schuster added. "You can see him on the checkdown making plays and getting open on the one-on-one matchups and of course, just running strong as always."
Get the point? The Steelers needed this performance from their running game, and Conner, Snell and that front clearing the way delivered in full. While Conner's two scores will dominate the highlights, the team turned to Snell late to grind it out and to put a bow on the victory. Conner suffered a quad injury late in the game, so it was time for some "Benny Snell football" — and the rookie sparkled in his first appearance under the national spotlight.
"I really felt like today was, like, run-heavy," Snell was saying. "I got out on some checkdowns and Duck didn't find me, but Duck did a great job today. I'm glad it was a team win."
Helping Snell with his transition was Conner himself. Despite being in just his third NFL season and his second year as the Steelers' featured back, Conner serves as the established veteran in the running backs room, a point Snell doesn't take for granted.
"James is my guy, you know what I'm saying?" Snell said. "He's teaching me things on and off the field every day. I treat him like a brother, and we just get better day by day. We got a full running back corps that, we're all good, we're all special in our own ways."
"It's just the role I'm in. Benny, he's hungry to learn and he's passionate about the game," Conner said of the relationship. "He's willing and able to learn. I've been a rookie before, so I just try to help any way I can."
Tonight, it all meshed to form the Steelers' finest performance on the ground in 2019 — by far. The offensive line got its swagger back, Conner provided a perfect safety valve for Hodges and Snell iced it late. Oh, and the Steelers won.
Funny how that works.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
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Steelers at Chargers, Carson, Calif., Oct. 13, 2019 -- MATT SUNDAY / DKPS[/caption]
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