The Pittsburgh Steelers had a letdown in Week 10. They got crushed by the Los Angeles Chargers one week after beating the best team in the NFL. The Steelers had an opportunity to solidify themselves as AFC contenders, but their offense didn’t show up against the Chargers. While they’re still in first place in the AFC North, analyst Charles McDonald doesn’t have high hopes for the Steelers’ playoff hopes.
“There are very rarely times when a game is 5-3, and there’s very rarely times when a game feels over at 5-3,” McDonald said on the Football 301 podcast. “The Steelers, they couldn’t do anything. Just awful. Aaron [Rodgers] looked 100 years old. They couldn’t block. Really, really bad stuff all around from them. They don’t look like a playoff team whatsoever anymore.”
The Steelers lost 25-10, but McDonald is correct that the game felt like it was over before that. The Steelers struggled to do anything right. Even Chris Boswell missed a field goal.
Rodgers was the team’s biggest problem, though. While he’s played well for much of this season, he was abysmal in Week 10. He completed 16-of-31 passes for 161 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. That’s a bad stat line, and it could’ve been even worse. Many of Rodgers’ yards and his lone touchdown came in garbage time when the game was already out of hand.
While Rodgers and the Steelers’ offense played poorly, their defense wasn’t terrible. That unit has been bad for much of this year, but it was decent against the Chargers. Los Angeles’ offense only put up 13 points through three quarters and 23 points overall. It’s hard to bash the Steelers’ defense for that kind of performance.
Now, the Baltimore Ravens are right on the Steelers’ heels for first place in the AFC North.
“I expect them to win the division,” McDonald said of the Ravens. “Cincinnati’s fake, Cleveland’s fake, and now, Pittsburgh looked fake. Lamar [Jackson], the floor is yours.”
It’s hard to argue against that. The Ravens didn’t look good to start the season, but they’re starting to pick things up. Meanwhile, the Steelers are struggling to find any kind of consistency. If the Steelers continue playing like they did in Week 10, it might not be long before they find themselves outside of the playoff picture.
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