The first two preseason games for the Pittsburgh Steelers may not have given fans many positive feelings. The offense has only found the end zone twice, both led by third-stringer QB Kyle Allen against the Houston Texans. That’s got a lot of people concerned, and rightfully so.
However, this is only preseason. We saw the 2023 Steelers look like they would be world-beaters on offense with former QB Kenny Pickett and former offensive coordinator Matt Canada. However, there are good reasons why neither man is in the same position they were at the start of the 2023 NFL season. But can the 2024 Steelers pull the reverse? It’s going to take a lot of work from the defense and the pieces around the quarterback.
“Their defense is good at getting the ball out, they can keep the score down,” said former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick on Monday’s episode of the Pat McAfee Show. “They don’t have to go out and score 50 points to win every week. If they can get the running game going and create some plays with another receiver besides Pickens, they have Freiermuth… I think that [the Steelers] can be competitive in the division. But they’re gonna need to obviously do better than they did last week against Buffalo offensively with just more consistency moving the ball.”
“It’s chemistry but it’s also performance..
There was several examples in the game where the offensive line was getting beat..
The Steelers aren’t a team that wants to throw the ball 45 times a game” ~ Bill Belichick #PMSLive https://t.co/vqkPvoAJAW pic.twitter.com/9ZAVdTAt82
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) August 19, 2024
And a big part of that will be the play of the offensive line. On Saturday night, QB Russell Wilson was sacked twice in five drives against the Bills. OT Broderick Jones had a nightmarish night, and Bills DE Greg Rousseau will be the main antagonist in those nightmares. But the fact that so many of those issues are correctable should give people hope.
“If they had a little more consistent play from the offensive line so that the running game could go, I think that would take the pressure off everything,” Belichick said.
And that’s what offensive coordinator Arthur Smith wants to do. He wants a dominant running game around which he can build his offense. Smith loves to utilize play-action passes, and Wilson and Justin Fields have shown aptitude in that area.
But it all starts up front with the offensive line. Smith and offensive line coach Pat Meyer need to get that unit playing better football. If that happens, that should afford running backs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren plenty of opportunities. That, in turn, will benefit whichever quarterback is under center. That will be key for the Steelers to win the division, something they haven’t done since 2020.
Depending on who you believe, the Steelers still want to upgrade their wide receiver position if no Brandon Aiyuk trade materializes. But we know that Smith loves to use tight ends as weapons in his offense. Smith has talked up TE Pat Freiermuth, which could mean a career-year for him.
The AFC North is a loaded division with the Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns, Cincinnati Bengals, and Steelers having cases to make. Pittsburgh has shown the best recent success against the division and haven’t finished below .500 in the North since 2009, football’s longest streak.
Getting the running game and the offensive line stabilized is the top priority for Smith and the coaches under him. If that happens, perhaps Belichick is onto something with this Steelers team being competitive. Playing good defense and dominating on the ground is a recipe that both Smith and head coach Mike Tomlin can get behind.
