The Pittsburgh Steelers could hardly get out of their own way late in the season, and sometimes even literally. Particularly on defense, they suddenly suffered frequent failures to communicate, which had a crippling effect on their ability to execute. While they showed considerable improvement in the finale, their biggest test is coming up.
In Week 18 against the Bengals, the Steelers held one of the NFL’s most high-powered offenses to under 20 points. The Bengals failed to produce even one explosive play, and after one early success could not convert in the red zone. If you knew the Steelers would do that to Joe Burrow before the game, you probably would have felt good about it.
“We were communicating at such a high level”, Payton Wilson said, via Mike Prisuta writing for the Steelers’ website. “It was super cool to be a part of and getting some of those things off our tape that we had”.
Wilson recorded a season-high 10 tackles in that game, including a tackle for loss and a forced fumble. As a whole, the Steelers also cleaned up another big issue lately, which was their tackling. Even more impressive is the fact that they dealt with a surprise of Donte Jackson being inactive. Even Cory Trice Jr. didn’t know he would be starting. Things weren’t perfect, but all things considered, it went much better.
“Obviously there’s still some things to fix and things that we can correct. A lot of it still goes to communication and guys just getting lined up right and playing fast”, Wilson said ahead of the Steelers’ third game against Lamar Jackson. “He’s the best player I’ve ever played against. He’s a great player. If you think you’ve got him down, you probably don’t”.
In his first game against the Steelers this season, Jackson went 16-of-33 for 207 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He rushed for just 46 yards on four carries, breaking out for a 25-yard run. In his second crack at the Steelers, he fared better. That time, he went 15-of-23 for 207 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.
The Steelers have offered various explanations for why they suddenly struggled in areas that were previously fine. Minkah Fitzpatrick offered the most interesting answer. Basically, he suggested the Eagles stressed them in ways that weren’t previously exposed and other teams followed.
Adding to the difficulty was the fact that the Steelers were dealing with injuries in key communication roles. At the same time, they were playing on short weeks, so they had limited opportunity to appropriately adapt.
Not coincidentally, the Steelers had a longer break heading into the Bengals game. The communication certainly looked much better, at least defensively. If they can continue to build on that, it’s the only chance they have of hanging with the Ravens.
