Steelers' Improved Offense Turns Disastrous With Kenny Pickett Injured On Controversial Slam

The Pittsburgh Steelers had been looking like a completely different team since their Week 9 bye week, particularly on offense. The most interesting thing about this turn of events is that there haven’t been any major changes made. It’s the same guys in the lineup doing the same things, but at an elevated level. That all changed on Sunday when rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett was knocked out of the game with a concussion after being forcefully tossed to the ground. Pickett would return for a series before being removed for the entire game.

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Steelers Having Strength In Numbers

To give some context, the Steelers were a dismal 1-3 in their four games before their bye week in early November. During that period, Pickett had only two touchdown passes while throwing eight interceptions. Because of this, Pickett’s passer rating was less than 67, which meant he was performing slightly below average. The Steelers also averaged a measly 13 points per game. With these negative statistics, all seemed lost for the 2022 season, but following the bye the offense has shown life...as long as Pickett is in the game at least.

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback, Kenny Pickett (#8) drops back for a pass against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on Oct. 30, 2022, in Philadelphia, PA. | Photo Credit: Abigail Dean / Pittsburgh Steelers

As Steeler Nation is well aware, Pittsburgh’s level of play has been better by leaps and bounds over the course of the past few weeks prior to Pickett's injury. But once Pickett left the game on Sunday it was back to the same ol' same ol'. Mitchell Trubisky led the Steelers down the field multiple times which was an improvement from his starts at the beginning of the season. But costly red zone turnovers took points off the board that the Steelers could never recover.

Najee Harris had a measly 33 yards on 12 attempts. That's good for 2.2 yards per carry. The run game had been a catalyst during the Steelers recent success. The run game paired with Pickett's ability to not turn the ball over.

In fact, according to Pro Football Focus, Pickett hasn't thrown an interception in 129 consecutive passes. This is currently the second-longest active streak in the league. Pickett’s passer rating has also jumped up to nearly 86, which is well above average. The main reason for the increased success isn’t just because of a single player, but rather finding strength in numbers across the board.

"We have three good running backs that rotate in, they're staying healthy, they're making plays all in their own way,” Steelers Tight End Zach Gentry said. “We have tight ends that are all doing their job. We have five linemen that are doing a heck of a job. We have guys that can catch the ball downfield. We're getting closer and closer, it feels like, every week to putting it all together."

No Secret To Steelers Lack Of Success Sunday

The Steelers had zero running game and turned the ball over 3 times yesterday. And they lost. It's quite simple to see that this team is unable to overcome these factors. When Ben Roethlisberger was the quarterback, and Troy Polamalu was roaming the secondary they would only be one big play away from changing the game. This team is one that's still growing, still young, and one without a Hall of Fame quarterback. Some might say what about TJ Watt? Well it's pretty clear to see he's still dealing with some injury issues as he's been a non-factor since he returned to the lineup. See the difference between Roethlisberger, and Trubisky?

Photo Credit: Jordan Schofield, JSKO Photo / SteelerNation.com

"There's no secret, man,” Pickett said. “Everyone wants to be great fast and all that stuff, and we're pushing ourselves to become that every day but it's a process. You have to go through it, you have to learn, and you have to go through some adversities to improve and get better. I think we've done that. We just gotta continue to do that to get wins."

Victories will be more prevalent for Pittsburgh as long as everyone continues to take accountability.

Photo Credit: Jordan Schofield, JSKO Photo / SteelerNation.com

"People had to just start buying into the culture," Pickett said. "Taking care of the ball, doing your job, playing for each other, being able to go out there and just trust one another, not try to do someone else's job."

During film review this week a lot of Steelers are going to have to take responsiblity in their part of the loss yesterday. That includes guard Kevin Dotson who allowed Pickett to be mauled by Roquan Smith. And it certainly will include the Steelers front 7 who allowed the Ravens to continuously run it down their throats.

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