The Pittsburgh Steelers lost the rushing battle to the Dallas Cowboys in their 20-17 Week 5 loss, with Dallas running for 109 yards compared to 92 for the Steelers. While head coach Mike Tomlin attributed some of the run-game issues to the fact that Pittsburgh’s time of possession was limited due to Dallas converting on third down frequently, he said he wished the team did a better job controlling the ground game.
“I would like to have controlled the game more in that area, in enough possession downs and it was a limited possession game. So it probably didn’t develop, the run game I’m speaking of, probably didn’t develop in the ways that we would like,” Tomlin said Tuesday during his weekly press conference via the team’s YouTube channel. “I saw a foundation there, but the snap totality was not what we desired in an effort to really control the game. Dallas possessed the ball. We didn’t win enough third downs. They did, particularly in the second half.”
“It created a limited-possession game for us.”
Dallas went 9-of-15 on third downs while also beating the Steelers in time of possession at 32:29-27:31. Not being able to really establish the run game and win that component of the game was frustrating. Dallas came in struggling to move the ball on the ground, but Rico Dowdle rushed for a game-high 87 yards on 20 carries. Meanwhile Najee Harris ran 14 times for 42 yards and Justin Fields added 27 rushing yards.
Lack of opportunity was a big reason though, as Dallas was able to stay on schedule and move the chains against the Steelers, while Pittsburgh consistently struggled to convert on third downs, finishing the game just 3-12 in those opportunities. That’s not good enough, and compounded with how good Dallas was in converting third downs, it’s understandable that the Steelers never really got much of a chance to win the ground game. Dallas ran nearly 20 more plays than the Steelers, 75 to 57, and had five more rushing attempts with 31 to 26.
Not establishing the ground game is symbolic of bigger problems with the Steelers, namely their struggles on third down and early-down success. The Steelers aren’t putting themselves in a position to convert on third downs at times, and their conservative play-calling early in games has been an issue.
They’re just not routinely moving the ball, and the lack of sustained drives makes it tough to build a presence on the ground. It’s something the Steelers did well in Weeks 1-3, but it’s been a struggle the last two weeks, and it’s one of the biggest reasons why they’ve dropped back-to-back games.
