Don’t let Sunday’s comeback win versus the Colts fool you.
The Steelers still haven’t figured it out, and could be on their way to a wild card exit in this year’s playoffs.
If you watched Pittsburgh’s game versus Indianapolis you’d know that the Steelers were completely dominated for a large part of the game by a very balanced Colts team.
If it wasn’t for a Philip Rivers fumble in the second quarter that gave the Steelers the ball inside the three-yard line, Ben Roethlisberger and the offense would have likely put up a goose egg in the first half.
The Pittsburgh offense was lethargic, predictable, and ineffective for almost three-quarters of the game. The offense looked as bad as it did during the Steelers’ recent three-game losing streak.
They still can’t run the ball effectively at all. Pittsburgh is dead last in the league in rushing yards per game and rushing yards per carry. The Steelers had 20 rushing yards on the day versus the Colts.
The short passing game was effective earlier in the season as a substitute for the run, but now teams are starting to play the Steeler receivers more aggressively on the line of scrimmage, which makes completing these short passes harder.
Pittsburgh started to see success offensively when they decided to stretch the Colts’ defense vertically. Roethlisberger hit Diontae Johnson and JuJu Smith-Schuster on pivotal touchdowns that forced Indianapolis’ defensive backs to cover down the field.
For the Steelers and their fan base, this win against the Colts should still give them concern. They were able to miraculously score 21 unanswered points toward the end of the game to get the victory against a good team, but you can’t ignore the struggles that we all saw in the majority of the first three quarters.
Based on the evidence we’ve seen lately from this group in Pittsburgh, I’d be willing to say that the team we saw in the fourth quarter on Sunday might be fools gold for Steelers fans.
This win against the Colts could be a bandaid over a wound that desperately needs more medical attention. The AFC is way too good to get away with this level of mediocrity on offense.
Don’t be shook when that same offense you saw for most of the game, and in their last three losses shows up in their wild-card game in January.
If the Steelers don’t truly fix their issues, they will be sent home with the quickness in the playoffs.