Though the Pittsburgh Steelers emerged victorious Thursday night against the Carolina Panthers, 19-10, in the preseason finale, it was a game filled with plenty of sloppy play that included penalties, missed tackles, a lack of ball security, and more.
It’s better to have all that come in a victory and be able to learn from it, rather than it occurring in a loss and making matters worse. That said, it was still concerning to see the Steelers start the way they did and then struggle with penalties and missed tackles throughout the game.
Of course, that was typical of a preseason finale, but head coach Mike Tomlin was none too pleased at halftime, or after the game.
“It is good to get a win with some good. It’s a lot of things that you don’t like, to be quite honest with you. I thought we were highly penalized, we turned the ball over there early. The tackling was, was shaky, at best, at times,” Tomlin said, according to video via the Steelers’ YouTube page. “I think they had a hundred yards rushing at the half, and that’s just kind of indicative of how poor the tackling was at times.
“And so, we got some things to work on, but it’s good to do that with a victory. That’s why you step in the stadiums, to win.”
The Steelers finished the preseason 2-1, a nice bounce back from their 0-3 mark in the 2024 preseason. But none of that ultimately matters in the end. Now, the big decisions will come as far as roster cuts and moves the team will make to get to the 53-man roster and 16-man practice squad.
Based off the performances by some guys fighting for roster spots, it might make things a bit harder for the Steelers due to just how sloppy the play was Thursday night. It wasn’t just the starters, either. Backups had real issues with tackling, avoiding penalties, and more.
The Steelers finished the game with 13 penalties for 104 yards. Mason Rudolph threw an interception after a bad read, and starting running back Jaylen Warren put the ball on the turf early, though it was fortunately recovered by the Steelers.
Also, tight end Pat Freiermuth and center Zach Frazier committed holding penalties while cornerback Joey Porter Jr. missed an early tackle. Cornerback Brandin Echols missed a pair of tackles in the first half, and Jalen Ramsey had a personal foul penalty for throwing a running back to the ground after the whistle.
Ramsey’s penalty led to a Panthers field goal and early 3-0 lead.
“You know, I’d much rather say ‘woah’ than ‘sic ’em.’ I’ll leave it at that,” Tomlin said of the Ramsey penalty.
That’s a classic line from Tomlin, and it’s right in that situation. You want a player like Ramsey to be physical, but he ultimately has to be smarter. He’s a veteran, and he’ll make sure he doesn’t make the same mistake again. Still, it was costly in the grand scheme of things, leading to points.
As for the other sloppiness, the Steelers have a lot of work to do ahead of their Sept. 7 season opener on the road against the New York Jets. Tackling has been a bit of an issue throughout the preseason, though most of the misses have come from guys who won’t be starting or have huge roles this season. Thursday night though, it was concerning to see some key players missing tackles in limited action.
Seventeen days is a long time to get things cleaned up ahead of the season opener. There’s a lot of work left, but they can take some solace that they were incredibly sloppy Thursday night but still found a way to win.
