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The Pittsburgh Steelers season ended at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs 42-21 on Sunday Night Football during Wild Card Weekend. It was a disappointing night to put it plainly. The Steelers’ defense halted the high-powered Chiefs’ offense at the beginning of the game and forced them to run some wildcat to try to spark something. Well, that was a mistake because Defensive Player of the Year front-runner TJ Watt picked up a fumble and ran it back 26 yards to give the Steelers the first points of the game. It was just that kind of splash play that could light a fire underneath a team to pull out an upset. However, that just wasn’t the case. Little did we know, as we’re screaming to the top of our lungs as Watt slid into the endzone for those first points, that those points would be the only Steelers’ points until late in the 3rd quarter to bring the score to 35-14. QB Ben Roethlisberger finished 29-44 for 215 yards with 2 touchdowns in what will likely be his last game as a Steeler, barring an extreme change of heart.
Najee Harris led the team in rushing with 12 carries for 29 yards, and WR James Washington led the team in receiving with 2 catches for 37 yards and a touchdown. My optimistic outlook was finally put to rest as the season came to its undesirable conclusion.
One last time for this season, let’s take a look at what I thought we should keep an eye on in last week’s matchup against the Chiefs:
1) Return of JuJu
If healthy enough, I wanted the Steelers to utilize WR JuJu Smith-Schuster in the offense early and often. I was hoping to see Smith-Schuster use his physicality and toughness to create a spark that this offense has needed all season long. It just wasn’t the case. Big Ben targeted the receiver just twice in the first half. The offense was just as stagnant in the first half of this game as it has been in so many prior performances this season. Without fizzling out into an entire “Who to re-sign” article, I would love for the Steelers to re-sign Smith-Schuster this off-season, of course for the right price. He embodies what it means to be a Pittsburgh Steeler and he displayed that toughness by coming back from a shoulder injury three months earlier than originally expected. People compare his tough physical play style to Steelers’ great, Hines Ward, but he also mimics the type of leadership that Ward provided as well.
2) Playing Loosely: “Counted out” mentality
I’m not sure why, it could be that I had been blinded by wanting a storybook fairytale ending for Big Ben, but I had high hopes that the Steelers would go into Arrowhead Stadium and shock the world. I expected to see a looser team. It just wasn’t our year and I should have seen that based on the previous weeks of inconsistent and stagnant offensive play that had been taking place all season long.
3) Keep the Chiefs Off the Field; Force Turnovers
For the first quarter, it looked as if the Steelers were going to be able to force turnovers and keep the Chiefs’ offense and Patrick Mahomes off the field. The Steelers’ defense captured an interception and forced the Chiefs to punt on three other possessions just in the first quarter. The one play that the Chiefs had in Steelers’ territory in the 1st quarter was a Devin Bush interception from a Watt tipped pass. It seemed like the dominoes were falling, especially after an early second quarter fumble recovery for a touchdown from Watt. And then, the sleeping giant was awakened.
After Watt’s touchdown the Chiefs marched down the field 76 yards to put up their first points of the game with 5:45 second remaining in the first half. The Chiefs quickly added on two more touchdowns in that limited amount of time to go up by two touchdowns going into halftime and just never looked back. The Steelers’ defense answered the call from the get go, but the offense just couldn’t capitalize on extra opportunities or any opportunity for that matter.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? What could have the Steelers done differently to put up a better fight against the Chiefs last week? Sound off in the comment section below, or on Facebook, Twitter, and/or Instagram!
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
Najee Harris led the team in rushing with 12 carries for 29 yards, and WR James Washington led the team in receiving with 2 catches for 37 yards and a touchdown. My optimistic outlook was finally put to rest as the season came to its undesirable conclusion.
One last time for this season, let’s take a look at what I thought we should keep an eye on in last week’s matchup against the Chiefs:
Last week in review
The 3 things I noted to keep an eye on last week were:
1) Return of JuJu
If healthy enough, I wanted the Steelers to utilize WR JuJu Smith-Schuster in the offense early and often. I was hoping to see Smith-Schuster use his physicality and toughness to create a spark that this offense has needed all season long. It just wasn’t the case. Big Ben targeted the receiver just twice in the first half. The offense was just as stagnant in the first half of this game as it has been in so many prior performances this season. Without fizzling out into an entire “Who to re-sign” article, I would love for the Steelers to re-sign Smith-Schuster this off-season, of course for the right price. He embodies what it means to be a Pittsburgh Steeler and he displayed that toughness by coming back from a shoulder injury three months earlier than originally expected. People compare his tough physical play style to Steelers’ great, Hines Ward, but he also mimics the type of leadership that Ward provided as well.
2) Playing Loosely: “Counted out” mentality
I’m not sure why, it could be that I had been blinded by wanting a storybook fairytale ending for Big Ben, but I had high hopes that the Steelers would go into Arrowhead Stadium and shock the world. I expected to see a looser team. It just wasn’t our year and I should have seen that based on the previous weeks of inconsistent and stagnant offensive play that had been taking place all season long.
3) Keep the Chiefs Off the Field; Force Turnovers
For the first quarter, it looked as if the Steelers were going to be able to force turnovers and keep the Chiefs’ offense and Patrick Mahomes off the field. The Steelers’ defense captured an interception and forced the Chiefs to punt on three other possessions just in the first quarter. The one play that the Chiefs had in Steelers’ territory in the 1st quarter was a Devin Bush interception from a Watt tipped pass. It seemed like the dominoes were falling, especially after an early second quarter fumble recovery for a touchdown from Watt. And then, the sleeping giant was awakened.
After Watt’s touchdown the Chiefs marched down the field 76 yards to put up their first points of the game with 5:45 second remaining in the first half. The Chiefs quickly added on two more touchdowns in that limited amount of time to go up by two touchdowns going into halftime and just never looked back. The Steelers’ defense answered the call from the get go, but the offense just couldn’t capitalize on extra opportunities or any opportunity for that matter.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? What could have the Steelers done differently to put up a better fight against the Chiefs last week? Sound off in the comment section below, or on Facebook, Twitter, and/or Instagram!
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
