SCB Steelers Quick Hitters: The “Wild-Card Observations” Edition

Good Monday to you Steelers fans.

We knew it was a tall order to go into Kansas City and beat the Chiefs and for a few moments into the second quarter it looked like there was a chance. It all blew away quickly didn’t it? Here are my observations on the Steelers’ 42-21 loss in Kansas City.

Offense

• Lots of communication issues between Ben Roethlisberger and his receivers early on. Wrong routes were only the half of it.
• Diontae Johnson just can’t be a number one receiver in the NFL with his lack of consistency. Such a terrific route runner, he just doesn’t catch the ball well enough. He made some super plays later on but the game was no longer in doubt at those times.
• Najee Harris runs hard but there are too many times where he relies on dance moves.
• I honestly believe that Matt Canada has not been able to run his true offense this season mostly because of the O-Line and lack of mobility at QB. That said, there are just too many poor play calls and too much vanilla.
• Great to see JuJu Smith-Schuster back. He wasn’t much of a factor but the fact he was out there was incredible. Hope he’s back but I tend to believe he won’t be.
• Personally I didn’t see enough from the offensive line to suggest to me that Chris Morgan deserves the gig as the O-Line Coach. Time to go outside and find an experienced OL Coach.
• I think fans will look at the couple of catches by James Washington and say “why didn’t they play him more this year?” Understand that Washington is limited as a route runner and where he can play in the formation. It’s not always as easy as it appears.
• As for Big Ben, there was a moment in the second half where he was literally drawing plays in the dirt. Well, not quite, but he was directing every skill player on the field where to go and what to do. He’s done a lot of this in recent years but that instance really stood out to me as it was shot from the skycam. It really did sum up the last couple of seasons for him and what he has had to deal with in terms of play-calling.
• The offensive line was “OK” last night. Each guy had some good and some bad moments. Who returns is serious question right now.

Tweet of the Day… I wouldn’t trade it and I know you wouldn’t either Jas!

my grandma said my dad apologized for making me so crazy about sports ??? it really is all his fault

— Dancin Address (@jBSTEEL_) January 17, 2022

Defense

• I think we saw the last of Joe Haden last night. He was a wonderful signing for the team but he’s lost a step and it showed.
• Cam Heyward had another great night with a forced fumble and several other key plays. His all-pro selection was deserved.
• Good night for T.J. Watt who scored a TD on a scoop and score. But much of the night he was facing double and even triple teams. Not to mention he’s held nearly every play. It’s literally laughable.
• Terrell Edmunds has to be done. Too many blown coverages. I’m tired of it.
• Montravious Adams should be signed early in the process. He’s deserving of a chance to stay in Pittsburgh.
• There isn’t one inside LB I would bring back in 2022.
• Alex Highsmith had some great plays last night including a sack.
• Chris Wormley has had some solid moments this season but hes a liability against the run. Teams started targeting him as the season wore on and the Chiefs did too last night. Double on Cam and handle Wormley at the point of attack… It was a successful formula.
• The Steelers have to upgrade at their cornerback positions across the board. Patrick Mahomes and his receivers made the secondary look silly at times.
• Tre Norwood made several nice plays in coverage and then looked as though he was the guy beaten on a deep Travis Kelce TD catch. If you look at the play over, it wasn’t he who blew it. Looked more like Terrell Edmunds vacating his zone.

Special Teams

• Pressley Harvin III had his most consistent night punting maybe all year. Good for the young man.
• Way too many yards given up on returns. Not sure what was going on with our coverage units.
• Derek Watt is likely the highest paid Special Teamer in the league and thankfully he’s worth every penny.

Coaching

• There’s only so much you can do if you’re Keith Butler. His defense was outmatched to the point it was like bringing a pea shooter to a gunfight.
• Matt Canada didn’t learn all season. Instead of changing what he was doing he stuck with it and got the same results. Slow starts then rely on Ben Roethlisberger to save you.
• Danny Smith apparently has photos of someone in a compromising position because I have no idea how he keeps his job.
• In many ways I think Mike Tomlin is to be credited with getting this team to the postseason. That doesn’t eliminate a number of questions that I’ll be analyzing in the coming days.

On to the Offseason.

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