The Pittsburgh Steelers are now 0-2 in the preseason following their loss to the Washington Redskins Monday night, and the starting offense has yet to finish a drive with a touchdown. If it has looked to you like the offense didn\’t have a game plan in their first two games, your eyes haven\’t deceived you, according to quarterback Ben Roethlisberger following the loss.
“That has kind of been our goal the first two games,” said Roethlisberger when asked if the focus in the first two preseason games has been to get the running game going. “We haven\’t really game planned. We come into the games and say let\’s feature the backs, let\’s establish an identity and run the ball, run the ball, run the ball. So that\’s why I\’m not putting too much stock into what\’s happened out there, because there\’s a lot of plays that can be made in the passing game that we really haven\’t taken advantage of because we\’re trying to see about running the ball.”
If indeed the goal on offense has been to establish the run, they have fallen short in achieving it through the first two preseason games as the Steelers running backs have combined to rush for 164 yards on 49 carries for a paltry 3.35 average. LaRod Stephens-Howling and Jonathan Dwyer are both responsible for 123 of those yards on 27 carries so that leaves the other running backs combining to produce 41 yards on 22 carries, which equates to a sickening 1.86 average.
Presumably, the offense will game plan for the third preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs, and hopefully more emphasis will be put on the passing game. As for the Steelers first team offense not being able to finish drives with touchdowns, Roethlisberger doesn\’t appear to be worried about that moving forward.
“We\’re saving our touchdowns for the regular season,” he said.
