The Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t have a very good day in Week 17 against the Kansas City Chiefs, losing 29-10 after not a whole lot went right on either side of the ball. Pittsburgh’s Pro Football Focus grades showed that it was generally a rough day, as only four players graded above 75.0. DL Cameron Heyward paced the Steelers with a 90.1 grade, after he was credited with four run stops. CB Cory Trice Jr., who filled in for the injured Joey Porter Jr., had the second-highest grade on the team with an 83.9. Trice had a 90.1 coverage grade, which was the highest mark on the team.
While the Steelers surrendered a season-high five sacks, PFF put most of the blame on QB Russell Wilson, as RT Broderick Jones was given an 83.6 grade. PFF had him down for just two pressures surrendered in 49 pass-block snaps. OLB Alex Highsmith had a 78.7 overall grade while C Zach Frazier rounded out the top five with a 74.6 grade, as PFF didn’t have him down for any pressures allowed. The outlet charged three of Pittsburgh’s five sacks to Wilson, who had a 61.5 overall grade but just a 51.8 grade for his passing.
Defensively, it was no surprise that CB Donte Jackson came in with the lowest grade on the team, as he registered just a 38.5 grade and a 35.1 coverage grade. Jackson allowed a long reception to WR Justin Watson and struggled in coverage all day. That was one of the biggest reasons why the Steelers struggled, especially with them not having Porter.
It’s a good sign that Trice was able to register a strong performance, and if he can continue to thrive, he could play a bigger role down the stretch and be an important piece of the Steelers’ secondary in the future. It was just his second game playing significant snaps since being activated off IR after suffering an injury in Week 3 — the first was him coming in cold off the bench last Saturday to replace Porter against the Ravens. With time to prepare to play, Trice was a welcome surprise for Pittsburgh.
The Steelers have a number of issues to sort through as they prepare for the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 18 and the playoffs after that. The lack of strong individual performances reflects that they aren’t where they need to be right now. Coming off their third-straight loss, the Steelers need to find a way to pull out of this and become the team they were earlier this season if they want to make a playoff run.
