Week 1 · Sunday, September 13 · 1:00 PM ET
Why This Game Matters
Both franchises open the season under brand-new head coaches trying to prove a philosophy change was the right call: Kevin Stefanski's Falcons debut in Atlanta against Mike McCarthy's Steelers, who reunite McCarthy with 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers in what Rodgers has already called his final season. It's an early measuring-stick game for two teams picked to hover around .500, with Atlanta trying to avoid an eighth straight non-playoff start and Pittsburgh trying to show last year's near playoff-miss was the outlier, not the trend.
Real Player Matchups
- ATL pass rusher James Pearce Jr. (10.5 sacks, 16 QB hits in 2025) vs. a PIT offensive line that allowed 31 sacks last season.
- PIT pass rusher Alex Highsmith (9.5 sacks, 19 QB hits in 2025) vs. a ATL offensive line that allowed 26 sacks last season.
- ATL's Kyle Pitts drew a 23% target share in 2025 (+25 receiving EPA) against a PIT defense ranked #18 of 32 in EPA allowed.
Real 2025 season production (nflverse), a prior-season baseline pending real 2026 games.
Key Matchups
- Tua Tagovailoa's first start as a Falcon vs. a Steelers defense anchored by Jalen Ramsey, testing how quickly a new-look Atlanta passing attack (with Kyle Pitts as the top target) can sync up under first-year OC direction
- Steelers RB1 battle (Jaylen Warren vs. offseason addition Rico Dowdle) against an Atlanta front missing EDGE Jalon Walker, who tore his ACL in camp and is out for the season
- Aaron Rodgers and McCarthy's West Coast scheme, with new targets Michael Pittman Jr. and Robert Tonyan, against a Falcons secondary where rookie CB Avieon Terrell and Mike Hughes are still settling the outside-corner rotation
- Chris Boswell, who has beaten Atlanta almost single-handedly in the recent past, against a Falcons special-teams unit in a game that projects as low-scoring given both teams' unsettled offensive personnel
Injury Report
Jalon Walker · ATL EDGE
Out for season
Tore his ACL during a non-padded training camp practice; the 2025 No. 15 overall pick, who had 5.5 sacks as a rookie, will miss the entire 2026 season.
Michael Penix Jr. · ATL QB
Recovering from injury
Still rehabbing the ACL tear that ended his 2025 season in Week 11; not yet cleared for 11-on-11 work, putting Tua Tagovailoa on track to be the Week 1 starter.
Jessie Bates III · ATL S
Limited
Missed a training camp practice with a back issue.
Joey Porter Jr. · PIT CB
PUP
Opened training camp on the Physically Unable to Perform list with a back injury that reportedly flared up during camp; no firm return timeline given, and he is also seeking a contract extension.
DK Metcalf · PIT WR
Limited/DNP
Missed practice time after getting banged up during a training camp session; injury undisclosed, and McCarthy has downplayed it as not a major concern.
Series History
All-time: Pittsburgh leads the all-time series 16-2-1, one of the most lopsided head-to-head records of any two teams that don't share a division.
Last meeting: The teams last met on September 8, 2024, in Atlanta, where the Steelers won 18-10 behind six Chris Boswell field goals (three from 50-plus yards) and a Justin Fields-led offense that never found the end zone but didn't need to.
- · The Steelers have won five straight meetings in this series and have never lost to Atlanta in the NFL playoffs, largely because the two sides have never actually met in the postseason.
- · Pittsburgh's longest winning streak in the series ran nine games, from an Oct. 28, 1974 win through an Oct. 25, 1999 game, spanning multiple eras of both franchises.
Weather
Forecast not yet available this far out — check back closer to kickoff. Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh is an open-air stadium.
Records & Rankings on the Line
- · Pittsburgh enters as the higher-ranked team (18th in early power rankings) versus Atlanta (26th), reflecting oddsmakers' skepticism of the Falcons' rebuild under Stefanski and Cunningham
- · Atlanta is looking to avoid an 0-1 start after eight straight seasons without a playoff berth, now with Tua Tagovailoa opening the year over injury-recovering rookie Michael Penix Jr.
- · Pittsburgh has won five consecutive meetings in this series and will try to open the McCarthy-Rodgers era 1-0 despite a win total (~8.5) that suggests the market still isn't fully sold on the roster
The Desk Weighs In
Duke Callahan
PIT -4
Reasoning not yet published for this pick.
Vega Okafor
PIT -5
"Pittsburgh's offense (15th) isn't special, but Atlanta's (24th) is worse, and neither defense stands out enough to flip that. Straightforward numbers game."
Sunny Marchetti
ATL -1
Reasoning not yet published for this pick.
Reese Thackeray
PIT -3
Reasoning not yet published for this pick.
Priest Dunbar
PIT -3
Reasoning not yet published for this pick.