For a veteran head coach like Mike Tomlin, a slow start to the preseason isn’t causing him to hit the eject button. Though the Pittsburgh Steelers’ shaky offense has created concern among the fans and media, Tomlin isn’t getting too high or too low on anything occurring when the games aren’t counting.
In his weekly interview with Steelers.com’s Bob Labriola, Tomlin said he takes everything that happens this time of year in stride.
“I’m probably in more middle of the road than most fans,” Tomlin told Labriola. “I’m not alarmed based on what has transpired in these two games, and I don’t know that I was ecstatic based on what transpired a year ago.”
Pittsburgh scored just 15 points across the team’s first two games. Only three of those points have come from Russell Wilson or Justin Fields. Problems were most evident in last Saturday’s loss to the Buffalo Bills. Wilson and the starters were scoreless on six possessions and hardly crossed into enemy territory. Fields and the backups only fared slightly better, with a field goal and a couple of exciting Fields scrambles.
But as Mike Tomlin points out, last year showed that August results don’t always translate to September. Pittsburgh’s offense looked lights-out last preseason, with Kenny Pickett and the Steelers’ starting offense scoring five touchdowns on five preseason drives. In Week 1, the Steelers laid an egg and finished with one of the NFL’s worst offenses, firing OC Matt Canada midway through the year.
Mike Tomlin will count on the opposite holding true this year. It’s a new offense with moving parts trying to jell together in a short period of time. Wilson missed a large chunk of training camp and is playing some catch-up, Arthur Smith indicating he was limited schematically in last week’s debut.
The Steelers’ offense will have one more chance to show improvement later today against the Detroit Lions. Wilson will get the nod, though he may only play 1-3 series. Ideally, a fast start and long touchdown drive will send Wilson and the 1’s to the bench, feeling confident before taking the field against the Atlanta Falcons.
