SI.com's Peter King praises Steelers following Week 3 win

The Steelers have caught the attention of many around the NFL.

It wasn't just that they won in Carolina on Sunday night but, rather, how they won that has people talking.

Holding Cam Newton-led drives to 13 points. Amassing 264 yards rushing against one of the NFL's better rush-defenses. Two backs rambling for 100-plus yards and averaging a whopping 8.5 yards per carry. A quarterback-receiver duo that connected for two touchdowns and is evolving into one of the better passing tandems in the league.

SI.com's Peter King is among those that took notice of the Steelers 37-19 win over the Panthers, giving the team high praise in his weekly column, The Monday Morning Quarterback.

King now has the Steelers slated at No. 8 on his "Fine 15" list of NFL teams. He dubbed the team's win Sunday as, "the most impressive win of Week 3." King also was surprised by the Steelers' dominance. "For the Steelers to run for (264) yards against a top-five defense, on the road, and to have the Panthers wave a white flag by putting Derek Anderson in the game down 37-13 with six minutes left … a tremendous performance by a team I didn’t expect it from," King wrote.

King also tabbed Le'Veon Bell as his Offensive Player of the Week after the second-year running back amassed 147 yards on 21 carries that included an 81-yard burst through the Panthers' defense.

"With the Steelers’ season at a crucial early-season point because of an awful loss at Baltimore last week, Bell and Blount absolutely smoked the Panthers on Sunday night," King wrote. "Bell (21 carries, 147 yards, including an 81-yard run) and Blount (10 carries, 118 yards, including a 50-yarder) steamrolled what was formerly a good Carolina defense for a combined 265 yards. Pittsburgh is alive in the AFC North, a game in back of the formidable Bengals and tied with the Ravens, because they played like the Steelers of the Franco days."

Pittsburgh's isn't the only AFC North team King likes. He has the Bengals this week as the No. 2 squad on his list behind the Seahawks. Cincinnati is the only 3-0 team in the division and is 1-0 in the North after winning in Baltimore in Week 1. The Ravens, despite winning in Cleveland Sunday, are two spots behind the Steelers at No.10.