The Pittsburgh Steelers' defense got the benefit of the doubt for most of the team’s uninspiring performance against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday night. Early stops from the defense were turned up empty on the other side of the ball, and eventually, the dam broke.
After the game, T.J. Watt spoke about the defense’s share in the blame for the loss.
“Inconsistent as it can be,” Watt said. “Too much up and down, not enough Steeler football. We can’t continue to live and die by the turnovers as a defense.”
It’s a reality Steelers fans are having a harder time dismissing as the weeks of the 2025 season pass. If Pittsburgh’s defense can’t generate turnovers, the Steelers struggle to win. They’re now 1-3 this season when failing to get a takeaway.
T.J. Watt voices frustration as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense runs out of answers
Pittsburgh had a shot at an early turnover, but Joey Porter Jr. wasn’t able to haul in an underneath pass that hit him in the hands. Los Angeles played rather conservatively, allowing Pittsburgh’s own offensive mistakes to dictate the flow of the game into the Chargers’ favor.
“Felt like we were stopping the run early, felt like we were creating some pressure, getting off the field. Just weren’t able to sustain it enough to make an impact tonight,” Watt said.
The Steelers hit Justin Herbert nine times and finished with five sacks. Watt recorded his 114th career sack, putting him just a half sack behind his Hall of Fame-bound brother, J.J. Watt. Unfortunately, to Watt’s point, it wasn’t enough to sustain. As the offense continued to falter on their own third down, preventing conversions for the Steelers’ defense became more difficult.
“On those days you’re not able to get the ball, you need to bow up on those big-time third-down situations and get off the field, and we weren’t able to do that,” Watt said. The Chargers were 6-17 on third downs and converted their only fourth-down try. Half of the Chargers’ successful third-down conversions came on scoring drives.
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On the other side, Pittsburgh didn’t get its first third-down conversion until the fourth quarter. It’s tough for any defense, no matter how well they’re playing, to sustain a winning performance when they are constantly on the field. The Chargers won the time of possession battle by a full quarter of game time, meaning the defense had to face 19 more plays than their own offense ran.
Pittsburgh’s defense isn’t without its own faults this season. Many Steelers fans haven’t yet washed out the taste of their abysmal Thursday night performance against the Cincinnati Bengals from their mouths, with the AFC rivals up next on the schedule.
But when they’ve been on their game, the offense barely pays back the favor. Eleven of the team’s 16 takeaways this season came in two games, the Steelers won by a touchdown each. And that’s a result of recurring offensive issues with converting third downs and protecting the football themselves.
Watt is right, there is too much up and down. And that’s why the Steelers are 5-4, with a loose grip on first place in the AFC North and another mediocre finish on the horizon if these issues aren’t solved. The nine years of consistency in that department certainly prove more frustrating to this fanbase than the past 10 weeks of it, though.