There is an old saying in football: It’s a 60-minute game. On Thursday night in Cleveland, the Pittsburgh Steelers proved just how much damage you can do to yourself in the middle 30.
The 27-24 loss to the Browns was either an inspiring, late-game fightback led by a future Hall of Famer or a complete blueprint on how to give away a division game on short rest.
Aaron Rodgers got off to a fantastic start and delivered a clutch fourth quarter, leading a rally to put 15 points on the board and tie the game late. He nearly pulled off the miracle at the end as well, finishing with 299 passing yards and three touchdowns. But what happened between that early 7-0 lead and the final frame is the reason the fan base is having a stroke this morning.
Up 7-0 early in the second quarter, Rodgers faced a situation where throwing the ball away was the only acceptable option. Instead, he made a glaringly poor decision, firing the ball right into the hands of Cleveland corner Denzel Ward. The Browns seized the momentum, flipped the script, and rattled off 21 unanswered points before halftime.
Rodgers’ evening wasn’t entirely on him, but holding onto the ball as long as he did on several plays did his offensive line zero favors. The Browns dialed up consistent pressure, hitting Rodgers 10 times and dropping him for 5 sacks. That is far too much contact for any quarterback, much less the oldest starter in the league. The receivers must be more consistent as well.
What makes the offensive lulls so frustrating is that the run game was actually working. The running backs averaged nearly 5 yards a carry overall, and Jaylen Warren came out firing with 49 yards from scrimmage in the first quarter alone.
Then came the middle quarters, where the coaching staff went completely pass-happy, rendering Warren completely invisible right when the offense needed balance. Warren is at his best when he gets consistent touches and builds rhythm. When the coaches finally remembered he was on the sideline in the fourth quarter, he rewarded them by finishing with 123 yards from scrimmage. Had they leaned on the run instead of abandoning it, we might be discussing a victory today.
As much as the offense struggled, putting up 24 points should have been more than enough. Defensively, it was a tale of two halves, and team tackling looks like a major issue.
Cam Heyward played his heart out with seven tackles, but the rest of the defensive line was quiet. Losing Derrick Harmon to a foot injury in the first half—who was seen in a walking boot postgame—crippled the interior run defense.
Meanwhile, the inside linebackers had a sequence on Cleveland’s first touchdown drive they’d probably love to erase from the tape. Patrick Queen missed an open-field tackle against Quinshon Judkins that gained 12 yards. On Jaleel McLaughlin’s 28-yard touchdown run, Cole Holcomb missed his tackle near the 20-yard line. Payton Wilson missed a major tackle in the backfield. He paced the defense with 9 tackles, making you wonder why the coaches took him off the field during that McLaughlin touchdown series in the first place.
And then there was the secondary.
Following the bizarre Joey Porter Jr. debacle—where JPJ practiced with the first-team defense all week only to fake an injury long enough to see himself traded out the door—the back end looked utterly discombobulated.
Daylen Everett stepped into the fire, and burned he got, getting roasted for a 60-yard pass to Denzel Boston. The safety play was no better; Rayshawn Jenkins was missing tackles all over the field early and was eventually replaced by Robert Spears-Jennings, a rookie seventh-round pick. DeShon Elliott is eligible to come off injured reserve next week, and it won’t be a moment too soon.
T.J. Watt did what T.J. Watt does, picking up two more sacks to give him 5.5 on the season. His strip-sack and recovery late in the third quarter was the first time the pass rush got to Deshaun Watson, signaling a stronger finish for the edge rushers. On the next series, Jack Sawyer tipped a pass that led to a Spears-Jennings interception. But in the first half? Watson had all day to sit back and pick apart the defense.
In the years of writing this blog, the special teams always continue to be a wild roller coaster. Cameron Johnston put on a punting clinic, dropping a 62-yard missile down to the 1-yard line with 5:31 remaining to give the defense a chance to flip the field. Johnston averaged 51.8 yards per punt on his five attempts.
On the flip side, what is going on with Chris Boswell? The Steelers made him the NFL’s second-highest-paid kicker, but he’s already missed three field goals this season, including a 48-yard attempt midway through the second quarter. That miss was literally the difference in the game when Browns kicker Andre Szmyt booted a 56-yarder with 10 seconds left for the win.
To top off a chaotic short week, the team looked out of sorts all night. Mike McCarthy seemed to call the wrong number on his substitutions, and his very public blowup with Aaron Rodgers on the sideline was comical on one hand, but somewhat embarrassing on the other.
This team is wildly inconsistent. They show flashes of brilliance, only to look absolutely horrible in all phases of the game moments later. That points squarely to coaching and preparation.
Yet, as painful as this short-week loss was, there is cause for optimism. There are glimpses of what this team can be, just like there are glimpses of what it might be. It all depends on if your beer is half full or half empty.
BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!
My “GAME BEER” goes to: Jaylen Warren, who proved once again that he needs to be the focal point of this offense, putting up 123 yards from scrimmage despite being ghosted in the middle quarters.
Also Considered: T.J. Watt for single-handedly jump-starting the defense in the third quarter with his strip-sack, and Cameron Johnston for a booming performance that continually flipped field position.
Beer of the Game: Miller Lite, which is slowly running out of chances. KGB had sparkling wine (I will explain why below).
Steel the Snacks: We were traveling last night, so no official Steel the Snacks setup. KGB made Italian sandwiches—Salami, Provolone, and Roasted Peppers, plus a Mortadella sandwich with Pesto and fresh Mozzarella. We were on a flight, and the plan was to watch using the plane’s Wi-Fi. THAT was a HUGE mistake because it absolutely sucked. We missed huge chunks of the game and had to rewatch the parts we missed this morning to finish the blog. There were several other Steelers fans on board experiencing the exact same frustration!
My stat of the week: 10 hits and 5 sacks. Asking a 42-year-old quarterback to drop back behind a leaky line and absorb 10 hits in a short-week division game is simply unsustainable. Rodgers will be gone by the end of the month if that keeps up. This was also the fifth straight loss in Cleveland and the third straight on Thursday Night Football. Despite dominating the Browns for the last 25 years, the Steelers are now a dismal 1-7-1 in their last nine trips there.
My thoughts on next week: With DeShon Elliott eligible to return from IR, the secondary should get an immediate emotional and tactical lift. With the extra prep time, I am betting on McCarthy to put together a great plan. If McCarthy leans on Warren early and stops abandoning the run, this team will bounce back. The flashes of brilliance are there; they just need to play 60 full minutes.
Jersey of the Week: NO JERSEY again, traveled in my Beer We Go Shirt!