The Pittsburgh Steelers have a 5-3 record and are second in the AFC North after defeating the Tennessee Titans last Thursday night. As Hall of Fame head coach Bill Parcells once said, “You are what your record says you are.”
A lot of people might disagree with Parcells about the 2023 version of the Steelers though. Yes, this is a record-breaking team. After all, Pittsburgh is the first team in NFL history to be outgained in every single game through eight games and have a winning record. While that’s impressive, it’s not exactly comforting to realize that the Steelers have spotted every single team they’ve faced this season with an advantage in yardage.
So how is Pittsburgh pulling this off? Well, to hear former NFL player and NFL Network analyst Michael Robinson tell it, it’s all because of head coach Mike Tomlin. Robinson joined NFL Total Access The Podcast Thursday episode, and he shared his thoughts on the job Tomlin is doing with host Andrew Lavey.
“I can’t point to anything tangible that would explain how they’re 5-3 other than Mike Tomlin,” Robinson said. “I don’t know whatever he says, it just happens. The respect I have for that guy. The things he says at his press conferences are spot on. His intensity is second to none. He’s making lemonade out of lemons.”
Now Robinson was also quick to credit the star pass-rushing duo of T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith for the team’s record as well. However, it’s obvious that he sees Tomlin as the main reason for the team’s success.
Robinson’s comment about the lemons is interesting. It’s easy to pinpoint the offensive issues as one of the main sources of the so-called lemons, and it’s easy to see why. The Steelers are 29th in the league with an average of 278.5 yards per game and are tied for the third-fewest offensive touchdowns at 13 with the Tennessee Titans. They also rank 29th in the league with 16.6 points per game, just ahead of the 30th-place team, the New York Jets, by 0.1 points per game.
However, the defense is not immune to lemons, either. The Steelers give up the second-most yards per game at 377.3 while the Denver Broncos yield the most at 405.9. However, when it comes to allowing points, Pittsburgh is 13th in the league, giving up 20.4 points per game. Their AFC North rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals, are 12th with 20.3 points per game. One area where the defense shines is in the red zone where the Steelers rank eighth in the league with a 45.5% touchdown-allowed rate.
At the end of the day, there are a lot of stats that point to the Steelers being a decidedly below-average team. However, their record is not one of them, and Robinson fully believes the main reason for that is the head man on the sidelines, Mike Tomlin.
Say what you will as a fan, but evidently, there are still plenty of people in NFL circles who believe in Tomlin.
