Reading the headline, I know what you’re thinking. Just one? Most of the time, slow starts can be placed on the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive side of the ledger. A unit that went an entire season without an opening drive touchdown. A streak that finally ended this season with an opening drive touchdown against the New York Jets, followed by a first-drive field goal against the Seattle Seahawks. The offense is seemingly finally cured. But the defense caught the same bug, and they are now unable to get stops early in games.
Dating back to 2024, the Steelers have allowed points on six of seven possessions by the opposing offense. That includes points on five straight, four of those resulting in touchdowns. Here’s the breakdown.
1. Eagles – Field Goal
2. Ravens – Punt
3. Chiefs – Touchdown
4. Bengals – Touchdown
5. Ravens (Wild Card) – Touchdown
6. Jets – Field Goal
7. Seahawks – Touchdown
Four touchdowns. Two field goals. Thirty-four total points. Ugly.
To put things in further perspective, allowing points on five-straight opening possessions is the NFL’s longest and worst streak in the league. Here’s the “leaderboard.”
Longest First Possession Score Streaks Allowed
1. Pittsburgh Steelers – 5
2. Carolina Panthers – 4
2. Tennessee Titans – 4
4. Denver Broncos – 3
4. Minnesota Vikings – 3
It’s worth noting that all three of the Broncos’ scores allowed were field goals, not touchdowns. Without laying out the complete table, the Steelers predictably have also allowed the most points dating back to Week 15 of last season.
The reason for Pittsburgh’s struggles is hard to define outside the obvious. The group isn’t playing well enough. They are not stopping the run, which only weakens the pass rush. They are allowing too many conversions on third down. They are breaking instead of bending in the red zone. Clearly, the scheme isn’t good enough, and Pittsburgh is caught off guard by what offenses are doing early on with their opening scripts.
No matter the reason, it’s an alarming trend for a team that usually came out of the gates hot. From Weeks 1-14, Pittsburgh allowed just five scoring drives (three field goals, two touchdowns), giving up fewer points over that 13-game span than they have in the last seven. An “off” switch has been flipped on this defense, and it’s clear from the first drive of the game.
