What Steelers must do to defeat the Seahawks in week 2

The Steelers will win if offensively…

Where to start? The was plenty to be upset about with the Steelers offense on Sunday Night. The entire effort was lackluster. The Patriots’ defense seemed to be ready for everything.

Let’s start with the execution.

The offensive line did do one thing well: pass protect. The downside? There was nowhere to throw. The big reason for this can be attributed to the lack of ground game production. The Patriots front 7 often got a good read on the running plays.

A big cause for this was the fact that the Steelers tried to use similar concepts from their last matchups. Did they think Belichick wouldn’t be prepared for it? If your opponent can get a head start on the play developing, your runs will not produce. It also doesn’t help when you rely on a lot of east and west plays…

The Steelers must establish a better ground game because, if not, they will lose balance again and be put behind the sticks on third down. The Steelers only convert 3 third downs on 12 attempts because of the fact they played behind the sticks so often.

When the Steelers did pass the ball, they were plagued with the drop bug. Donte Moncrief’s drops stuck out the most for Steelers fans after drops on 4th down and a potential touchdown. The Seattle secondary will look to be just as physical as the Patriots secondary, so combat catches must be made.

Overall, the Steelers offense will just have to establish an identity in their offensive attack as well as execute better than last week. Avoiding mental mistakes (such as not snapping the ball) and predictive play-calling will be key factors against the Seahawks.