The Pittsburgh Steelers had too many unforced errors in their 24-17 win over the Los Angeles Rams. Both WR George Pickens and WR Diontae Johnson were flagged for taunting, which negated what would have been two first downs. While head coach Mike Tomlin wasn’t happy about the mistakes, he’s not dwelling on them. Tomlin said he expects the Steelers to be professionals and learn from their mistakes but emphasized that the game is over.
“In totality, I’m talking about as we move forward. There’s nothing that we can do about what transpired today. That tape is in the can. We can learn from our experiences if we’re professional and it’s reasonable to expect that to happen,” Tomlin said via video posted to the team’s YouTube channel.
In addition to the unforced errors after the whistle, both OLB T.J. Watt and OLB Alex Highsmith jumped offsides in key moments, giving the Rams another chance and extra yardage. While those penalties didn’t stand out as much as the two by Johnson and Pickens, they’re all mental errors that the Steelers need to learn and grow from.
There’s also the point that Watt and Highsmith aren’t as mistake-prone when it comes to letting things get the best of them. For Pickens and Johnson, it’s not the first time their emotions have gotten the better of them, so it stands out a little bit more. Pickens in particular had two penalties, one a crackback block that wasn’t necessary that negated a big gain, and then another taunting against CB Tyrus Wheat that took away a first down.
Johnson had one against his former teammate, Ahkello Witherspoon, celebrating a defensive pass interference penalty that would’ve given Pittsburgh a first down.
Instead, they had to replay third down, and fell short of the sticks but were able to convert on fourth down. It was too big of a moment for Johnson to let his emotions get the best of him, and it’s something that even if Tomlin downplays it, will likely be addressed. Tomlin pulled his two top receivers aside after a play to talk to them during the game, as well.
The Steelers offense has enough problems without them shooting themselves in the foot with dumb post-play penalties. It’s a lesson that has to be learned, but it’s going to feel a lot better to learn it after a win instead of a loss where you could potentially point to those penalties as a reason why.
Outside of the penalties, both Pickens and Johnson had solid production today. Johnson, in his first game back from a hamstring injury that sidelined him four games, had five catches for 79 yards, while Pickens had five catches for 107 yards. It’s a good performance for both of them to build off, but without the boneheaded penalties.
