The Pittsburgh Steelers hit the road in Week 4 for the third time already this season. A familiar non-divisional opponent looms in the Indianapolis Colts. The two faced off last season in what ended up being a disappointing game for the black and yellow. The Steelers fell by a score of 30-13 from Lucas Oil Stadium.

Before that, the Steelers won the past eight contests dating back to 2008. Sure enough, the Steelers own the all-time series with a 27-7-0 record against the boys in blue. Last year’s contest featured three backup quarterbacks, a handful of backup running backs, and not much to be happy about on the Steeler’s end.

Colts’ star running back Jonathan Taylor (one of the starters not to play last year) watched as backups Trey Sermon and Tyler Goodson ran for 157 yards against a disappointing Steelers defense. Anthony Richardson (another starter who did not play against Pittsburgh) saw his former backup Gardner Minshew have his way. Minshew threw for 215 yards and a trio of touchdowns.

Enter 2024, Minshew is no longer a Colt, and it is highly unlikely we will see much of Sermon or Goodson. Now, are these good things, or bad things, or do they even matter at all? This is to be determined. What we do know is that Taylor will play and is coming off his best game of this campaign so far last week. Taylor rushed for 110 yards and two touchdowns in the Colts 21-16 victory against Chicago.

Richardson is another player that Pittsburgh did not get to see last season and will meet this Sunday. Richardson has underperformed to open up 2024 as he has thrown for just three touchdowns and a staggering six interceptions. Statistics like this will not fare well against a rowdy Pittsburgh defense, especially one looking to enact revenge from a season ago. Richardson can also use his legs and has rushed for 117 yards so far this season, something the Steelers must be aware of.

For the Steelers, they must keep on keeping on. Their most recent victory over the Los Angeles Chargers showed that they may not have to score more than 20 points against anyone this season. While that would still be less than ideal, the defense has continued to own games. Upon Alex Highsmith’s exit from the contest, Nick Herbig entered the game and took over. Herbig’s two sacks and three tackles helped the modern-day Steel Curtain completely fluster a solid Chargers offense.

On the other side of the ball, Justin Fields had his best game as a Steeler throwing for 245 yards, an aerial touchdown, and a rushing touchdown. Fields also threw an interception that unluckily bobbled around and fell into the hands of former Steeler Bud Dupree.

The Steelers running back duo left their victory last week with some bruises to monitor ahead of Week 4. Najee Harris wore a sling earlier this week but will be good to go according to Coach Mike Tomlin. On the other hand, Jaylen Warren remains uncertain but looks unlikely after missing back-to-back practices this week.

With a boatload to consider, let us take a look at some key matchups entering Week 4.

Quenton Nelson vs. Steelers DL

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The Steelers’ impressive defensive line will have to face a tough task in Quenton Nelson and the Indianapolis Colts this week. Nelson is a 3x first-team All-Pro and 6x Pro-Bowler. The steady left guard will likely face off against Cameron Heyward for most of the day and will be a spectacle to see.

If not Heyward, it will likely be Keeanu Benton or Montravius Adams who draw the match. Benton is still looking to register a sack in the young 2024 season but has six tackles to his name through the first three contests. Adams has impressed to start the year as he comes in with five total tackles and a sack of his own. Whoever Nelson draws will have to come with their best approach if they hope to get to the young quarterback.

George Pickens vs. Jaylon Jones

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After a 57-yard week against the Chargers, George Pickens comes into battle with Colts’ cornerback Jaylon Jones. While Pickens is averaging over 10 yards a catch this season, he is yet to have a breakthrough game. To begin the year, Pickens has matched up with some of the best corners in the league such as A.J. Terrell, Pat Surtain II, and Asante Samuel Jr. Entering Week 4, many may think Jones is a downgrade from this caliber corner…. may not be the case.

Jones is coming off a week where he recorded a tackle for loss and also defended two passes. This stat line awarded the second-year man with the AFC Defensive Player of the Week. Jones is a former seventh-round draft pick who continues to prove doubters wrong. This matchup against Pickens will give him a prime chance to do that once again.

What it all means

For the 1-2 Colts, back-to-back wins would go a long way. Especially if they were to do so over an undefeated, hyped-up Steelers side. After the Steelers, the Colts’ schedule lightens up a good bit with three straight games against opponents with records under.500 (two being 0-3).

Richardson and Taylor are yet to have breakout contests this season as well. They will no doubt be looking to build momentum in this outing against the No. 1 defense in the NFL. A lot of similarities also go for the Colt’s defense. The aforementioned Jones continues to play with a chip on his shoulder and show people week in and week out what makes him so special.

This is the calm before the storm for Pittsburgh. A looming Sunday Night Football contest against the Dallas Cowboys must be put on the back burner so the Steelers can focus on the pesky Colts in front of them. After last year’s game, it should be more than obvious that this is not a team to take lightly.

The rest of the AFC North continues to labor with Baltimore (1-2)) facing the undefeated and impressive Buffalo Bills. The Cincinnati Bengals (0-3) head to Carolina to face a sleeper team riding the high of a Week 3 victory in the Panthers. Finally, the Cleveland Browns fresh off their loss to the New York Giants have an afternoon date in Las Vegas against the Raiders where certainly anything could happen.

Given all these facts, the Steelers still have the North in their grasp. Games against teams under .500 must be capitalized and this one is no different. You can expect yet another low-scoring game with plenty of players looking to prove a point and erase demons from the year before.

Score prediction: Steelers 26, Colts 13