The offense remains under fire entering the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Week Five matchup against the Baltimore Ravens. That barrage of fire is getting more and more significant, too.
Even media members in Baltimore are chiming in.
On Friday, former NFL executive and current 105.7 The Fan analyst Vinny Cerrato, appearing on the 93.7 The Fan Morning Show in Pittsburgh, stated that he doesn’t see much creativity in a very basic offensive scheme for the Steelers. He added that he feels “a little bit bad” for second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett, who is under scrutiny as well.
“It’s very basic in what they do. It’s not very creative. To me, the biggest thing with being an offensive coordinator is let your players do what they do best. Take advantage of what they can do. And then it’s about matchups,” Cerrato said regarding the Steelers’ offense, according to audio via 93.7 The Fan. “…Pittsburgh, they don’t motion, shift, do all those things. You have to be creative to help your players get open and create an advantage.”
There is very little creativity within the Steelers’ offense, period. It’s nothing new, yet week after week it becomes more and more noticeable. They run the same plays out of the same formations, rarely try and disguise things, and then they wonder why players aren’t executing properly. Hard to execute at a high level in the NFL when you have one hand tied behind your back before the snap because the defense knows what’s coming.
Not only is the offense lacking any creativity and is extremely basic for NFL standards, it’s hindering Pickett’s development and overall confidence. For Cerrato, he sees a guy who has been inconsistent so far this season, but he’s not placing all of the blame on the second-year quarterback.
“Watching that Houston film, the pass routes are so basic … They send three guys out and nobody is open, and the offensive line is not protecting,” Cerrato stated regarding what he’s seeing from Pickett so far, according to audio via 93.7 The Fan. “I don’t know that it’s all Pickett’s fault. I feel a little bit bad for Pickett, honestly.”
Pickett has regressed — hard. There’s no denying that.
He’s gun-shy in the pocket, which is largely due to the amount of pressure he’s under. That’s led to poor mechanics on throws, bailing out of clean pockets at even the slightest hint of trouble, and has created serious accuracy issues and decision-making issues as well.
The offensive issues aren’t all on him, though he has missed some key throws. There’s no denying that. But it’s not like Canada and the Steelers are doing anything offensively to try and help their young quarterback. That’s the discouraging part.
A very bland, basic offense that is predictable and a young quarterback regressing hard. That’s a recipe for disaster in today’s NFL.
