The Pittsburgh Steelers opened the 2024 season with a 20-12 loss at home in Acrisure Stadium. The biggest takeaway in my opinion was the overall sloppiness of the Steelers on both sides of the both. In particular was the offense but it wasn’t alone as the D and Special Teams had some ugly moments as well. It’s the preseason opener and no one should get too high or too low. Here are my thoughts on the game tonight.
Offense
-Justin Fields and Nick Herbig were pretty flawless throughout camp but had two fumbled snaps. Just can’t have that.
-Overall, it was a very “Fields Like” performance. He made some great throws and he made some average throws. He escaped pressure and he took some bad sacks. He finished 5 of 6 for 67 yards.
-George Pickens caught two passes for 25 yards before switching to a ball cap. Calvin Austin III also had a decent evening but after our first look, the need for another receiver is evident.
-Rookie Troy Fautanu had a harsh welcome on his first series as Danielle Hunter got around him for a sack.
-Kyle Allen (17/23 193 yards 1TD/1INT) is what he is. Missed some throws but also made some good ones and used his feet well at times.
-Dajuan Edwards saw limited action but the most of it with 28 yards on three carries and a score.
-The Steelers ultimately put the ball on the ground four times on the evening and there’s no way that can happen. It has to get cleaned up period.
Defense
-It’s one game and no one should have overreactions one way or the other but LB Payton Wilson struggled despite collecting seven tackles. He had up and down moments in coverage and has to get off blocks better. He got a ton of snaps which is good and I think he’ll be fine long term.
-Sixth Round pick Ryan Watts did some nice things. He’s likely headed to the Practice Squad with four guys ahead of him at safety but he got himself around the ball a lot.
-Really nice to see Cory Trice get some action. Missed all of his rookie season with an injury.
-Kyron Johnson had two really nice back-to-back plays which forced the Texans to punt with 1:27 remaining. With Markus Golden retiring earlier in the day, there is a need for OLB depth.
-Montravius Adams got in earlier than expected after Keannu Benton left with an eye injury and he made the most of it with a sack and a pass deflection.
-Jeremiah Moon is another guy who is looking to be part of the depth at OLB and he had six tackles and a sack.
Special Teams
-Quez Watkins looked shaky on his first punt return and then looked flat-out awful when he fumbled the second. Hard to make the team playing like that.
-The new kickoff set up is going to be fun to watch as the season progresses. I think teams are being very vanilla with it in the preseason.
-A really poor night all around for Special Teams and that’s not abnormal. Danny Smith has no idea who his core guys are going to be just yet. That said, a high snap from Christian Kuntz led to a PAT miss and the tackling was so-so too.
-New punter Cam Johnston had a nice night with five punts averaging about 43 yards per kick. He had one inside the 20.
Feature image courtesy steelers.com
