Despite being outplayed in all three phases Sunday, the Pittsburgh Steelers still had plenty of chances to tie or even beat the Chicago Bears. Trailing by three and facing 3rd and 4 just ahead of the two-minute warning, Mason Rudolph’s legs had seemingly gotten the offense close to Chris Boswell’s range. Scrambling up the middle and forgotten about, Rudolph not only converted but raced out to midfield.
Armed with three timeouts, a Chris Boswell kick felt inevitable. Until the flags came out. Pittsburgh was penalized for illegal formation after leaving RT Troy Fautanu uncovered. Asked who is at fault for a blunder in such a defining moment, Mike Tomlin punted on pinning blame on any one person.
“We own that as a collective,” Tomlin told reporters during his Tuesday press conference via the team’s YouTube channel. “We didn’t do a good enough job in that moment as a collective.”
Here’s a look at the play. Despite Calvin Austin III aligned right and RB Kenneth Gainwell motioning over, neither player got on the line of scrimmage. That left an ineligible player in Fautanu uncovered, drawing the flag.
Aaron Rodgers saw the issue from the sidelines and Austin tried to get Rudolph’s attention. But no one intervened and the play was doomed from its literal snap.
Blame falls in two camps: Mike Tomlin and Mason Rudolph. Both could and should’ve seen it and called timeout.
“We fought our tails off and had a chance to have the ball and go back at them,’ Tomlin said. “We converted a third down and 4, Mason did with his legs, went down the field. But certainly, we were illegal there, and we were deserving of that penalty.”
Making fundamental mistakes was a theme throughout the game. Chicago took a second half lead on WR DJ Moore’s 25-yard touchdown. Pittsburgh was badly outschemed, running old-school Cover 3 against four vertical receivers. Tomlin, however, declined to even entertain what went wrong on the play.
“I am not gonna peel back the layers of how we function from a schematic standpoint,” Tomlin said.
We’ve spent plenty of time addressing the play. The Steelers using “spot drop” coverage instead of the more complex but innovative pattern matching makes them vulnerable in moments like this. Linebacker Patrick Queen and cornerback Brandin Echols have teased coaching breakdowns in the game, and they’re obvious even if Tomlin won’t get into details.
All are issues that must be cleaned up as Pittsburgh’s season hangs in the balance and it begins its toughest stretch of the season. Starting with Buffalo on Sunday, a game in which Pittsburgh will be without at least two key starters. Followed by the Baltimore Ravens in Week 14 that will truly shape the AFC North landscape and a rematch to close the season.
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