The Pittsburgh Steelers lost 33-31 to the Cincinnati Bengals, and the defense is being largely blamed after allowing a feast for Joe Flacco, as well as a historic day for wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase.
As if that weren’t enough, one of the worst rushing offenses in the NFL managed over 100 yards against Pittsburgh. In this scenario, T.J. Watt took full responsibility after Aaron Rodgers gave them a 31-30 lead with two minutes remaining.
“It was absolutely an unacceptable performance from us on the defensive side of the ball. They were getting the ball pretty quick all night. Good amount of max protection, but even then, it seemed like the ball was coming out pretty quickly. We felt like the run scheme we had for this game was going to be effective. It’s just guys getting out of gap. It’s not always going to be your night, but you like to think that when we need a stop the most, we should be able to get a stop. We weren’t able to do that. We knew what Joe Flacco was capable of. When you play that long, you’re able to get through your reads quick. We need to be able to stop him.”
Why is the Steelers’ defense struggling?
Since last season, the Steelers’ defense has been struggling to stop the run. For example, in the most recent playoffs, Derrick Henry and the Ravens gained over 300 yards in the Wild Card round.
Now, against the Bengals, the story was the same, which allowed Flacco’s offense to be more than one-dimensional. In this situation, Cam Heyward said that the problem starts in the trenches.
“It’s not the secondary. That’s a cop-out. I think the front line, we got to control the line of scrimmage a lot better. I’m pissed off. We didn’t take care of our job. They were last in rushing and the way we gave it up today that takes the cake. We got to stop the run. That’s as simple as that.”
What happened to the Steelers’ defense?
Patrick Queen agreed with his teammates that several defensive players are not fulfilling their assignments, and that is causing breakdowns like the one seen against the Cincinnati Bengals.
“We just weren’t doing what we’ve been doing. We weren’t being physical. We weren’t maintaining our gap. Everybody just got a job and they just got to stick to that job. Starting with me, I got to be better. I had two chances to make a play and didn’t make the plays. It turned into a big run. So, I just got to get better. It’s that simple.”
Regarding Ja’Marr Chase’s outstanding performance for the Bengals, with 16 catches and 161 yards, Watt said that he is only focused on putting pressure on the quarterback.
“I don’t know, man. I’m just trying to rush up front, stop the run and get after the quarterback. If you’re not stopping the run, getting off the field and you’re not creating turnovers, you’re in a whole world of hurt. We need to solve it quick.”