Throughout the offseason, seemingly everything was coming up Pittsburgh. The franchise nailed free agency, had a spectacular draft and really looked good in the preseason leading up to what was shaping up to be a very good 2023 season for the Black and Gold.
Then, the San Francisco 49ers rode into town and served out a helping of reality.
The 49ers “kicked” the Steelers in the teeth, like head coach Mike Tomlin said after the loss, and physically dominated the matchup, cruising to the 30-7 win at Acrisure Stadium.
Now, nearly 24 hours removed from the beatdown, analysts are jumping ship — slightly — when it comes to the Steelers in 2023.
Columnist Jeffri Chadiha for NFL.com wrote that it’s time to “pump the brakes” on Pittsburgh as the Steelers showed they still have a lot of work to do to get to where they want to be in 2023.
“There’s still a lot to like about the Steelers’ potential — it’s just going to be much easier to see that when they’re not playing teams like San Francisco. The visiting 49ers thoroughly dismantled the Steelers from the opening kickoff of Sunday’s 30-7 result at Acrisure Stadium,” Chadiha writes for NFL.com. “They hit Pittsburgh with big plays in the passing game (Brandon Aiyuk had 129 yards and two touchdowns) and the running game (Christian McCaffrey piled up 152 yards and a score on the ground), and squelched most of what the Steelers wanted to do offensively.
“This beatdown said plenty about how good the 49ers can be. It also told us how much work Pittsburgh needs to do get to where it wants to be.”
The game told the story for two teams. One, that San Francisco is a legitimate Super Bowl contender with a loaded roster and a developing second-year quarterback in Brock Purdy who certainly looks the part. And two, the Steelers have a long way to go to get to being as good as San Francisco in all three phases.
That’s rather disheartening for the Steelers, considering the good vibes that surrounded the team entering Week One, especially coming off of a rather impressive preseason in which the starters looked much, much different from the previous season. Instead, it was more of the same from what the Steelers have shown in recent years.
A passing attack that lacked any juice and downfield element; a run game that couldn’t get into gear; and a defense that couldn’t get off the field in weighty moments and missed tackles in crucial situations, leading to major splash from San Francisco.
The brakes are fully pumped on the Steelers at the moment. Heck, many might even be pulling on the emergency brake the day after the beatdown. It’s just one game though. The Steelers have a great opportunity in front of them to regroup and get back on track, hosting the Cleveland Browns in Week Two on Monday Night Football.
Maybe then the bandwagon will start rolling forward again.
