When it comes to adversity, one can either step up and stare down the adversity, challenging it head-on, or one can fold and run from that adversity.
There was no chance the Pittsburgh Steelers under head coach Mike Tomlin were going to run from the adversity created last week following the firing of former offensive coordinator Matt Canada. Instead, as Tomlin likes to always say, the Steelers ran to the challenge on the offensive side of the football.
Meeting it head on, the Steelers turned in a season-best performance on that side of the football in a 16-10 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 12. Pittsburgh racked up 421 yards of total offense on Sunday, saw second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett play as clean and confident a game he’s played all season while running back Najee Harris and the Steelers’ run game took over.
It might have been a coincidence that the offense had its best performance from a yardage perspective in three years in the first game after Canada’s firing. Or it might not be a coincidence.
For Steelers star defensive lineman Cameron Heyward, the blame for the offense never fell on one person, period. That said, the Steelers had to make a change, and they did so by firing Canada. That created some adversity last week, but Heyward, appearing on Good Morning Football Thursday on NFL Network, stated that he loved the way the offense bounced back in Week 12.
“I think when you look at the situation, you don’t ever wanna blame it on one person. And I don’t think it was ever one person. But Coach Canada was fired and we had to make adjustments,” Heyward said to the GMFB panel, according to video via the show’s Twitter page. “I love the way the offense bounced back, and we knew the magnifying glass would be on that side of the ball. But it’s a group effort and I know those guys are thinking we got the yards, but now we gotta get the points.
“But it’s a step in the right direction.”
Sunday’s performance against the Bengals was definitely a step in the right direction. There was a different feel to the Steelers’ offense, right from the first play of the game. Of course, on that play Pickett hit tight end Pat Freiermuth up the seam for a 24-yard gain, taking advantage of the middle of the field, which the Steelers rarely attacked under Canada.Â
Attacking the middle of the field helped unlock quite a bit for the offense, helping Pickett hit shots down the field to wide receivers Diontae Johnson and George Pickens against the Bengals, while the run game, led by Harris and Jaylen Warren, had plenty of room to operate.
There was great balance offensively as play caller Mike Sullivan was in a rhythm early and often, allowing the Steelers to build momentum offensively. That led to a dominant day from a time-of-possession standpoint, playing great complementary football with the Steelers’ defense.
As Heyward pointed out though, the yards were there and the offense is happy about that, but now it’s time to score more points.
