If you've been watching, the Pittsburgh Steelers offense is missing something. Well, it may be more than just something, but you get the point. For the second consecutive season under offensive coordinator Matt Canada, the offense has failed to put significant points on the board. A direct cause of that has been the inability to push the ball down the field with big, explosive plays.
Credit: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The running game, led by Najee Harris, has been unable to generate any long plays. That's been the case since the early days of Le'Veon Bell for the most part. Bell lost some speed later in his Steelers career, and Harris nor former starter James Conner are big-play threats either. It extends into the passing game though, as they've struggled over the past few years in that department, too.
It's not necessarily a result of the lack of arm strength in rookie starter Kenny Pickett either, as he can throw the deep ball quite well. One could have argued that was the case for an aging Ben Roethlisberger or now-backup Mitch Trubisky, but Canada has failed to open up the offense for Pickett. It's not for a lack of playmakers either, as George Pickens, Chase Claypool, and Diontae Johnson can all get open and/or go up and make a play deep down the field.
Frustration continued into the team's Week 7 loss against the Miami Dolphins this past Sunday evening. The offense scored just 10 points, as they continue to have the second-worst scoring offense in the NFL. Claypool, now in his third season in Pittsburgh, is having a career-worst season. He's been better the last two weeks, but he's seen a lack of targets and deep balls this season as well. After the loss, he was quite honest when speaking to the media.
Credit: Jordan Schofield/SteelerNation (JSKO_PHOTO Twitter)
"I just think we need more go balls. Like, damn, not enough go balls. We got playmakers. I haven't had a go ball all year. George needs more, Diontae needs more. I'm not saying that's on the playcalling, I'm just saying we need to try to find a way to scheme it up."
Claypool has been one of Steelers' most criticized players over the past two seasons, and it's been well-deserved at times. Fans should appreciate these comments and his honesty though, as the offense quite clearly needs a change. If you want to play a bit of devil's advocate though, they did try a deep ball to Claypool early in the game. Pickett threw a deep ball to Claypool, which resulted in an interception as the wideout became tangled with a Dolphins defender and fell to the ground.
NBC rules analyst, Terry McAuley, thought the referees should have called pass interference on the Dolphins defender. Regardless, they did at least attempt a deep ball. After that though, they didn't exactly attempt it again. Surprisingly, the Steelers actually are tied-for-19th in the NFL in 20-yard passing plays with 19. Now as far as deep balls go, 40-yard gains through the air, the black and gold have just one this season. That was the 45-yard gain to rookie tight end Connor Heyward in the Week 6 win. That play was largely due to a complete miscommunication by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers secondary.
Credit: Jordan Schofield/SteelerNation (JSKO_PHOTO Twitter)
There are just two other teams in the NFL, the Indianapolis Colts and Arizona Cardinals, who have failed to log more than one 40-yard pass play this season.
While Claypool clarified he wasn't calling out the playcalling, it was almost certainly an indirect shot at Canada. It's rightfully so too, as Canada seems to continue to hold this offense back. Even head coach Mike Tomlin seemed to hint at some frustration with the offense in his press conference on Tuesday.
What were your thoughts on these comments from Claypool? Do you like his honesty or should he be a bit less critical? Share your opinions in the comments below!
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