Every season, it seems like the Pittsburgh Steelers are Super Bowl contenders. With the most rings in the league and an extremely talented and balanced roster, they are always one of the top teams in the league. This year seems different for the black and yellow as the team could record their fifth straight loss.  I mean they’re playing Cleveland, but any given Sunday right? What has happened to the team who was so dominant and now can barely scrape by with a win?
The Steelers’ first two games were a piece of cake because they played less talented teams. First up was Washington, led by Kirk Cousins who is still a perpetual question mark and then the Bengals who they outlasted despite Big Ben’s two interceptions. The biggest question mark came when the Steelers were beaten by the Philadelphia Eagles. The Steelers were a heavy favorite going into the game and then it just fell apart from there with the offense unable to get points while the defense couldn’t hold off the Eagles. Either way, the game felt like a fluke because it was a young quarterback and a young team.
Their next win came against the Chiefs and then another against an abysmal New York Jets team. The next four games brought the team back to reality with losses by the Dolphins, Patriots, Ravens, and Cowboys. The Patriots seemed like an obvious favorite, especially when Roethlisberger went down and could not play in the game, but the loss to the Dolphins was a complete upset especially after their Miami’s losses to the Bengals and Titans. For the Cowboys and the Ravens, the bar seemed level.  The Cowboys are arguably the best team in the NFC, while the Ravens are the Steelers’ arch rival and always play them hard regardless of their roster.
The big problem for the Steelers offense is Big Ben because he wants to keep relying on his top receiver Antonio Brown.  Other teams know this and continue with tight coverage on Brown. Last week during the Cowboys game, he was targeted 18 times with 14 receptions, the highest of the season. He finished the game with one touchdown and it could have been more had Roethlisberger tried to throw to other receivers. I know that  seems like an oxymoron but just hear me out.
Some of the passes Ben threw weren’t even near Brown or were impossible for Brown to catch. If he targeted some other receivers, it would give Brown a break and allow him to be more productive. Forcing throws to him doesn’t help the team at all. There were a lot of drives where other receivers were open and he choose to throw to Brown who was either clearly covered or Brown didn’t make the catch.
Defensively, the Steelers are losing some of their best players. Just this week, the Steelers lost Cameron Heyward and have decided to demote other players for their lack of productivity. The Steelers have allowed running backs to pretty much run all over them including Jay Ajayi and Ezekiel Elliott, both two rookies. They have given up some big plays in the air too especially from Wentz who absolutely dominated them.
If there’s one thing the Steelers need to do, it’s regroup. I’m not saying they need to evaluate every position but come up with a solid game plan that will help you win games. Giving up big plays on the defensive side of the ball isn’t going to help the offense and allowing three and outs aren’t doing the defense any favors either. Â Allow the two sides to have playing time without the defense overcompensating for the offense and vice versus.
Going into the Browns game, the Steelers are the favorite. If they don’t win this game, then I’m not sure where the Steelers will go from there.
