The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Atlanta Falcons 20-13 in Week 1, but the ugly opening-day win was less convincing than the score suggests. T.J. Watt’s 35-yard pick-six supplied the winning points and covered for an offense that scored one touchdown.
Pittsburgh produced 264 total yards, converted 3-of-13 third downs, and failed on both fourth-down attempts. The final box score is more questionable when you consider that Atlanta was forced to start its QB3, Cooper Rush.
Week 1 is too early to overreact, but not too early to call a disappointing performance what it was. These five fell short of their billing.
DK Metcalf headlines the Pittsburgh Steelers’ five biggest Week 1 letdowns
DK Metcalf
DK Metcalf was targeted 10 times and turned them into four catches for 40 yards. He also committed two offensive pass interference penalties and dropped a well-placed throw over the middle.
Pittsburgh didn’t trade a second-round pick and hand Metcalf a four-year, $132 million extension for high-volume inefficiency. His massive contract already invites scrutiny, and this was exactly the unreliable performance he needed to eliminate from his game.
Rico Dowdle
Rico Dowdle rushed eight times for 15 yards and added six receiving yards. His 1.9 yards per carry looked especially poor next to Jaylen Warren’s 46 yards on 10 attempts behind the same line.
Mike McCarthy wants more than 25 carries most weeks, but Dowdle has to earn his share. Warren’s early fumble was costly, but he was still the more effective runner.
Aaron Rodgers
Aaron Rodgers wasn’t terrible. He completed 24 of 40 passes for 221 yards, threw one touchdown without an interception, and made a nice off-schedule play to find Pat Freiermuth in the end zone (the only score on offense).
FIRST TD OF THE SZN!
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) September 13, 2026
📲 Stream on NFL+: https://t.co/vqIDzYZB2x pic.twitter.com/n79eqeWNJN
Respectable isn’t the same as impactful. Pittsburgh’s offense went scoreless after halftime and repeatedly stalled in manageable situations. If Watt doesn’t score, Rodgers’ first game back with McCarthy feels far less wholesome.
Patrick Queen
Patrick Queen didn’t hurt the defense, but he rarely imposed himself on the game. Payton Wilson collected 13 tackles and two tackles for loss while playing with the speed and aggression expected of Pittsburgh’s linebackers.
Queen wears the green dot and carries the bigger contract. Solid communication has value, but the Steelers need splash plays from him, not anonymity next to Wilson.
Pittsburgh’s coverage against Bijan Robinson
Calling this a run-defense collapse would be misleading. It looked far worse, but Bijan Robinson only gained 83 yards on 21 carries, a manageable 4.0-yard average.
Where the failure came was when Robinson entered space. He caught eight passes for 90 yards and Atlanta’s only touchdown, allowing Rush to remain functional without attacking downfield.
The Steelers can survive one game with Watt serving as their best defensive player and second-best offensive weapon, but let's not build an identity around it.
Add us as a preferred source on Google