Has the Steelers' Standard Fallen under Mike Tomlin?

What is the Steelers defense for keeping Tomlin?

While watching these games on Sunday I was left asking that question to myself. In a league where points are scored in bulk and teams have to adjust to win, what is Tomlin doing right for this organization right now?

The offense has been in shambles since the end of Ben Roethlisberger's career. Instead of trying to revamp this unit and make it a competitor to the likes of the Chiefs or Bills, the team opted for an uber-conservative route. Pound the defense into submission and win low-scoring games, all the while top offenses were putting up 30 or more points every week.

The defense has felt like a work in progress for too many seasons. This unit was firing on all cylinders in 2019 but has struggled to consistently be elite. While an underperforming unit given the build, I can’t give a lot of fault to the defense. They have held teams to 20 or fewer points in eight games this season. The offense hasn’t been able to capitalize.

Surely this was Matt Canada’s fault, as he alone was limiting this offense and causing it to struggle. Once he was fired this unit put up over 400 total yards, so everything was fixed, right? Well, the previous two losses were much of the same, as the offense struggled to move the ball and score.

This team looks like a shell of itself right now, and that has been building for a few seasons with subpar play despite talking and acting like the Steelers of old. I’ve written a few posts critiquing Tomlin and his style, and having a clear head to watch other teams this Sunday didn’t help those opinions.