Each week the Steel City Underground staff will put their brilliant minds to task in order to come up with their keys to the game, or, those players, coaching decisions, or situations which could determine the outcome of the game.

Zach Metkler

After a big Week 1, my key to the game is the matchup between rookie T.J. Watt and veteran tackle Riley Reiff. Reiff is a solid tackle and held his own against the Saints pass rushers all game, but he is not a Joe Thomas caliber tackle. Watt did a solid job against Thomas, but you can make the argument that DeShone Kizer held onto the ball much longer than most quarterbacks will during the season.

The biggest difference I think is the fact that Sam Bradford will get the ball out quicker than Kizer, which means Watt will need to be technically sound and get to the quarterback quickly, which he is more than capable of doing. He’ll take what he learned in Week 1 and use it to grow against a veteran tackle in the form of Reiff. Don’t expect two sacks again, but Watt could be a difference-maker yet again this week.

Joe Kuzma

My key is establishing the running game: on both sides of the ball.

I don’t see Dalvin Cook having a repeat performance against the Steelers defense. Likewise, I believe the Steelers need to establish the run to setup the pass this weekend. We saw how a pass-first mentality hurt them against Cleveland, and while I understand the concept, I believe this team has always been at its best when they have a run-first approach.

Jimmy Norkewicz

My key is how the Steelers offensive line bounces back from a subpar performance especially in the running game. Everson Griffen and Linval Joseph will be handfuls for Ramon Foster and Alejandro Villanueva, and they constantly got pressure on Drew Brees with just four linemen. If we can’t give Ben and the receivers time to beat the man-to-man coverage, it’ll be a long day

And just to piggy back off of Zach Metkler and the offensive line: I think Heyward and Hargrave could have monster games vs. their rookie center Pat Elflein. There were a couple of times where I saw him get overpowered.

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Brian E. Roach

My key (or keys as the case may be ) are Javon Hargrave against Pat Elflein and Cam Heyward against Nick Easton. These are the two weak links on the Vikings O-line. I would look for Cam and J-Wobble to have big games against them. Collapse the pocket from the middle on Sam Bradford and he’ll start making mistakes, and become an uncomfortable quarterback. Get him to the ground more than twice and he will hurry throws and the secondary should have opportunities to make plays. Set the offense up with good field position and the Steelers go to 2-0 and send the Vikings packing with a 1-1 record.

Terry Fletcher

My keys to the game are three-fold: establish the running game early, get James Harrison more snaps as pass rusher, and remember AB likes to play in the 1st half too.

I think Cleveland’s rookie quarterback made Watt look like a defensive God on Sunday. Seeing our 39-year old veteran linebacker, our franchise sack leader and best pass rusher in 2016 go after Bradford with the rest of our defense stopping the run would warm my heart. James is a scary presence on the field to an often-injured quarterback.

Hopefully, with Bell now returning to practice, he’ll catch up quick to schemes and not have to pick up part-time work at Dairy Queen.

I also believe that waiting to get AB involved until the 3rd quarter to spread the ball around a bit will come back to bite us here. It’s about the win. Score fast and get a cushion.

Mike Pelaia

My number one key is controlling the clock. I think this needs to be done through the ground attack with more carries out of Bell and Conner. In doing so this will keep the Vikings offense off the field and limit Sam Bradford’s opportunities.

Josh Fitzer

Getting Bell going early and dominate the line of scrimmage.

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Eric Herrmann

My key is clean tackling. This means three things for the Steelers, 1) finishing sacks and not letting Sam Bradford get away 2) wrapping up cleanly and not missing tackles in the open field 3) not having any more boneheaded illegal hits. When playing a good team like the Vikings, the Steelers can’t afford to make fundamental mistakes. Improving their tackling from what we saw versus the Browns will greatly improve this defense.

Tina Rivers

Last week, against the Browns, I said that the Steelers needed to exploit using their tight ends. They did, and it was effective. Against the Vikings, who utilize big Kyle Rudolph on their offense – and practice against it every week – the Steelers will have to be more creative. Tossing Jesse James or Vance McDonald over the middle of the field or end zone isn’t going to work as well this week. That requires that Bell – and Conner – get heavily involved in not only the rushing game but as receivers out of the backfield. Linval Joseph and Everson Griffen will eat Roethlisberger alive if the choice on offense is “pass first” for the entire game. Key the pump up music for Alejandro Villanueva, because he needs to be “on” this week in a big way.

On defense, the biggest key will be to limit Sam Bradford’s room in the pocket; pressure hard all game and force Bradford to get rid of the ball. Against the Saints, he was given too much time and room to work with and, even behind a subpar offensive line, he dropped deep bombs to Jarius Wright and Adam Thielen. The Vikings ran six different personnel packages on offense against the Saints, but the Steelers should be able to read through the misdirection and apply the correct pressure and adjustments.