The Pittsburgh Steelers' pass rush has been inconsistent this season, but the defense will need to apply pressure on Sunday night.

The Steelers visit the Chargers and quarterback Justin Herbert at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif. Herbert is second in the NFL with 2,390 passing yards and 18 touchdown passes in nine games.

"He can kill you with his arms and certainly can kill you with his legs," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. "He can kill you with both by play extension. He has a complete arsenal of people to throw to. Can't say enough about their receiver corps. The reacquisition of Keenan Allen is kind of a linchpin. He's a Steady Eddie. Been around Herbert in the past. You can tell he's a security blanket.

"We certainly have our hands full in these one-dimensional passing moments, working to minimize all those eligibles while at the same time respecting the mobility component of Herbert."

The Steelers' best chance of stopping Herbert is to capitalize on their up-front edge. The Chargers' offensive line has sustained multiple injuries, and Herbert has been sacked 28 times. The Steelers took down Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones five times last Sunday in a 27-20 win.

The Chargers entered training camp thinking they had one of the best offensive tackle combinations in the league. However, Rashawn Slater sustained a season-ending knee injury during the preseason, and Joe Alt is out for the year after injuring his ankle in last week's 27-20 victory over the Tennessee Titans. The lowly Titans sacked Herbert six times.

The Steelers, though, will also have to keep Herbert from running. He has 305 rushing yards on 46 attempts this season and burned the Steelers for 90 yards on the ground in 2021 when the Chargers won a 41-37 shootout. The Steelers held Herbert to 16 rushing yards in a 20-10 victory last season, but Herbert was playing with an injured ankle.

"He's an elite quarterback, not just because of his arm, but also because he can run as well," Steelers inside linebacker Alex Highsmith said. "I remember when we played them in 2021. One of the reasons that they got after us is because he was running the ball. We didn't keep him in the pocket. So, we just have got to do a good job of keeping him in the pocket. We did a good job with that last year.

"We stopped the run last year, so we've just got to be disciplined in our rush lanes because we know his escape ability is real. It comes down to upfront, just having a good game, really being able to get after him that way."