Throughout his 17 seasons and counting as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Mike Tomlin has talked time and time again about smiling in the face of adversity, rising above challenging circumstances and performing at a high level.
Needless to say, his offense isn’t doing any of that despite having plenty of talent.
The Steelers are one of the younger offenses in football, and that youth has shown up quite a bit the last two seasons, particularly in frustrating moments. That’s raised some concerns about a lack of maturity and no leadership on the offensive side of the football.
Asked about a lack of maturity offensively Monday during his weekly press conference ahead of Saturday’s matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 16, Tomlin didn’t downplay it.
“We’ve got issues dealing with adversity issues and sometimes that can be characterized as maturity issues, certainly,” Tomlin said to reporters, according to video via the Steelers’ YouTube page.
When the going gets tough, the tough aren’t getting going for the Steelers.
In fact, they are cratering. A call goes against them offensively? They can’t recover. Don’t make a play, like hauling in a touchdown or a tough pass? Attitudes completely fall apart.
There is no true leader on the offensive side of the football. Najee Harris tries to be, but the team doesn’t really follow his lead. They have experienced veterans along the offensive line, but nobody is buying into what they’re selling currently.
Diontae Johnson wants to be a leader and at times has said the right thing and put in the work during training camp, but he’s part of the problem when it comes to dealing with adversity. He lets his emotions get the better of him, gets away with it and that then spreads to the rest of the offense.
Now, the Steelers are experiencing the same thing with George Pickens, who has taken plays off and has had to be consoled on the sidelines throughout multiple games this season when things aren’t going well.
There is no leader there, like Ben Roethlisberger said on his podcast, to grab guys by the facemask and say, “We don’t do that here.”
The leadership and lack of experience on offense has Tomlin admitting he’s concerned.
“I’m concerned about a lot of things. Leadership or lack of experience in some instances being a component of that, but not in an abnormal way,” Tomlin added regarding leadership concerns.
There is a lack of leadership on offense, but the experience isn’t lacking. That’s the most concerning part. Tomlin won’t openly admit that, especially by way of saying “not in an abnormal way.” But there are major issues for the Steelers on the offensive side of the football.
Finding that leadership and accountability on the offensive side of the football this offseason has to be a main priority for GM Omar Khan.
