If you noticed the absolute disdain for the product on the field Thursday night in primetime at Acrisure Stadium from those in attendance, you aren’t alone.
Quickly in the 21-18 loss to the New England Patriots, fans started raining down boos onto the Steelers, especially on offense, as Pittsburgh didn’t do much of anything right. It turned the football over on an ugly interception from quarterback Mitch Trubisky and fell into a 21-3 hole as the lowly Patriots rode into town and stunned the Black and Gold.
For ESPN Radio’s Evan Cohen, the atmosphere inside Acrisure Stadium made it feel like fans hate the current version of the Steelers and the product they are putting out. For former NFL defensive end Chris Canty, appearing on the “Unsportsmanlike” show on ESPN with Cohen and co-host Michelle Smallmon, that’s not the case at all.
“No, they don’t hate the Steelers. They hate Mitch Trubisky. They hate the quarterback play that they’ve been subjected to. And I don’t blame them,” Canty said, according to audio via the show’s podcast page. “Last week Mitch Trubisky had a 24 QBR. Twenty-four! Yesterday he goes out there and he has a 74 pass rating. I know that those numbers are obscure, but just take my word for it. That means you’re getting really bad quarterback play.”
The Steelers got some really bad quarterback play last Sunday, and outside of one game against Cincinnati in Week 12, the Steelers have received bad quarterback play for much of the year, regardless of who is under center. Some can point to that being a system issue, which led to the firing of former offensive coordinator Matt Canada. That’s a fair argument.
But at some point it has to come back to the talent, too.
The Steelers are lacking in the talent department in the quarterback room with Pickett and Trubisky.
On Thursday night against the Patriots, Trubisky was his usual aggressive self, just without any production. He threw one interception, had one other pass picked off but nullified by a penalty and nearly had a third pass intercepted. He struggled to connect on deep balls to Diontae Johnson and Allen Robinson II throughout the night and didn’t push the ball down the field once to George Pickens.
He had a great throw to Johnson for a 25-yard touchdown in the second quarter and had a nice 15-yard run to open the game, but outside of those two plays Trubisky didn’t do anything to elevate the Steelers’ offense.
There were a lot of opportunities left on the field by the offense, especially two turnovers on downs in the fourth quarter when they failed to convert on 4th and 2 each time.
“That is maddening to watch as a fan base and in an unusual game on a short week at home, you lost to the absolute worst offense in the National Football League. You lost to the Arizona Cardinals four days before,” Canty added. “Mitch Trubisky, at this point, is writing in the screenplay for how to lose a Wild-Card in five days. That’s where we’re at right now. That’s how bad the quarterback play has been in Pittsburgh.”
It’s understandable to see Canty’s disdain directed at the quarterback position. It is deserving based on the season Steelers’ quarterbacks have had. But Trubisky didn’t lose the game himself on Thursday night.
Granted, his interception to Jabrill Peppers in the second quarter set up a short field for the Patriots’ offense, leading to a touchdown pass from Bailey Zappe to Hunter Henry and a 14-3 lead. That was a tough spot for the defense to win that situation.
The other two touchdown drives were inexcusable from the Steelers’ defense though. Yes, they are decimated by injuries, especially at inside linebacker. But there is no excuse, especially against the worst offense in football, which came into Thursday night’s game having scored a combined 13 points in the last three games and then exploding for 21 first-half points.
It can’t happen, period. It did though, and coupled with poor quarterback play on offense, it made for a losing formula for the second time in four days to awful teams.
That Wild-Card spot is disappearing, and in a hurry.
