A mere two weeks through the season, the Pittsburgh Steelers remain without a win in 2018. Something needs to change to right the ship.
The Pittsburgh Steelers now sit a rare 0-1-1 record after losing a 42-37 shootout against the Kansas City Chiefs. From a Chiefs perspective, this game will forever be remembered as Patrick Mahomes’ coming out party, the day he truly arrived on the NFL scene. Mahomes torched the Steelers defense for 326 yards and 6 touchdowns in route to Kansas City’s first win in Pittsburgh since 1986.
From a simple look at the box score, one would assume the game was a back-and-forth duel between the two, and for the later parts of the game, it was indeed. Yet the Chiefs were able to establish themselves early, gunning themselves to a 21-0 lead before Pittsburgh themselves were able to tie it up going into halftime.
The rest was history, as the Steelers were simply unable to keep up with Mahomes and the rest of the Chiefs offense. Ben Roethlisberger finished the game throwing for 452 yards and 3 touchdowns, with both Jesse James and JuJu Smith-Schuster gaining over 100 yards with a touchdown to their name.
As a whole, the effort can be appreciated. Pittsburgh caught themselves playing against one of the hottest offenses in the league, while remaining cold themselves. This game was destined to be a shootout, and it lived up to its offensive hype.
Yet to watch a young quarterback like Mahomes methodically march his team down the field like clockwork leaves this defense with a helpless feeling. Whether it be the consistent mismatches of guys like Jon Bostic and Vince Williams on tight ends, the constant miscommunication in zone coverage, or the mental lapses at the line of scrimmage, this defense has shown little signs of hope early in the season.
It’s early. So incredibly early. 14 games are still to be played, and like we as football consumers know best, there’s a lot of football left to be played.
Yet something has to give.
On their current course, Pittsburgh looks nothing more than a team who competes for a final wildcard spot. You, the person reading this, know the Steelers have a roster capable of lifting a Lombardi trophy. Defensive Coordinator Keith Butler has received a lot of heat for his unit’s performances in the past, and this Sunday did him no favors. Too many times were the Steelers not only out-played, but out-coached on the defensive side of the ball.
Butler controls the pieces, but doesn’t deserve all the blame. It’s not Butler missing tackles, over-shooting gaps or leaving holes in coverage. There’s a certain level of accountability that needs to held at all levels on the team, and the offense is no different.
We saw glimpses of a vintage Roethlisberger, yet too many times were him and his receivers not on the same page. Antonio Brown acting upset on the sideline did the team no favors, either. We were all excited to see Todd Haley go, but how many more screen passes and ineffective running plays out of the shotgun do we need to see from Fichtner’s offense?
Special teams are no exception, either. Chris Boswell has been horrid since becoming one of the league’s highest kickers, now sitting at 0-2 on field goals with a missed extra point to his name as well. How much longer do we need to see sub-par kicks from Jordan Berry before we realize there has to be better options out there?
I’m not pressing the panic button, not even close. I have full faith this team can turn things around, but something needs to change. The Steelers should be taking home a win anytime the offense puts up 30+ points.
Last season, the Steelers were able to pull wins out of these types of close games. Yet with Super Bowl aspirations, a call to action is needed. A trip down to Tampa Bay to take on a red-hot Buccaneers offense lies ahead before returning home for a Sunday Night Football match-up against Baltimore.
Now is the time to be open and address issues on both sides of the ball. The next two games will speak volumes to where this team is heading in 2018, but are Mike Tomlin and the rest of his coaching staff up to the challenge?