A win is a win, but the Pittsburgh Steelers did not play pretty against the Baltimore Ravens. Their defense was spectacular, but their offense took a huge step back. They were averaging around 30 points per game with Russell Wilson starting, but they could not get into the end zone against the Ravens.
“We gotta get better,” Wilson said after the Steelers’ 18-16 win via the team’s YouTube channel. “There’s so much opportunity for us to get better too. I think the opportunities in the red zone, like we gotta make those plays. We gotta find a way to get them in. So, we’re gonna do that. We were able to do it last week. We just gotta respond this week.”
Wilson is correct that the Steelers were brutal in the red zone. They had that same struggle in his first two starts of the season as well. Against the Ravens, the Steelers made it seem like they weren’t allowed to score a touchdown. At times, it was painful to watch.
Overall, the Steelers made four trips into the red zone. They ended up kicking three field goals, with Wilson throwing an interception on the other possession. That sequence could have been costly too. It was the middle of the fourth quarter, and the Steelers were only leading by five points. That giveaway opened the door for the Ravens to take the lead.
Thankfully, Payton Wilson made an incredible play, and the Steelers got the ball right back. However, the point still stands that the Steelers can’t continue to be that anemic in the red zone. Scoring a touchdown there would have been massive. Instead, they came away empty-handed.
Luckily for the Steelers, Chris Boswell has proven that he can win them games. They can’t rely on him to always do that though. Like Wilson said, the Steelers were much better in the red zone against the Washington Commanders. If they can just be a little more consistent, their team might be really special.
With the Steelers on a short week before playing the Cleveland Browns, they don’t have much time to try to fix this issue. Down the stretch, though, they’re going to need to finish better. It’s tough to beat teams like the Kansas City Chiefs with only field goals.
