Hey Steelers Fans. Welcome to Thursday.
The Kickoff
We’ve been saying this since the season began and the last three weeks have proven it correct. The Pittsburgh Steelers are a ‘nice’ team. They’re going to win slightly more than they lose but when they have to play the top teams? They just aren’t good enough and the last three weeks have proven this. “But wait!” you say… “They beat Baltimore earlier in the season.” Yep, they absolutely did and you can’t take that away from them. But you have to add context. It took six Chris Boswell field goals, a couple of Justin Tucker misses and there you go. In fact, you might say after yesterday that the Steelers were peaking at that time while the Ravens appear to be peaking now. The main point of all this remains true. There’s been a disturbing pattern of December lulls and post-Thanksgiving failures over the last six or seven years and one can’t avoid the one constant… Mike Tomlin.
Chess vs Checkers
You heard players like DeShon Elliott and Patrick Queen reference it but frankly they didn’t need to say a word. Your own eyes told you that Andy Reid and Steve Spagnuolo were always a step ahead of Arthur Smith and Teryl Austin. Being outcoached in games happens. That’s the nature of sports, but how the Steelers never seemed to have a ‘hot read’ or never seemed to know where the Chiefs’ receivers were spoke of a deep divide between the two sides. In other words, it wasn’t even close.
Chess vs Checkers Part 2
It was comical if it weren’t so sad… Watching Teryl Austin bring the blitz was just brutal. Every time he did, Patrick Mahomes threw right behind it. Essentially finding open space from where the blitzer had come from.
AR2 Has to Be Paying Attention
When last season ended, Steelers Team President Art Rooney II made it clear he was as tired as the fans of losing in the postseason. Well, I really hope I’m wrong but it sure seems we are destined for another first round exit based on the last several weeks. If that happens, is the majority owner willing to actually make some significant moves? Don’t bet on it, but he has to have seen the same things we have.
Russ and 2025
Would you want Russell Wilson back in 2025 considering his play the last few weeks? Granted, it’s been better than what we saw at any point last year, but how much is Wilson going to want? Would you be willing to pay $35-$40 million for what you’ve seen recently? To be fair, the offensive line hasn’t done him any favors but still…
So Who is the ‘ONE’ Guy?
Cam Heyward was quoted yesterday as saying “When 10 guys do their jobs and one doesn’t we are screwed.” Was he talking about one guy specifically or just speaking in generalities? Other players made similar comments. When you start doing some ‘process of elimination’ you can narrow it down to a couple of names and one that seems to be the common denominator is Cam Sutton. I’m not saying he is THE guy, but he’s definitely in among the few it could be.
Pickens
I guess this is just a weekly part of this column now… Russell Wilson’s interception into the end zone was a bad throw period. Upon further review, it sure looks like George Pickens was supposed to be running a ‘go’ route in order to pull the safety (Justin Reid) away from the middle of the field. Instead, Pickens took about four steps and stopped. If this is accurate (Hall of Famer Terrell Owens called him out for this on X) then is he really worth keeping on this team? Yes, he’s wickedly talented but his immaturity is killing the team.
Random Reads
Broderick Jones and Dan Moore had AWFUL days yesterday. That’s as simple as I can put it… The Netflix presentation was overall pretty good. I didn’t have any streaming issues and the call of the game was on par with most. I could do without the constant promos for Netflix shows but that’s what everyone does… No big halftime show for the Chiefs-Steelers game and I’m all for it. I’m here to watch a football game… Fans seem to think our best chance of winning a playoff game is by going to Houston. I don’t disagree but they aren’t as bad as they looked yesterday… I think it was good that Alex Highsmith spoke up yesterday. He’s been around long enough to be a voice on this team. He knows the play isn’t up to snuff… Same for DeShon Elliott. He was clearly playing hurt yesterday but his frustration level wasn’t any less afterwards… With the Bengals still having to play Denver on Sunday, it’s hard to get too far ahead but I’m curious to see how it’s going to play out in terms of who plays their starters and who doesn’t.
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