The Pittsburgh Steelers dropped their third straight game and fourth out of their last six in losing to the Kansas City Chiefs 29-10 today. Here are some quick observations on what I saw.
Offense
-Three and out after picking up seven on first down. That’s not good.
-Huge catch from George Pickens leads to big runs for Jaylen Warren. Hold on Darnell Washington was terrible. Russell Wilson (23/37 205 yards INT) throws a pick on the next play.
-Great bounce back drive from Wilson. Leads the offense down the field and runs it in for six.
-Wilson just never looked comfortable today and who could blame him? His offensive line should return all those Christmas gifts he gave them. Wilson was sacked five times on the day.
-The call on third and three to Cordarrelle Patterson was terrible. Arthur Smith was bailed out on the “too many men” call on the punt.
-The OL has struggled all day and especially Dan Moore and Broderick Jones. Just constantly getting beat one on one.
-Jaylen Warren (11 carries 71 yards) is without a doubt the number one running back yet he still doesn’t get the ball enough in my opinion. Imagine averaging over six yards a crack and only getting 11 carries.
-Najee Harris collected 74 yards rushing but nearly half of those came on the final drive with the Chiefs sitting in a prevent defense.
-George Pickens had 50 yards on three receptions but often seemed more interested in drawing flags on guys.
Defense
-How are there still communication issues with this unit in week 17? Another problem leads to the KC TD.
-Patrick Queen you gotta catch that deflected ball man!
-I could type this every week… How does T.J. Watt not draw five holding calls per game? The amount of time he’s held is off the charts.
-Teryl Austin had no answer for the Chiefs’ offense most of the day. Every time he zigged the Chiefs zagged. His secondary was just awful.
-I realize Patrick Mahomes is pretty good but to not sack him once is pretty awful for this defense.
-Donte Jackson getting burned by Justin Watson was not a good look.
Special Teams
-Pretty ho-hum day all around. Chris Boswell missed his field goal attempt but got a reprieve because of a penalty. He finished 1/1 on his FGs and 1/1 on his PATs.
Coaching
-I’ll keep this short. The Steelers were outcoached. Big time.
Officiating
-Worst call of the day was the holding penalty on Darnell Washington which negated a Jaylen Warren TD.
-Failure to use replay assist on a clear incompletion is another reason to ban it period.
Up Next: The Steelers host Cincinnati in the season finale.