3 things Steelers offense did right after firing Canada (and 2 that still needs fixed)
- Steelers finally used the middle of the field
- Pickett has already shown some improvements
- Steelers still didn’t score enough
By Andrew Falce
Steelers used their tight ends effectively
Despite being heralded as one of the deepest and strongest positions on this roster heading into the season, the Steelers were scheming away from their tight ends in games. While the Pat Freiermuth injury didn’t help things, he wasn’t a focus before the aforementioned injury, and it was puzzling why this offense would ignore such a strong unit.
That all changed this week, as the tight ends were on full display this week. Freiermuth caught both of his seam shots which helped the offense move the ball, but he didn’t stop there. He tallied nine receptions and had 120 receiving yards. He was the safety valve when the chains needed to move and the team schemed passes to get the ball in his hands.
While the most productive player in the room, unsurprisingly, he wasn’t the only one to receive some work. Third-round rookie Darnell Washington looked like a force on his lone catch, pushing the pile forward for a gain of ten yards. Connor Heyward worked the flat and tallied 11 yards off his two receptions.
Over half of the passing yardage in this game went through tight ends, and the move proved to be effective. It allowed Pickett to develop a rapport with the group early that allowed him to trust them down the stretch. While the passing game still needs a lot of work, they looked like they were on the right track this week as a focus of the offense.