Through the first three games with QB Russell Wilson under center, the Pittsburgh Steelers passing game was humming. Pittsburgh won behind strong offensive performances against the New York Jets, New York Giants and Washington Commanders.
While they won against the Baltimore Ravens, the offense began to stutter. Pittsburgh kicked six field goals on the day, enough to escape with an 18-16 win, but they couldn’t cross the end zone. That could be chalked up to a tough AFC North battle though, and a win over the Ravens is a good day no matter how you arrive there.
However, those struggles made the trip to Cleveland in their loss to the Browns Thursday night. Pittsburgh found the end zone twice, but it wasn’t enough. A very slow start to the game made their 19-point effort fall short to a then 2-8 Browns team.
Analyst Emory Hunt is a bit worried about the Steelers passing game specifically. On CBS Sports’ Game Recap posted via their YouTube channel, Hunt talked about the ways in which fixing the passing game could also result in a better run game for Pittsburgh.
“The passing game has to be more layered than it is,” Hunt said. “Right now it looks like passing plays, not a passing game. I like what I’ve seen from Calvin Austin, he seems to be the one to step up. They’ve got the tight ends involved over the middle of the field. If they’re able to build on that, they’ll find the run game they’ll looking for.”
Thursday was a tough night for Wilson. Interestingly, some of his best moments came when the weather was at its worst. The Steelers’ offense was very quiet in the first half, scoring only three points. However, they began to ramp things up in the second half, with Wilson connecting with Austin for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
Ultimately, the Steelers played with their food for too long. AFC matchups are always going to be hard-fought. The Browns are always going to turn up against the Steelers, but with Pittsburgh going into halftime down on the scoreboard, things only got more intense.
For Wilson and the passing game, it’s been two straight outings in which they’ve failed the show the success they had in Wilson’s first two games. However, those have both been divisional games with unique circumstances. Hunt seems to think the building blocks for a more successful passing game are there. For the Steelers to make a real run over the rest of the season, they’ll have to hope that’s true.
