With the Pittsburgh Steelers’ season on the brink following getting zapped by the Los Angeles Chargers by the score of 10-25, they must now face the team most responsible for their current downslide.
In week seven, the world was the Steelers’ oyster, as they were taking full advantage of the misfortunes of the rest of their competition in the AFC North division of the National Football League.
The Steelers were 4-1, while the Baltimore Ravens had a reverse record of 1-4 and were looking like they were already cooked well done.
All Pittsburgh had to do was take care of business against what was, at the time, a downtrodden and discouraged Cincinnati Bengals team. Yes, they still had world-class receivers, but they were playing without their franchise quarterback, had one of the NFL’s worst defenses, as well as a bottom-dwelling running game.
Unfortunately, the Steelers allowed the Frankenstein monster of the Bengals to reanimate before their eyes, allowing the weathered and recently acquired Joe Flacco to rip apart Pittsburgh’s defense like it was wrapping paper at a four-year-old’s birthday party.
Now, as the Bengals pay a visit to Pittsburgh, they should come with gifts in hand. No team was more responsible for giving them new life this year than the Steelers. Pittsburgh has seemed to be good at that sort of thing through the years.
So now we have the sequel to the Geriatric Bowl, with the even more seasoned Aaron Rodgers taking on Flacco once again.
Which elder is going to be more abused? Let’s give it a Spin.
An Odd Take
You would think that after the Steelers were out-yarded by the Chargers by a tally of 314-221 and were outscored soundly as well, they would be deserving of a sharp rebuke.
However, despite being badly beaten, which they were, it would be unfair to complain about the team’s effort and attitude. There have certainly been games in the past where the Steelers looked more like bashful matadors waving a red cape against charging bulls.
But this game was different. As much as Steelers fans have a history of distaste for the Harbaugh Bros…that would be John and Jim…you can’t deny they do a fine job in teaching physicality to their teams. The Chargers played violently. They were flying to the ball and making constant contact.
Yet, the Steelers didn’t flinch. They gave it back in full force as well. This was a hard-fought battle, with soldiers on both sides deserving of respect.
There was plenty in that game for Steelers Nation to be proud of their team’s intensity of play, even though it was a difficult loss.
The clarifying reality is that the Steelers have an average roster at best this year. That’s no fault of any of the players on the field, and their efforts deserve to be supported regardless of the results.
Outrouted
You can’t say the Steelers didn’t take advantage of the fact that the Chargers’ offense was weakened with injuries. Pittsburgh’s defensive line put pressure on Los Angeles the entire game.
Why it didn’t matter is that Justin Herbert played fearlessly. Despite the world crashing around him, he held steady in the pocket and delivered passes accurately and at the last possible moment, time after time. The Steelers’ defense got beaten by a quarterback at the top of his game.
Aaron Rodgers struggled through one of the worst games of his storied career. He was 16 of 31 with one touchdown and two interceptions. It looked even worse than that.
Still, it just isn’t fair to criticize Rodgers too harshly this season as a quarterback. When you look across the field against the Bengals this weekend and see the two starting wide receivers they are able to line up on the field, you realize how understaffed Rodgers is in contrast.
If the Steelers were able to boast a top-tier running game, then you could put more weight on Rodgers’ shoulders, as he would be able to play action his way to additional time. However, too often, he is forced to throw the ball to receivers who simply aren’t consistently able to get separation and win contested balls.
If it looks like he’s forcing the ball into too many tight spaces, it’s because he must.
Steel Getting It Done
Cam Heyward will be playing in his 221st game as a Steeler this Sunday, and there are few signs that he is slowing down his production. Even at the well-ripened age of 36, he plays harder and more effectively than most of his teammates.
You can only imagine how frustrating it is for the team’s defensive captain to endure so many seasons without any real taste of postseason success. Because he’s been the consummate teammate and leader for so many years, the fans will probably never know how deeply disappointing it has been for him.
Unfortunately for Heyward, he’ll be in the same category as Hines Ward when it comes to getting credit for his greatness outside of Pittsburgh once his career finally winds down.
For those of us who saw Ward play each and every week, we were keenly aware of the impact of his play on the field. The same holds true for Heyward, who contributes so much above and beyond that which can be measured forensically in statistics.
Though Ward will most likely never make it into the NFL Hall of Fame, he did at least get to experience being a Super Bowl Champion. It’s a shame that it’s looking less likely that Heyward will get that chance as well.
Regardless, at least in the journals of Steelers lore, he’ll be remembered as one of the franchise’s most valuable players.
Patriot Games
Several years ago, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New England Patriots were facing the same harsh realities. Both teams had mortgaged their futures with non-sustainable, skyrocketing veteran player salaries. Chief among those were what was being paid to their long-time franchise quarterbacks, Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger, who were also contributing a double-whammy of aging rapidly out of the system.
On top of this, there were questions about whether it was time to make a coaching change, even though both coaches, Bill Belichick and Mike Tomlin, were considered Hall of Fame-caliber.
The ownership of the two teams responded on two totally different paths.
The Patriots did the unthinkable and parted ways with their legendary quarterback Brady. They continued to breach unthinkability by casting away Belichick, long considered one of the NFL’s most un-fireable head coaches.
The Steelers, on the other hand, kept extending Tomlin’s contract, despite growing murmurs from the fanbase. They also held onto Ben Roethlisberger as long as they could without any serious succession plans in place.
Where are the two teams today? The Steelers are well adrift with one of the oldest and most expensive defensive rosters in the NFL. Speaking of old, they tried to solve their quarterbacking crisis with an over-the-hill quarterback in Russell Wilson last year and doubled down on that strategy with Rodgers.
Rodgers is proving to be far ahead of Wilson in terms of his ability to ride down that hill with talent and capability, but no one is going to argue that the nearly 42-year-old is the Steelers’ “quarterback of the future.”
New England, on the other hand, did fairly well with the drafting of Mac Jones, whose main shortcoming was not being Tom Brady. Although he wasn’t the perfect solution in Boston, he is proving, with his stint in San Francisco, that he is an NFL-caliber performer.
And now, in Drake Maye, who is being touted as the next Josh Allen…or Ben Roethlisberger, the Patriots may have a quarterback who will be one of the best in the league for the next 15 years. They are 9-2 this year and are in the Top 10 in both offense and defense.
Oh…and they have one of the youngest rosters in the league, meaning they are just getting started to express themselves.
It’s a hard truth for Steelers fans, but the Patriots were the vastly superior franchise during the Brady-Belichick era. It looks like they’ve played chess well enough the past few years so that they’re in a good position to boss the Steelers in the AFC for another decade or so.
The Super Bowl franchise of all time? That belt might be leaving Pittsburgh soon.
Competition Grade
Back when there was a 16-game season and fewer playoff positions up for grabs, you could determine a team’s postseason hopes already this far into the season.
The way it works these days in the revenue-addicted NFL, the Steelers could completely flummox most of their remaining matches, and they still could eke into the back door, or side door, or most windows of the playoffs.
You can already see game analysts talking through all the playoff scenarios in the waning weeks of the year. If this team wins, and that team loses, and as long as this team doesn’t tie, then there still is a chance to get in.
Which is why “getting into the playoffs” just isn’t what it used to be. It’s much more significant to discuss how far a team is capable of going once they get into the playoffs.
Will they get blown out in the first Wildcard? Will they make it to the AFC Championship? Could they win a Super Bowl?
That’s the conversation that matters in this modern age of the “everybody gets a trophy” NFL.
Even if they continue to flounder, could the Steelers make it to the playoffs? Absolutely. But who cares? Really. There is nothing exciting about getting embarrassed in the first round.
The more important question is, “If they get in, could they go far?”
Except for the most irrationally positive amongst us, the answer to a rapidly sobering Steelers Nation is a resounding, “No”. Sorry. They just aren’t that good this year, and there doesn’t seem to be much room for improvement.
Could this outlook change? It could. Injuries to opponents’ key players. Rodgers discovering a youth potion. Anything is possible in the National Football League.
But if you study Super Bowl history, the harsh reality is that the good teams go far. The mediocre teams get exposed. And the weak teams get high draft picks.
The Cinderella stories no longer exist. There’s only a lot of smashed pumpkins.
Will the Steelers find that glass slipper this year? If they are going to, they’d better start searching soon. They need to launch the fairy tale with this Cincinnati Bengals game.
The Steelers need a new story this year. One they can believe in, and one they can share anew with their fans.
The Bengals are part of this story. They took away Pittsburgh’s momentum this year with their crushing underdog victory, and they will play a part in whether or not it will be returned. Maybe the Bengals have the glass slipper?
It will be the tale of the tiger this Sunday. Will the Steelers be able to bite back and save their season?
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