The Colts, in their entire franchise history, have never won three consecutive games against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
That's a stat less about the Colts and more about the remarkable consistency the Steelers have enjoyed – and are continuing to enjoy – since Chuck Noll took over as head coach in 1969. Over the last 57 seasons, Pittsburgh has had a losing record just 10 times. They've had three coaches in that span: Noll, Bill Cowher and now Mike Tomlin.
Tomlin, now in his 19th year with the Steelers, has yet to have a losing record. Unsurprisingly, the Steelers (4-3) are over .500 as they welcome the Colts to Acrisure Stadium on Sunday for the first time since 2020.
"Got a lot of respect for their players, their coach," head coach Shane Steichen said. "I think they do a phenomenal job."
Digging beneath the win-loss consistency of the Steelers, though, let's look at a few things for Sunday's game.
When the Colts have the ball
The Steelers enter Week 9 without the sort of smothering, dominant defenses the NFL has become accustomed to under Tomlin. No team is allowing more passing yards per game than the Steelers' 273; Pittsburgh is 24th in yards per play allowed (5.6), 25th on third down (41.8 percent) and 24th in scoring drive percentage (45.1 percent).
From an advanced metric standpoint, the Steelers are 22nd in EPA per play allowed (+.024) and 29th in success rate allowed (38.6 percent). One area to note here: The Steelers have allowed 555 receiving yards to opposing tight ends this year, fourth-most in the NFL.
But this is still a Steelers defense built by a Hall of Fame coach in Tomlin, with Hall of Fame players like defensive tackle Cameron Heyward and edge rusher T.J. Watt up front. Cornerback Jalen Ramsey, who has built a compelling Canton case in his own right, must be accounted for on every snap; the Steelers bolstered their secondary by trading for safety Kyle Duggar from the New England Patriots this week.
The point here is even if the Steelers have had some issues on defense this year, they still possess the types of player who can wreck a game for an offense.
"They're going to be a tough team, they're going to be a physical team," running back Jonathan Taylor said. "Mike T always has those boys ready to play. It's going to be a 60-minute match."
Pittsburgh, too, does do some good things on defense. They're fourth in the red zone, allowing touchdowns on 50 percent of opposing drives inside the 20; opposing quarterbacks have an 81.9 passer rating in the red zone against the Steelers, tied for the sixth-lowest in the NFL.
The Steelers are also eighth in takeaways with 10; and they're eighth in sacks with 22.
For the Colts, it's not just the Steelers' defense they'll need to prepare for – it'll be the atmosphere at Acrisure Stadium, which you can expect to be the loudest this team has played in on the road in 2025. The Colts haven't played a true road game in Pittsburgh since 2019 (they played there in 2020, but with no fans in the stands amid the COVID-19 pandemic), and it'll be a test to withstand the noise generated by fans waving Terrible Towels and losing their minds to "Renegade" by Styx.
"Communication has got to be at a premium, for sure," head coach Shane Steichen said. "I think handling the noise, especially on third down, and making sure we're getting out of the huddle and making sure the calls are correct – if we're checking stuff at the line of scrimmage, making sure we're all over that stuff because it's hard when you go on the road with the noise. You got to make sure you operate. Obviously we got to put them through that in practice with crowd noise, and put them in that environment as much as we can. So yeah, the communication has got to be at a premium."
When the Steelers have the ball
Aaron Rodgers can still "throw the crap out of the ball," Steichen said, even as he'll celebrate his 42nd birthday in early December. Rodgers is third in the NFL with 16 touchdowns and is eighth with a 104.4 passer rating; he's only been pressured on 27.6 percent of his dropbacks, second-lowest in the NFL behind only the Denver Broncos' Bo Nix (25.2 percent).
Rodgers has the fourth-fastest average time to throw (2.61 seconds) among quarterbacks with at least 100 dropbacks, though that's led to him having the NFL's third-lowest average depth of target (6.7 yards) while throwing short of the sticks on a league-high 63 percent of his passes. It's worked for the Steelers, though, who are 12th in points per game (25.0), with that number boosted by converting nearly three in every four trips to the red zone into a touchdown.
"(Rodgers') amazing arm talent is still there," defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo said. "It's amazing how he throws the ball, how fast – he gets the ball out faster than any quarterback in the league. He is still unbelievably accurate. Can make every throw at any point on the field. Obviously, he can see all the things you're trying to do whether it's a disguise or this or that. He's seen it all. So, anytime you're playing against a Hall of Fame player, especially at that position, it's going to bring a ton of challenges. He's been a great player, is a great player. We have the utmost respect obviously, for him."
