4 takeaways from Steelers gut-wrenching playoff loss vs Chiefs
By Tommy Jaggi
The Pittsburgh Steelers once again disappointed in the biggest tournament on turf. Here are my takeaways from their Wild Card playoff loss to the Chiefs.
This is not the way we wanted to go out. After being gift-wrapped the final spot in the AFC playoffs, the Pittsburgh Steelers weren’t at all prepared to take advantage of this opportunity, and it resulted in an embarrassing 42-21 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the Wild Card round.
Though Pittsburgh’s defense gave us hope early on, we knew that they couldn’t keep Patrick Mahomes contained for long, and thanks to an offense that could hardly move the ball, the Steelers immediately lost their seven-point lead and eventually collapsed entirely.
This was a game we would all like to forget, but there are some major issues that need to be addressed with our season officially over. Here are my four biggest takeaways from Pittsburgh’s gut-wrenching playoff loss:
Steelers coaching staff needs an overhaul
I really don’t think I’m overreacting when I say that the Steelers need a coaching overhaul. Mike Tomlin’s job will be safe due to his reputation alone (though I would argue that the results aren’t what they should have been over the past five years). However, nobody else’s job should be guaranteed next season.
Matt Canada is an easy scapegoat for Steelers fans, but his conservative game plan continues to be head-scratching. It’s embarrassing that he thought he could come out and help his team win the football game by running on first and second down and passing short of the sticks when they needed to move the chains. He has been a big disappointment this season.
I also had a beef with Keith Butler in this contest. Though Butler has been part of some top defenses over the past five seasons, I really questioned his personnel decisions in this game. He constantly deployed a slow lineup with players like Robert Spillane and Joe Schobert being asked to cover Travis Kelce in space. His old-school defense hasn’t worked against playoff-caliber teams, and the Steelers may want to consider an offensive coordinator who can stop good quarterbacks.