Mark Madden: Without T.J. Watt, Steelers' coaching strategy will be key to containing Josh Allen

Wings aren’t what’s best about Buffalo. Beef on weck is better. Refreshing Pittsburgh Steelers notes are even juicier. Have you ever seen the Buffalo Bills win the Super Bowl?

• T.J. Watt’s absence will hurt when the Steelers visit Buffalo. But sacks that don’t occur on third or fourth down are football’s most overrated play. Nick Herbig and Markus Golden are adequate replacements at edge rusher. Get decent pressure. Contain Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen. Keep him from taking off and extending plays. Blitz more. Mike Tomlin is supposed to be a great defensive mind. So come up with something. Don’t coach by rote. Don’t just plug and play.

• The Steelers get lots of sacks but rarely hurt quarterbacks. The playoffs following the 2005 season got off to a flying start when Steelers defensive lineman Kimo von Oelhoffen injured Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer to trigger an upset win in the wild-card round, the first of three straight road victories before beating Seattle in Super Bowl XL. Not hoping. Just saying.

• It will obviously help if safety Minkah Fitzpatrick returns. Perhaps he spies on Allen, or covers Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid. Kincaid poses a significant threat. Or just let Fitzpatrick find the ball. He hasn’t been part of a takeaway all season. He’s due, and it seems necessary.

• Patrick Peterson should stay at safety. He’s too old and slow to play cornerback. His experience matters more at safety. I want his veteran eyes on the mistake-prone Allen. It beats Peterson’s worn-out legs trying to stay step-for-step with a wideout. Peterson should have played safety all season.

• Buffalo’s star receiver, Stefon Diggs, is a minimal worry. His production has declined, he’s probably banged up and isn’t nearly as featured under Joe Brady, who took over as Buffalo’s offensive coordinator after the Bills started 5-5. Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. will erase Diggs.

• Full credit to George Pickens, the Steelers’ mercurial receiver: He had no targets Saturday at Baltimore but also no tantrums. If Pickens isn’t careful, he might become an adult. Here’s betting Pickens comes up big at Buffalo (weather permitting).

• Buffalo ranks 15th in rush defense at 110.6 yards per game. The Steelers’ run game has coalesced: They’ve rushed for 155, 202 and 113 yards over the past three weeks, often battering the opposition. But all that means something only if the Steelers aren’t trailing by more than one score. This game needs to stay tight.

• The Steelers should pick up Najee Harris’ fifth-year option at season’s end. It’s cheap at $6.7 million, and Harris might get the boo-boo face if he’s a lame duck next campaign.

• What Mason Rudolph has done in his three starts has been incredible. Never mind the stats. The rhythm and poise he’s trickled down to the entire offense has been just as important. The Steelers don’t always feel like they’re going to crumble when they have the ball. It’s going to be a shame when the Steelers screw Rudolph again.

• The Steelers probably will let Rudolph walk at season’s end by way of avoiding pressure to play him instead of Kenny Pickett. I’m not kidding.

• Why is Pickett still listed first on the Steelers’ depth chart at quarterback if Rudolph is going to start? Is Pickett so neurotic that he needs to look at the depth chart and pretend?

• If the Steelers win the coin toss, they should take the ball. They need to score first. They won’t come from behind to win this game. Not from more than one score down. If the weather is bad, the field will get worse.

• Tomlin won’t step away from coaching. He likely is leaking that to select big-time football media to accelerate getting a contract extension. If Tomlin does leave the Steelers, it won’t be difficult to find a replacement that can approximate his level of accomplishment over the last 13 seasons.

• Sure, Tomlin rallied the Steelers from 7-7 to finish 10-7. He was also coaching when the Steelers fell from 7-4 to 7-7, that drop being lowlighted by consecutive home losses to 2-10 teams. It also took Tomlin too long to make the right decision at quarterback. Tomlin hurt more than he helped.

• If Tomlin is the coach he’s cracked up to be, he should out-coach Sean McDermott, who isn’t exactly George Halas. But Tomlin isn’t and won’t.

• The Steelers will keep it close but lose. Somebody will backdoor cover late in the game.