3 things we learned from Steelers loss against the Bengals

The Steelers dropped another home game, this time to the Cincinnati Bengals

It’s one thing to lose a game, it’s another to lose a game at home and it’s quite another to lose two consecutive home games, but that’s exactly what the Steelers did with yet another home loss to Bengals, 24-10. What is really upsetting to me is this:  It appeared to me that we were just not prepared to play this game.

I realize we were playing with a lot of backups and inexperienced players, but not only was this a home game, but this was also an AFC North home game.  So, not only have the Steelers lost two consecutive conference games, we lost a division game and we looked disjointed in the process.

Let’s take a look at the first thing we learned from the loss to the Bengals.

The Steelers offense is listless and uncreative

So, here’s what I mean when I say the offense is uncreative: Through the first three games of the 2021 NFL season, the offense has been slow to get into any kind of rhythm and has deployed maybe ten different formations.  Since I am not privy to the official Steelers playbook, I am making an assessment based on what I have seen thus far.

Against the Bengals, the offense outgained the opposing offense in total plays, total yards, passing yards, first downs, and time of possession, according to ESPN.  Unfortunately, our average yards per play was about four yards, which, to me, means that we are not pushing the ball downfield.  The horizontal passing game that Matt Canada has deployed is simply not working.

Let’s see what else we learned.