Steelers vs. Colts: Lackluster Victory Proves Pittsburgh No Longer Elite

Fans and analysts have become so accustomed to watching the Pittsburgh Steelers dominate teams that they are obviously better than that when they struggle even the tiniest little bit everyone panics. But three weeks into the season, with three lackluster games under its belt, it is officially OK to hit the panic button.

Playing against a weak Indianapolis team on national television, the Steelers laid an egg. They were able to squeak by with a late field goal, but the problems for this team run deep and there is no indication that things will get better.

Ben Roethlisberger is taking a beating from opposing defenses because his offensive line is terrible. That unit used to be a staple of past Steelers teams, but for whatever reason they have not been able to build a good line since the Bill Cowher era.

Head coach Mike Tomlin was left answering questions about how his team's less-than-stellar performance in victory.

"We don't care how it looks," Tomlin said. "We just want to get out of stadiums with wins, particularly road stadiums and AFC ones."

That is "coach-talk" for: "We are playing like garbage right now, but I guess a win is a win."

After the Steelers lost to Baltimore, 35-7, in the season opener, analysts were talking about the defense being old.

While the defense has rebounded nicely in the last two games, it is not like they are playing the cream of the offensive crop in the NFL.

The two teams the Steelers have beaten are Indianapolis and Seattle, two teams that have combined for one victory.

The linchpin of the Steelers defense has been their run defense, but this year they are giving up nearly 100 yards per game on the ground. They are getting beaten off the blocks in a way that we have not seen in years.

On the opposite side of the ball, the offense has become so reliant on the pass because the line is so bad that they can't open holes for Rashard Mendenhall to run through.

Roethlisberger, Troy Polamalu and James Harrison have been able to bail the team out the last two weeks, but when they go up against better competition they will play more like the team that lost to Baltimore.

For the first time with Mike Tomlin as head coach, the Steelers are not one of the elite teams in the NFL.

They can still be a playoff team because there are no great teams in the NFL, but they are not a Super Bowl contender based on the way they have played in the first three games of the season.