Steelers vs. Texans: What Are Experts Saying About Pittsburgh?
Frustration is mounting for the Pittsburgh Steelers after falling to last place in the AFC North.
The offense has only scored 20 points in the last two games, and the defense has struggled to stop quarterbacks Mike Glennon and Brian Hoyer. Needless to say, the Steelers are in the need of some answers if they want to turn their season around.
As they head into a Monday night showdown with the Houston Texans, the Steelers will need to explore all options if they want to get back in the win column. Here are some of the issues—and solutions—surrounding Pittsburgh, according to the experts.
Bill Cowher and Hines Ward: Steelers Are Soft
1 of 5
Rarely is it a news story when a member of the media criticizes a football team. Negative comments happen on a weekly basis, and the most that comes from it is that a team has some bulletin-board material. However, when it comes from one of your own, the comments come with a bit of a sting.
That is what happened when Bill Cowher and Hines Ward called out the Steelers this past week, via Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
“I never thought I would say these words,” Cowher said on CBS-TV, “but Pittsburgh has gotten soft.”
Cowher added that the Steelers are “finesse on offense, soft on defense.”
Ward was harsher than Cowher on NBC-TV:
"They’re very close to hitting that panic button … The defense looks soft. Guys are just able to run the ball up and down the field. I look at their personnel; they can’t cover anybody in the secondary. Offensively, I thought I’d never say it, but the Steelers are a finesse offense right now. I don’t even know who these guys are.
"
As closely as these two follow the Steelers, it is surprising that it took them so long to make this realization. There are some in the media who still believe the Steelers are a ground-and-pound offense and very physical on defense.
Anyone who watches the Steelers on a weekly basis knows that the Steelers have not been a physical team for several seasons now. The offense is finesse—though Pittsburgh has made a valiant effort to regain a strong running game. The defense is soft.
Remember that “soft” is a relative term. The Steelers have physical players on defense, but they cannot stop an opposing offense, thus are considered “soft.” It is hard to argue against that. The Cleveland Browns just got done putting up 31 points on the Steelers with success through the air and on the ground.
The coaching staff and players may not like these comments, but until they prove otherwise, they will continue to hear them the rest of the season.
Bob Smizik: Offense in Disarray
2 of 5
The Steelers are not stacked with weapons on the offensive side of the ball, but with Ben Roethlisberger, Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown, they should be able to score more than 20 points against the Jacksonville Jaguars and Cleveland Browns.
Even though the problems are many, Bob Smizik of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (subscription required) believes that one man should endure the most of the pressure:
"Whatever is going on with the offense falls on a lot of people. None of the coaches and none of the players is exempt. But Haley is the “offensive coordinator.” Think about that. He’s not just the guy who calls the plays. He is the guy who coordinates everything. He certainly is not doing a good job of that.
Considering the level of the Steelers’ defense, losing to the Browns, an average football team, is not the problem. Scoring three points in the first 57 minutes and 10 for the game is the problem. That is up to Haley to fix. If he can’t, his job should be on the line.
"
It is easy to make Todd Haley the scapegoat for the offense’s problems, but Smizik makes a great point here. Even though the players are partially responsible for the issues, it is Haley’s job to make sure the offense is putting up points.
As a unit, it has failed, and as unfair as it may be, the offensive failures ultimately fall on Haley. Whether that means he should lose his job during the season or after the year is another discussion, but it is something that must be considered if the offense continues to fail to produce.
Alan Robinson: Minimal Impact from Rookies
3 of 5
If your team is depending on rookies to make an impact, your team is probably in trouble. If those rookies can’t find their way on the field, you are in even bigger trouble.
That is the case for the Steelers this year. Ryan Shazier was expected to start, while Stephon Tuitt had a chance to be a key part of the rotation at defensive end. Dri Archer and Martavis Bryant had the chance to contribute as role players with the offense.
It all sounds great on paper, but sometimes we set the expectations too high for rookies. The problem, though, is that the Steelers did need this rookie class to contribute. When it didn’t, the team was worse off.
Alan Robinson of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review highlights the struggles of this year’s rookie class:
"First-rounder Ryan Shazier (knee) is hurt but could return Monday against Houston. But second-rounder Stephon Tuitt can't get on the field, third-rounder Dri Archer isn't doing much with the plays he gets and fourth-rounder Martavis Bryant hasn't dressed yet.
The solution: Is it Tuitt time? Can he play that much worse than Cam Thomas, the lowest-graded 3-4 defensive end by Pro Football Focus? And maybe create more plays outside for the 165-pound Archer, rather than running him up the middle?
"
Monday night may finally be the chance these four rookies have been waiting for.
The Steelers could use a healthy Shazier back on the field, and it is time to give Tuitt a significant number of snaps. He is the future of the team, and Thomas does not offer the defense much while on the field.
Haley has not been able to get Archer the ball in space, which is why he has not provided any splash plays. Rather than continue to force him the ball, the Steelers should look to Martavis Bryant as an alternative option.
Bryant has the ability to stretch the field, which could result in a big play or pass interference. As I watched him in training camp, he was one of their best deep receivers on the roster. But his true area of strength was in the red zone.
With so many problems scoring points when inside of the opponent’s 20-yard line, Bryant is a viable option. His size would add a much-needed dimension required to exploit mismatches with smaller defensive backs.
At some point, these rookies are going to get on the field, and with the team reeling, there may not be a better time to add an element of youth to the lineup than this week.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Cian Fahey: LeBeau’s Coaching a Problem for the Defense
4 of 5
Even the all-time greats must step away from the game, and that time may be getting close for defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau.
Once immune from criticism, LeBeau has been fair game this year as the defense once again is an issue. It continues to have trouble rushing the quarterback. It cannot stop the run, and it allows big plays at an alarming rate compared to the recent past.
One could argue that LeBeau no longer has the talent to work with on defense, but Cian Fahey of Football Outsiders explained why that should not matter:
"While Dick LeBeau can point to general manager Kevin Colbert's inability to give him adequate pieces with which to build a good defense, this lack of discipline should reflect very poorly on the Steelers' long-term defensive coordinator. The Steelers defense changed their defensive philosophy to match the changing offenses in the league, but they have failed to do it adequately while transitioning away from proven veterans to younger, developing players.
"
No one will argue against LeBeau’s brilliant defensive mind, but it is easy to see that something is not working. Yes, he does not have the personnel to run his style of defense, but maybe he isn’t the right coach to run this new style of defense.
The Steelers are not going to fire LeBeau during the season. He has accomplished too much and earned too much respect to go out like that. However, the story may change after the season when the front office and coaching staff will have to have a tough discussion.
Without looking that far ahead, maybe LeBeau needs to get more input from Mike Tomlin, who has helped morph this defense from one that was dominant for nearly a decade.
Tomlin does have one year of experience as a defensive coordinator, and the personnel is beginning to resemble more of a Tomlin defense than the one LeBeau made famous.
Ed Bouchette: Steelers Not Rushing Quarterback
5 of 5
Pittsburgh’s defense is a shell of its former self. Besides the loss of virtually every veteran who helped lead it to greatness, the defense has not successfully rushed the quarterback.
Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (subscription required) wrote about this topic:
"In passing situations only, they have [Jason] Worilds rushing the quarterback 128 times and covering passes 96 times. So, he rushes 57.1 percent of the time when the opponent passes. The three right outside linebackers combined rushed 135 times and covered 89 times or 60.2 percent of the times.
Those percentages of rushing the passer are down considerably over past seasons. Consider that in 2013, Worilds rushed the passer 378 times and covered on 100 plays, according to PFF. That meant he rushed 79 percent of the time last season. In 2012, LaMarr Woodley rushed 64.5 percent and James Harrison rushed 62.1 percent.
"
No wonder the Steelers cannot get to the quarterback. If LeBeau is not sending pressure, quarterbacks are going to be able to sit in the pocket all day and pick apart the defense. We see this every week.
On one play, LeBeau only had one defensive player rush the quarterback—Cam Thomas. Think about that for a moment.
Worilds is getting paid a lot of money to not rush the passer. Back when the Steelers placed the transition tag on him, many questioned the move. In retrospect, if they were not going to use him as a pass-rusher, then why spend all of that money?
There has to be some rationale for this defensive strategy, but it's one the coaching staff will need to explain, especially if Ryan Fitzpatrick is able to comfortably sit in the pocket and make throws without any pressure this week.
Note: Unless otherwise noted, all stats are courtesy of ESPN.com, and all roster information is courtesy of Steelers.com.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
