Steelers' Brutal Preseason Mental Mistakes Are Not Acceptable For Arthur Smith

The Pittsburgh Steelers' offense has notably struggled so far in their first two preseason games of 2024. Many mental errors and poor play already have fans concerned about the upcoming regular season. Though the sample size is still small, neither Russell Wilson nor Justin Fields have yet found the end zone in the first two games, and shades of the Matt Canada era have already crept in.

The Steelers' new offensive coordinator, Arthur Smith, talked to media Tuesday afternoon about their struggles on the offensive side of the ball. He hasn't been thrilled with the product that has been shown against the Houston Texans or the Buffalo Bills, even though he has liked what he's seen in the practices leading up to both of those games. From penalties to QB-center exchange issues in-game, he told the media they need to stop getting in their own way and not become one-dimensional. 

"When you get off track with pre-snap issues, which was an issue in the first game, and you get into the last one and you have possession downs, false starts, you get off track, you're going to make yourself one-dimensional. It's a hard way to make a living. That's not our standard and that's not acceptable."

In back to back weeks, the Steelers' first-team offense failed to put any points on the board. With poor snap exchanges and penalties putting the offense in poor situations, the offense couldn't find a rhythm. Under the lights, they haven't executed. This is still preseason, where teams are still figuring out personnel and some players knocking the rust off -- like Wilson, who had been dealing with his calf injury most of training camp. Smith also pointed out that preseason can distort reality, the good and bad. In 2023, the Steelers' offense was firing off in the preseason, where their first-team offense scoring touchdowns on all five of their drives, but once the regular season came around, it led to Canada being fired midseason. 

"Rather go through that now, than have that happen in Week 1," explained Smith.

The Steelers' offense still has one more opportunity to work out the kinks before the start of the regular season. They end their preseason in Detroit against the Lions on Saturday. Wilson, still listed as the starting quarterback, will want to improve from his debut in Pittsburgh this past weekend, throwing for only 47 yards and sacked three times for a net loss of 21 yards. He also faced six third downs, only converting one of them where he hit Van Jefferson in the middle of the field. 

While the Steelers' offense tries to get back to the basics, Smith knows time isn't on their side. They play their first regular season game on the road against his former team, the Atlanta Falcons. Smith will have two weeks to get the offense ready to face his old team after their final preseason game. The Falcons added Matthew Judon and Justin Simmons last week to help bolster their defense. 

Steelers Need To Show Improvement Against the Lions

The Steelers just have one more chance to go against another team that doesn't show up in the win-loss column. The first-team offense has to be able to put points on the board in Detroit. Smith hopes that the costly penalties and pre-snap issues will be minimized Saturday and the team finally sees the ball move down the field to get those red zone opportunities that have been scarce so far this preseason. 

The Steelers' offense has been less than impressive the last few seasons under Canada and now with a new quarterback room, improved offensive line, and a brand new offensive scheme, Smith is hoping to change that narrative. While not the best start in the first two preseason games, he still has time to trend upwards. 

Will the Steelers' offense find their rhythm heading into Week 1? Or will it be another disappointing year on that side of the ball? Let us know what you think in the comments.

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