Rich Breaks Down the AFC North and the Steelers’ Chances to Start the Season 6-2

The Steelers put up 34 points, and Jaylen Warren put his name next to some of the most famous plays in franchise history.

Warren finished with 15 rushes for 101 yards, 87 receiving yards, and a touchdown both on the ground and through the air. He became the fourth player in Steelers history with multiple 50-yard touchdowns in a single game. Rich ran through the rest of that list with obvious delight: George Pickens, Louis Lipps, and Frenchy Fuqua, the man whose foot, as Rich recalled, the Immaculate Reception caromed off before landing in Franco Harris's hands.

Warren is the only one of them to do it with both a rushing and a receiving touchdown. He also piled up 140 scrimmage yards after first contact.

"This guy's no joke," Rich said.

He had help. Germie Bernard came to the fore, Pat Freiermuth caught two touchdowns, and Aaron Rodgers, as the studio put it, is balling. As one voice in the studio pointed out, Rodgers heaped the highest praise on Warren after the game.

Rich's only request is consistency. Pittsburgh's season has gone win one, lose one, win one, lose one, and now win one. "Can we get it more consistently, please?" he asked. "Let's see if they can break this streak."

The schedule gives them a chance. Next up is a trip to Tampa, followed by a game in Paris against the Saints, which naturally turned into a French lesson. "Je m'appelle T.J." got things started, and since the French word for "what" is quoi, the studio floated a new nickname: T.J. Quoi.

Rich then mapped out the math. Win those two and the Steelers are 5-2. Come home and beat a Browns team they always want to beat, and they're 6-2 heading into the bye. Out of the bye comes a big game in Cincinnati, a visit to Philadelphia, then Denver at home the day after Thanksgiving and Houston at home after that. The back stretch includes a trip to Jacksonville, home games against Baltimore and Carolina, and a visit to Tennessee.

That brought the conversation to the whole division, which Rich called arguably the best in football. The Browns are 3-2. The Steelers are 3-2. The Bengals are 3-2. The Ravens are 4-1.

So who wins it? Rich put the question to the room, and the Ravens got the early votes. The reasoning was simple: when Baltimore is playing that well without Lamar, it's hard to pick against them.

Not everyone in the studio agreed. One voice didn't think the Ravens defense was as good, while conceding Zay Flowers is incredible. Another had picked the Bengals before the season and praised how easy Joe Burrow made it look, before admitting that Miami's backdoor cover had cost him money. That did not fly as an argument for Cincinnati.

"You're not choosing the Bengals because they let the Dolphins in the backdoor," came the reply. "Took money out of your pocket. Is that what you're saying right now?"

The division race can sort itself out later. For now, Rich's verdict on Pittsburgh was short. "The Steelers, man. That was good."