Pittsburgh Steelers' Aaron Rodgers (8) looks to pass as New England Patriots' Christian Elliss (53) pressures him during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026, in Foxborough, Mass.
Despite the resources devoted to the unit in recent drafts, the Steelers’ offensive line has not lived up to expectations through the first two games of 2026.
Little space has been created for running backs Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle, as the Steelers’ 0.23 average yards before contact per rush ranks 31st in the NFL. And their pass protection has been middle of the road at best.
Aaron Rodgers has been pressured on 38.6% of his dropbacks, the 18th-best rate in the NFL.
Against the New England Patriots last Sunday, the Steelers produced only three points in large part due to the offensive line’s struggles and the lack of fluidity within coach Mike McCarthy’s offense. When one aspect of the offense looked like it worked, another would falter, and the play would fall apart.
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)
Most of the line’s struggles, allowing free runners into the backfield to spoil too many plays, came from a lack of chemistry and communication. There were several plays when they looked unprepared to pick up the Patriots’ blitzes.
New England defensive coordinator Zak Kuhr called for the Patriots to blitz on 21 of the Steelers’ 44 dropbacks, and Rodgers’ passer rating plummeted to 32.1 when they sent extra pressure. His rating when he wasn’t blitzed was 89.6.
On one third down the first quarter, the Patriots put six potential rushers at the line of scrimmage but rushed only five. Steelers linemen Dylan Cook and Spencer Anderson lined up against Dre’Mont Jones, Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss.
Jones bailed to cover Warren in the flat. That left both Cook and Anderson with 1-on-1 assignments. But Cook spent too long looking at Jones and didn’t recover in time to engage Spillane, which forced Rodgers to throw the ball away.
The Patriots’ blitzes continued to confuse the Steelers’ offensive line throughout the game.
On the third down where Rodgers was sacked and his fumble led to fourth and 43, the Patriots sent a six-man blitz.
Steelers offensive tackle Max Iheanachor plays during the second half of an NFL football game against the Bills at Highmark Stadium, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y.
The Steelers left Dowdle in as an extra protector alongside Rodgers. At the snap, Dowdle left the backfield to take on Spillane over on the right side of the line. While Cook took on Jones off the right edge, Anderson, Zach Frazier and Mason McCormick shifted left toward the overloaded side of the blitz.
But Troy Fautanu didn’t adjust with everyone else. He took on Elijah Ponder, while a late adjustment by Elliss led to his rush outside of Ponder. Fautanu and McCormick ended up double-teaming Ponder, and that left Elliss with a clear path to crush Rodgers and take away the Steelers’ field position.
Even when the Steelers outnumbered the Patriots’ pass rushers, the offensive line struggled to hold up.
In the fourth quarter, the Patriots sent five pass rushers while the Steelers left Warren in to help the offensive line pick up the blitz on third and 5.
The Steelers initially got all of their protectors on a rusher. But McCormick was beaten by an inside twist and Anderson looked lost. Anderson didn’t help any of his teammates as the pocket collapsed and Rodgers was sacked.
McCarthy’s offense has relied heavily on the pass so far. The Steelers have dropped back on 88 snaps — third-most in the NFL — and have run the ball just 44 times. That 66.7% pass rate is a significant jump from their 59.1% rate in 2025. But that hasn’t resulted in a more explosive offense.
The Steelers’ expected points added per play last season was -0.02. It is -0.39 through two games this season. That is a drop from 15th in the NFL to 31st.
Even when the Steelers’ pass protection held up Sunday, the receivers weren’t getting open often enough and that led to an unsteady Rodgers in the pocket.
After Week 1, we noted how McCarthy’s offense took a different approach in its passing attack to that of Mike Tomlin’s and Arthur Smith’s. There was an increased effort to target the deep middle part of the field. It didn’t lead to better results against Atlanta, but that was mostly due to missed opportunities on the field.
In the 20-3 loss at New England, there were far fewer opportunities downfield because the Steelers’ receivers didn’t get much separation.
Even when Rodgers had time to survey the field from the pocket, his passing windows were too tight for him to attempt to hit a receiver down the field.
In the second quarter, the Patriots sent a six-man rush and the Steelers had six pass protectors for Rodgers. They maintained the pocket, but the Patriots blanketed the Steelers’ receivers.
As the game wore on, Rodgers got less comfortable with the pressure and the lack of open options. That led to him trying to do too much and running into trouble.
When the Steelers got their best scoring chance, the Patriots blanketed the Steelers’ short passing concepts to give Rodgers no clear options.
Fautanu did a good job at left tackle to initially contain his edge in pass protection. But Rodgers bailed on a clean pocket and ran outside of Fautanu, exposing him to unnecessary pressure that led to a holding penalty and a sack.
Last year, Rodgers had the shortest average time to throw at 2.59 seconds — the fastest in the NFL. That was by design. The Steelers did not want the veteran QB to hold onto the ball too long, as his limited mobility could lead to turnovers.
So far this season, Rodgers’ average time to throw is up to 2.77 seconds, which ranks 12th.
Last Monday, McCarthy joked about how he “didn’t like all the criticism in the media about how short [Rodgers] was throwing the ball.” It’s apparent McCarthy has given him has a longer leash to hold onto the ball and target downfield.
But the double-edged sword of that is that by increasing the freedom for Rodgers, it also increases the chance for turnovers.
On the fourth-quarter strip-sack that resulted in the Patriots’ touchdown, Rodgers didn’t take the easier options available and ran right into Christian Barmore.
While the disappointing offensive line has much to clean up, the issues with the Steelers’ passing attack extend beyond the big guys up front.
There is a lot for McCarthy and his offensive staff to fix before they play their first AFC North game against the Cincinnati Bengals this Sunday.
First Published: September 23, 2026, 5:00 a.m.