The Pittsburgh Steelers had a tough time getting anything going in Week 12. The usually-dependable defense for Pittsburgh failed to stop, or even slow down, the Cincinnati Bengals explosive offense. The Bengals took an early lead and never looked back, as they scored 31 points before halftime. The Steelers defense could not stop the run, and it seemed that their offense was flat. Pittsburgh has a lot of problems that they need to fix, and they aren’t going anywhere without making some serious changes to their defense.
Pittsburgh Steelers Defense Gets Bullied in Week 12 Blowout Loss
The defense for the Pittsburgh Steelers has historically been known as “The Steel Curtain.” Their unit this season has yet to fully live up to its name. They have given up 41 points in back-to-back games, and have had recent troubles stopping the run. Cincinnati’s running back Joe Mixon tallied 165 yards on Sunday, just a week after Los Angeles Chargers running back Austin Ekeler had four touchdowns against the Steelers. Pittsburgh has plenty of problems on defense, including a lackluster linebacker corps and a defensive line who loses tough battles. The offense didn’t play well this week, but it’s hard for them to do so when they have to erase large deficits early in the game.
Game Summary
First Half
The Bengals jumped out to an early 10-0 lead thanks to a field goal and eight-yard touchdown run by quarterback Joe Burrow. A Ben Roethlisberger interception set up the field goal mentioned above. The Steelers then went on their second-longest drive of the day, which ended as a 53-yard field goal drive. This made the score 10-3, but that was the closest that Pittsburgh would get for the rest of the game.
The next two Cincinnati drives ended in touchdowns and put the score out of reach at 24-3. The first drive was capped off by a 32-yard touchdown catch by Tee Higgins, who had a great game. Higgins finished with six catches, 114 yards, and a touchdown. The following drive for the Bengals ended in a one-yard rushing score by Joe Mixon. The Steelers would then punt for the second time in the game; they showed very few signs of life during their early offensive drives.
Each team would exchange interceptions on their next drives. Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, of Pittsburgh, snatched his first interception of the season when he picked off Burrow taking a deep shot to Tee Higgins. Fitzpatrick, in past years, has been a turnover creator for the Steelers; this season, he hasn’t created those plays as often, but it’s a step in the right direction for one of Pittsburgh’s most sound defenders.
Ben Roethlisberger was picked off for a second time on the new possession after Fitzpatrick’s interception. Mike Hilton, a Cincinnati corner who had played for Pittsburgh in recent years, picked off his former quarterback and took it back for a pick-six. The Bengals led 31-3 at the half in Week 12, mainly because of their explosive offense led by Joe Mixon.
Second Half
There wasn’t much that happened in the second half. The Bengals got a field goal and another Joe Mixon rushing touchdown, whereas the Steelers notched just one touchdown. Mixon finished the day with 165 rushing yards and two touchdowns; he also tacked on four catches. The Steelers defense didn’t have much of an answer.
The lone Pittsburgh touchdown drive in Week 12 looked really good and gave some hope to the fans. Ben Roethlisberger hooked up with Diontae Johnson four times during this drive; Johnson tallied 43 of his 95 yards on this possession alone. The drive ended in a 15-yard passing score to rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth, who had two catches for 24 yards on this drive. The Steelers worked on a few things on their final drive (tried some plays, worked backups), but they were unable to cash anything in before time expired.
Problems with the Steelers Defense
The Pittsburgh Steelers have a major issue on defense right now; that issue is stopping the opposing running game. Pittsburgh allowed over 250 yards on the ground to the Detroit Lions back in Week 10 and Austin Ekeler and Justin Herbert of the Chargers obliterated the depleted defense last week. The Steelers have shown an inability to stop the ground game; this is mostly because they are not being physical enough, they are not winning the battles in the trenches, and they have some tackling issues as well.
The Steelers, when hot, have a great group of playmakers who can make some game-changing plays by stopping the run. Namely, third-year linebacker Devin Bush, out of Michigan, has had a tough time finding his groove this season. After a spectacular rookie season and a season-ending ACL injury last year, Bush has struggled a lot this year. Bush has missed and whiffed on many tackle opportunities, and he doesn’t really seem in tune. A lot of his struggles seem to be coming from the Steelers’ defensive scheme. Hopefully defensive coordinator Keith Butler can make some changes to his once-great defense, and restore them to their rightful name as ‘The Steel Curtain’.
Offense Can’t Get Going, but It’s Not All Their Fault
Veteran quarterback Ben Roethlisberger struggled in Week 12. Big Ben threw for 263 yards, one touchdown, as well as two bad interceptions. Coming into the game, Roethlisberger had not thrown an interception in five weeks; he snapped that streak on Sunday with two poor passes.
Rookie running back Najee Harris, who usually has very productive games, was essentially discarded in the Week 12 loss. Harris had just eight carries (has an average of 20+ touches) for 23 yards. Harris likely would have had a more productive game, but because the Steelers fell behind so quickly, they had to abandon the running game. Overall, Harris has had a fantastic rookie season, but a player can’t have astonishing games every week.
As mentioned above, wide receiver Diontae Johnson had nine catches for a total of 95 yards. Johnson has incredible yards-after-catch (YAC) ability, and he was able to turn a lot of short passes into effective gains. Second-year receiver Chase Claypool had three catches for 82 yards, including multiple deep strikes that proved Ben Roethlisberger still has some skills left despite his age. Rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth had four catches, 40 yards, and Pittsburgh’s only touchdown. Freiermuth has established himself as a respectable tight end with reliable hands and some good blocking too.
A Few Positives from a Dreadful Game
There were very few things that went the Steelers way in Week 12. Other than Diontae Johnson’s great receiving game and Minkah Fitzpatrick’s interception, there wasn’t much else to be excited about. The Pittsburgh passing game did limit Joe Burrow to just 190 passing yards and sacked him twice during the game. Chris Wormley and Cameron Heyward each tallied a sack in the loss. Heyward, who has been one of the strongest defensive players all year, moves to 5.5 sacks on the year and is second on the team behind T.J. Watt.
Speaking of Watt, the Steelers star pass-rusher returned in Week 12 following some injuries. Watt was held to just two tackles against Cincinnati and didn’t make any splash plays. While he didn’t do much, it is certainly great to have him back.
Where Does This Leave the Steelers?
This blowout divisional loss dropped the Steelers to 5-5-1 on the season. They now sit tied for last place in their division and are now 11th in the AFC playoff picture in a tight, competitive conference. It will be incredibly difficult for the Steelers to make the playoffs, but they have all of the right tools for a run. They have undoubtedly been one of the most inconsistent teams this year, mostly by winning games they shouldn’t have won and losing/tying games that shouldn’t have been close. Should they fix their problems, they could re-establish themselves as contenders and try to piece together a playoff appearance, but their chances are very low of doing so.
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Weekly Injury/COVID News
T.J. Watt: Just a few days after getting Watt back, the Steelers had to place him on the COVID list following a positive test. This will likely force Watt out of next Sunday’s game against the Ravens barring any miracles. However, little is known about the situation and he has yet to be ruled out. Watt would have been a very important part in the attempt to stop Lamar Jackson next week.
Joe Haden: The veteran corner sat out for the second consecutive game on Sunday, but little is known about next week. Haden practiced most of last week, but once again, there isn’t much to go on for his condition.
Pat Freiermuth: The tight end who caught the only touchdown in Week 12 was evaluated for a concussion following the game. Little is known about his condition, but nothing serious has come up yet, so it seems likely that he will be fine.
Robert Spillane: Spillane, who had a pick-six off of Lamar Jackson last year, suffered a knee injury on Sunday. Spillane’s exact injury and its effects are still unknown as of Monday night.
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
