There really isn’t a positive way to paint the Pittsburgh Steelers’ performance over the first two preseason games. Particularly on offense, the first-team unit has played nine drives and scored a grand total of zero points. Is it time to hit the panic button on the offense for 2024?
“Absolutely not, and the reason being is the level of practices that we have had,” QB Russell Wilson told the media on Wednesday, per Mark Kaboly on X. “…There’s going to be a time during the season where it is going to be the first quarter, and we didn’t score. Are we going to panic and worry? Absolutely not. We are going to win the game in the fourth quarter and that’s the way it’s going to be.”
I get what Wilson is saying. It’s more about how you finish than how you start. But that isn’t going to do anything to assuage the fears of Steelers fans who have suffered through multiple years of slow starts on offense. In 2023, the Steelers averaged just 8.7 points in the first half of games. That was fifth fewest in the NFL.
One of the reasons Kenny Pickett’s fourth quarter comeback and game-winning drive numbers were so good was because they were constantly playing from behind and clawing their way back into games in the fourth quarter. Performing in those circumstances counts for something, but it would be great if it wasn’t an every-week occurrence.
Wilson is certainly capable of making heroic comebacks late in games. He is top 10 for all-time game-winning drives and fourth quarter comebacks. But we have seen over the last couple seasons what constantly playing from behind does to the offense. The running game is supposed to be the strong suit of the 2024 Steelers, but how much will they be able to rely on that if they are playing from behind?
A lot of the issues in the preseason have been linked to the offensive line. Assign blame where you want, but two botched snaps in the preseason opener killed two of their three drives. And Troy Fautanu allowed two sacks in that game. In the second preseason game it was Broderick Jones’ turn to allow a pair of sacks that hampered the offense’s ability to put a drive together.
Wilson expressed confidence in the line during today’s media availability and even went as far as to say that Broderick Jones is one of the reasons he signed with Pittsburgh.
Last year we watched Pickett and the offense score five touchdowns on five drives in the preseason. That obviously didn’t amount to anything in the regular season, so it is important not to get too high or too low from exhibition games. Wilson and the starters will get another extended look on Saturday against the Detroit Lions, so hopefully they show some signs of improvement and get at least one touchdown on the board.
