The Patriots' Christian Elliss sacks the Steelers' Aaron Rodgers (8) during the first half, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026, in Foxborough, Mass.
The Patriots' Christian Elliss sacks the Steelers' Aaron Rodgers (8) during the first half, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026, in Foxborough, Mass.
Going Deep is a weekly column from the Post-Gazette. The morning after every Steelers game, PG columnist Noah Hiles will share his observations and opinions from inside the stadium.
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Plenty was said following the Steelers’ 20-3 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday at Gillette Stadium. But my biggest takeaway from the postgame availability had nothing to do with words.
Instead, it was the blank looks on the faces throughout the locker room.
On one end, it was DK Metcalf. On the other, Troy Fautanu. Both gazed into the distance, seemingly refusing to accept what had just occurred. About 20 feet away, tucked in a corner behind Cam Heyward’s locker, sat Ike Taylor with a similar look.
[Pittsburgh Steelers' Rico Dowdle (13) drives past New England Patriots' Christian Elliss (53) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026, in Foxborough, Mass.
Pittsburgh Steelers' Rico Dowdle (13) drives past New England Patriots' Christian Elliss (53) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026, in Foxborough, Mass.](https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2026/09/20/mike-mccarthy-steelers-offense-aaron-rodgers/stories/202609200059)
Those 1,000-mile stares said more than anything than any word that was muttered by a Steelers player on Sunday. Among many other things, all three collectively exclaimed the same sentiment: “Here we go again.”
The familiarity likely had different meanings among the bunch.
For Taylor, the beatdown likely brought back painful memories of the losses he endured in his playing days. New England always had his team’s number.
Metcalf and Fautanu’s familiarity, meanwhile, is a bit more fresh. For them, it’s not the opponent but rather the process in which the loss was created.
The offense failed in Week 1. It knew it had a tougher challenge ahead against New England. It did not improve. It instead looked overwhelmed, like a group with no answers. And that familiarity was difficult for some to ignore.
“We’re not far off,” tight end Pat Freiermuth said after the loss. “It’s Week 2. We just gotta continue to go out there and not shoot ourselves in the foot. I feel like year after year I keep saying that, but I think we have the right formula and right guys in the locker room to really change the tide.”
The continuation of the Steelers’ offensive woes has now become the elephant in the room, regardless if the players like it or not. It’s just two games into a new regime, but once again, the defense has been forced to carry the entire team, a reality this franchise hoped to change when it hired Mike McCarthy.
[Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy talks to Ben Skowronek (15) during the second half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy talks to Ben Skowronek (15) during the second half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)](https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2026/09/20/steelers-patriots-aaron-rodgers-mike-mccarthy/stories/202609200092)
Heyward pushed back when presented with this narrative, saying “nothing from last year or years before is indicative of this team,” and that he hopes no player among this year’s bunch is “wearing that.”
But it’s easy to see that’s the case right now. The Steelers offense knows it’s in a funk. Individual players, ones like Metcalf, know they’re simply not playing up to their standard. The lack of confidence is clear as day, something McCarthy even noted after the game.
“When you’re not having success, when things aren’t rolling, flow is important,” the Steelers coach said. “ … When the confidence isn’t right and it’s not peaked, the execution suffers. To me, that’s — I think that’s football.”
The only way this changes is through a different result. There’s still plenty of time to turn things around, to make the changes needed. But when “not good enough” has been the story on one side of the ball for years, it’s hard to imagine that unwelcomed familiarity being any easier to shake.
Four down territory
First down: The streak rolls on
The Steelers’ infamous struggles in the first quarter have rolled on into the McCarthy era. Sunday’s loss marked the 69th straight regular season game Pittsburgh’s offense scored seven points or fewer in the opening quarter, a streak that dates back to Nov. 15, 2020.
The Steelers quarterback that game? Ben Roethlisberger — a player who will be eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame this next voting session.
Sunday’s first quarter looked similar to most others throughout the stretch. Pittsburgh started the game with a pair of three-and-outs. It moved the football more as the game progressed, but the red zone remained unfamiliar territory once again.
Second down: Poorly timed penalties
The Steelers didn’t commit many penalties on Sunday, but almost all of them were significantly consequential.
The first came in the third quarter when Alex Highsmith’s offside foul negated a third-down sack by Jalen Ramsey. The Patriots not only converted on the shorter third-down yardage the next play but scored the snap after on a 39-yard touchdown run from TreVeyon Henderson.
The next costly mistake all but ended the game. Early in the fourth quarter, with the Steelers trailing by 10 points, Rodgers and Metcalf finally connected beyond the line of scrimmage. Metcalf’s 15-yard snag came on second and 11 and moved Pittsburgh into New England territory.
It looked like momentum was being built, but that momentum vanished when Metcalf’s catch was negated due to a holding penalty by Spencer Anderson. Rodgers was sacked and stripped the next play, leading to a 19-yard defensive touchdown from Elijah Ponder.
It sounds rather simple to say, but it’s still worth noting: Eliminate those two penalties and this game probably looks much different.
Third down: A massive hit
I’ve never questioned Rodgers’ toughness before, and now I never will. The sack he took in the second quarter from Patriots linebacker Christian Elliss was one of the more vicious hits I’ve witnessed on a quarterback.
RIP Aaron Rodgers (Dec 2, 1983 - Sep 20, 2026) pic.twitter.com/wkTMIytmgs
— Purely Boston (@purelyboston) September 20, 2026
That said, you’d never know Rodgers was rocked by the way he reacted after the hit. He bounced right up, something he noted the importance of after the game.
“I’ve learned you’ve got to get up quickly, No. 1, so they don’t send anybody out to get you,” Rodgers said. “Yeah, that was definitely a shot. I haven’t taken too many of those in our career because usually I have a feeling if we’re picked up or not picked up.”
Rodgers continued to say the play was a lapse in communication, something center Zach Frazier took responsibility for.
Fourth down: A weapon in regression?
It looks like this might be another fall where the Steelers have a tough time finding the end zone. In recent years, they’ve relied upon Chris Boswell to pick up the slack. The All-Pro kicker has been a weapon, especially from long range. He entered this season having made 52 of his 63 career attempts from 50-plus yards.
But so far this season, he’s only 1 for 3 from that range. Boswell has never missed more than twice in a season from 50-plus. The fact that he has two misses already isn’t necessarily a reason to panic, but it might be a sign that he perhaps won’t be as sure of a thing as he once was.
That’s a totally fair thing to happen for a player in his 12th NFL season, but it’s a reality the Steelers can’t afford right now, as their offense continues to struggle.
Most Valuable Player
T.J. Watt (again)
His game today will be overshadowed by an absolutely abysmal offensive effort, but Watt delivered another stellar effort. Sunday marked the third time Watt has logged back-to-back multi-sack games. It was the first time he’s done so since 2021.
Least Valuable Player
DK Metcalf (again)
This might’ve been the worst game of Metcalf’s career. He might not admit it publicly, but his confidence looks to have taken a hit — perhaps worse than the Rodgers one took in the second quarter.
Metcalf’s teammates are sticking by him, but I doubt Steelers fans will be as supportive. He’s the seventh-highest-paid receiver in the NFL. If he drops another pass next week against the Cincinnati Bengals at Acrisure Stadium, the boo birds will be out in full force.
Quote of the week
I spoke 1-on-1 with Steelers cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. after the game. We talked about the defense’s performance through two weeks, which despite an overall strong showing, he claims needs to be much better.
The conversation then shifted to a member of the secondary who wasn’t with them on the field, Joey Porter Jr.
Sunday marked the second straight game Porter was ruled inactive. The injury report lists conditioning and a back issue as to why the Steelers’ top cornerback hasn’t been able to suit up. But a stalemate on a contract extension looks to be the real factor as to why he’s yet to play in 2026.
The Steelers secondary allowed a few big plays on Sunday, ones that Samuel chalked up to a breakdown in communication. I asked Samuel if the defense feels Porter’s missing presence on the field.
“Joey is a great player,” he replied. “Whenever you have a great player that’s out, that’s tough. We’ve been doing our best without him, trying to take it one game at a time.”
I followed by asking if he expects Porter to suit up with him next week against the Bengals.
“I’m not sure,” he responded.
One question
How will this offense keep up with the Bengals next week?
Stopping Joe Burrow and Co. is never an easy task, regardless of how well your defense is playing. The Bengals offense, when healthy, is going to put up points.
It’s hard to imagine how the Steelers can keep up. They’ll need to score at least three touchdowns to have a chance, and right now, that seems like a tall ask.
One prediction
It won’t
The Steelers offense might eventually come around. It probably won’t look as bad as it did this week against a lesser Bengals defensive unit. But it won’t have enough juice to keep up with the likes of Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase. And McCarthy’s team will fall to 1-2 as a result.
First Published: September 21, 2026, 10:23 a.m.