The Pittsburgh Steelers have plenty wrong with them. Not that you need me to tell you that. Speaking after Saturday’s loss to the Indianapolis Colts, Mike Tomlin, T.J. Watt, and others admitted they don’t know how to fix what plagues the team.
But before we can reach solutions, we have to lay out the problems. That’s the starting point, though it’s definitely not the end.
While we could write a George R. R. Martin-length novel about all their issues, here are the biggest and most significant ones. Not ranked in any order, and feel free to add your own, but here’s an outline of their many, many problems.
1. No Identity/Questionable Culture
What is the Pittsburgh Steelers’ method of winning? In theory, I suppose it’s supposed to be old-school football. A healthy running game. A suffocating defense. But this team doesn’t get enough of either on a consistent basis. The Steelers don’t have a true team identity, especially on offense, of how they plan to win. It’s just stitched together play by play. There is no foundation to build off of. And that makes winning even harder.
With its changing people, the culture of the team has also seemed to rip. Harder for us to quantify and the defense still has core leaders but offensively, things are a mess. No one to lead, no one willing to follow, and they certainly don’t look or feel like a group playing for each other. They aren’t greater than the sum of their parts. The overall body language on this team, offense and defense, is terrible.
2. No Pass Game Philosophy
Taking it a step further, the Steelers definitely don’t have a plan to win in the passing game. Ostensibly, it’s supposed to be about letting WRs Diontae Johnson and George Pickens winning on the outside. But that’s certainly not happening. Those guys have their problems, and the offense isn’t getting them the ball in position to make plays.
Beyond that, no other pass catcher has a clear role or plan. TE Pat Freiermuth has disappeared from this passing game, running just five-yard over the ball routes. The Steelers have gotten zero slot production the past two years. Allen Robinson II has good hands and is tough but doesn’t move the sticks; only 23 percent of his receptions this year have gone for first downs. Calvin Austin III, they have no plan for, and he doesn’t look like a viable long-term option in this passing game anyway. Rookie TE Darnell Washington hasn’t had a downfield target this season while the screen game is an utter mess and has been for years.
Quarterback issues are real, but Pittsburgh has no plan to even try to get its players the football.
3. Lacking Fundamentals
A real issue during this three-game losing streak. Sloppy football that wouldn’t be acceptable at the high school level, let alone the NFL. Turnovers, penalties, poor special teams play, miscommunication, inability to get aligned properly, inability to get 11 players on the field, bad snaps, the list goes on. Mike Tomlin said it after the Colts’ loss though it’s been true since the Arizona game. No one beats Pittsburgh like Pittsburgh. They can’t handle the basic principles of football.
4. Young Players Not Developing
Looking over the past few draft classes, the Steelers have had an alarming number of players either not develop at all or see their growth severely stunted. Starting with QB Kenny Pickett, who didn’t take the jump this year and looks worse in 2023 than how he ended 2022. WR George Pickens has progressed to a certain degree but he’s not where he should be in his career. DL DeMarvin Leal can barely see the field and has made almost zero impact this year. That’s your top three picks of 2022.
RB Najee Harris has largely maxed out his game, though he was more refined coming out of Alabama. TE Pat Freiermuth’s blocking has never improved and while he’s a fine receiver with sure hands, his game hasn’t evolved that much since being drafted.
Despite no one leaving due to their rookie contract expiring, Alex Highsmith is the only Steeler from the 2020 class seeing regular playing time. And what Day Three pick have they really hit on since 2015? The best names are LB Nick Herbig, TE Connor Heyward, LT Dan Moore Jr., OG Kevin Dotson, LB Tyler Matakevich, and TE Jesse James. Some special teamers, niche players, and three starters in Dotson, James and Moore, three average (at best) players who felt more like placeholders. And Dotson wasn’t used well and is flourishing elsewhere.
5. Injuries
No one is using it as an excuse. But it can’t be ignored. Especially defensively, injuries have really ravaged the team, creating communication issues while the team has basically pulled linebackers off the street (and sometimes off the couch) to try and help. Offensively, losing QB Kenny Pickett hurt not in the sense that a highly productive player was out, but Pickett’s ball security was valuable. He has the second-lowest interception rate in football. Mitch Trubisky? The second highest. The Steelers don’t win when they turn the ball over.
6. Missing Resolve
The Steelers folded like a house of cards against the Colts. Once things got tight, once Indy put the pressure on, Pittsburgh wilted. As Mike Tomlin likes to say, pressure exists no matter what. The difference is you’re either feeling it or applying it. And oh boy is this team feeling it.
It goes back to some of the team’s youth, their definite immaturity, and the lack of leadership. But this team can’t pick itself up off the floor.
7. Poor Coaching
Coaching doesn’t get a pass here. Far from it. Players aren’t being put in position to win and there aren’t many coaches who feel like they’ve made the group better and elevated anyone’s game. In addition to needing a new offensive coordinator this offseason, there could be several positional coaches on the move. It’s hard know where to start. And where to end.
8. Losing Field-Position Battle
For a team with no margin for error, the Steelers can’t keep getting crushed in the field-position battle. The offensive turnovers create short fields for the opponent. Pittsburgh’s defense isn’t forcing enough turnovers in enemy territory. Punting is a mess with Pressley Harvin III holding one of football’s worst averages, entering Sunday 31st out of 34 qualifiers. And penalties here over the weeks have also backed the Steelers’ offense up. Heading into Sunday, Pittsburgh ranked 29th in starting field position.
9. Lack Depth/Empty Calorie Players
While injuries have made finding quality depth difficult, there are what I like to call a lot of “empty calorie” players on this roster. Guys who dress but really don’t contribute much. Every team has that to a degree. The eighth offensive lineman doesn’t have much of a role, that’s fine. But a list of players who fit that mold:
OLB Markus Golden – Averaging 14.8 total snaps per game, including special teams. A backup rotational linebacker with no special teams value, Golden played single-digit snaps from Weeks 10-13. He’s played more than 15 defensive snaps in just four games this year, three of them coming in the Steelers’ first three games. He’s not a bad player, he has three sacks, but he’s standing around most of the time and not offering anything on special teams, unlike Nick Herbig.
DL DeMarvin Leal – Averaging 19.1 total snaps per game, including special teams. But that number is even misleading. He played a bunch at the start of the year before being worked out of the d-line rotation. Since Week 10, he hasn’t cracked double-digit snaps and the team has no plan for him other than occasionally throwing him some base-end reps. Most of the time, he comes in when the game is over. Since Week 10, 46 percent of his snaps have come late in the fourth quarter with the outcome already decided. If he’s not going to have a role, don’t dress him. DL Isaiahh Loudermilk was at least playing a little more often and part of the rotation.
WRs Calvin Austin III and WR Allen Robinson II – Since his 72-yard touchdown against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 3, Austin has six catches for 81 yards. That’s it. Since Week Five, he hasn’t had more than two catches or 19 yards in a game. His only role on special teams is to be the team’s punt returner. They don’t even trust him to handle kicks.
Robinson has had more of an impact, especially as a blocker and leader (though I’m not sure what his leadership has actually accomplished) but no one runs more routes and plays more to have as little receiving production as he does. On the year, 30 receptions, eight yards per grab, zero touchdowns, and seven first downs. He doesn’t make big plays. He doesn’t find the end zone. He doesn’t move the chains. He logs over 40 snaps per game and has caught 13 passes since the bye. That’s it.
Austin and Robinson are two players who see a fair amount of time, unlike Golden and Leal, but they just run empty routes all day.
RB Anthony McFarland Jr. – In fairness, he’s become a weekly inactive. But Pittsburgh went into the season using him as the No. 3 running back and kick returner, two roles that see very few snaps. He’s averaged 7.3 total snaps in the three games he’s dressed for. At least guys like Benny Snell Jr. were playing upwards of 20 special teams snaps per game.
