Within a four-game losing streak that has them backing into the playoffs, nothing has gone right for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Any way you try and slice it, things just aren’t looking good for the Black and Gold in all three phases.
That includes starting quarterback Russell Wilson, who has fallen off significantly from the level he was playing at after being inserted into the starting lineup. After throwing for 414 yards in a shootout win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Dec. 1, Wilson has run head-first into a wall and his play has dropped off dramatically.
For head coach Mike Tomlin, Wilson’s performance over the last four games is reflective of the team’s performance as a whole: spotty at best.
Speaking with reporters Monday ahead of the Wild Card matchup against the Baltimore Ravens, Tomlin stated that the performance from Wilson matches the team in general, with it being spotty the last four weeks. However, Tomlin added that with the Steelers 0-4 in the last four weeks, that’s not an earth-shattering statement.
“I think it’s reflective of all of our performances over the last month. It’s been spotty at best,” Tomlin said of Wilson’s performance, according to video via Steelers.com. “But again, during that time period we’ve been oh-and-four. And so that’s not an earth shattering statement.”
It’s not an earth-shattering statement, but it’s a statement that needed to be made.
Since throwing for 414 yards against the Bengals, Wilson has fallen off a cliff. With that drop-off has come the inability to protect the football consistently, making some bad decisions with the football in the passing game and as a runner.
Over the last four games, Wilson has had passing outputs of 128 yards and a touchdown, 217 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, 205 yards and an interception, and 148 yards and a touchdown. The Steelers didn’t score more than 17 points in any of the four games late in the season, marking a relative low from a futility standpoint offensively for the Black and Gold.
Wilson hasn’t been alone in the struggles though, that much is clear. The Steelers’ offensive line has struggled to protect Wilson and has failed to run the football consistently. Receivers have struggled to get open and have had a number of crucial drops, including George Pickens and Pat Freiermuth.
But the team captain’s performance has been a mess over the last month, and that’s reflective of the team’s performance as a whole, too, especially on offense.
Hopefully Wilson and the Steelers can bounce back Saturday in the Wild Card matchup against the Ravens. If not, it will be a long offseason of discussions regarding the offense once again.
