Steelers' Mike Tomlin Immediately Takes Blame For Interesting Coaching Decisions In Win Over Commanders

The Pittsburgh Steelers came through with a hard-fought victory over the Washington Commanders on Sunday. Pittsburgh won the game by a score of 28-27, but the contest shouldn't have been as close as it was had the Steelers not been unnecessarily aggressive. Pittsburgh started the game by electing to receive the opening kick, which allowed Washington to score at the end of the first half and on their first possession of the second half. Head Coach Mike Tomlin also elected to fake a punt, which didn't work out for Pittsburgh and set Washington up with a short field.

Pittsburgh allowed Washington to keep the game closer than it should have been by trying to be aggressive. It is a bit unorthodox to win the coin toss and elect to receive, which is exactly what Pittsburgh did. Most teams prefer to defer to the second half, which has been proven to be the correct strategy. 

The downfall in receiving the opening kick is that it allows the opponent to score before the half, and then at the start of the second half, and that can be a huge swing. Tomlin spoke about his decision to receive during his post game press conference on Sunday.

"From a tactical standpoint I was really aggressive today." Tomlin said. "It didn't always serve us well. We took the ball to start the game and we didn't do anything with it. That probably positioned them to bookend the half the way that they did. They got the last possession of the first half, first possession of the second half, and I thought those 14 points really changed the texture of the game."

Washington got the ball for their last possession of the first half trailing by a score of 14-10. They managed to find the end zone on that drive to take a 17-14 lead going into halftime. They then got the first possession of the second half and scored once again to go up 24-14, which was a monumental swing against Pittsburgh.

This wasn't the only time Tomlin showed some aggression in the contest. About halfway through the first quarter Pittsburgh had a 7-0 lead and the team was faced with a 4th and 15 from their own 16-yard line. James Pierre was uncovered as a gunner, and Pittsburgh opted to attempt a fake punt. Miles Killebrew took the snap and fired a pass to Pierre that would have gotten Pittsburgh the first, but Pierre dropped the ball. Tomlin took ownership of this decision after the game.

"Same thing on the fake punt; that's me, I own that." Tomlin said. "I'd do it again, but we didn't execute it, so it was a bad idea."

The fake punt should have worked, but the ball was dropped. This set Washington up with a short field and their offense took advantage as they scored on three plays to tie the game up. Tomlin didn't show much remorse for the decision as he stated he would do it again.

Steelers' Mike Tomlin Stayed Aggressive Until The End Of The Game

Tomlin currently has a strong case to win Coach of the Year, but had Pittsburgh dropped this contest to Washington he might have ruined his case for the award. Despite that, the coach stayed aggressive until the end. 

Pittsburgh had the ball with just over a minute remaining on a fourth and 1 play. Had the offense not been able to pick up the yards needed Washington would have been in good position to set up a game-winning field goal. Russell Wilson got the defense to jump offside by using a hard count, which won the game. Tomlin was asked if he would have really gone for it.

"We'll never know, will we?" Tomlin asked. "You know I'm a degenerate."

Thankfully Pittsburgh didn't have to risk the game by running a play, and they were granted a new set of downs and continued to knee out the rest of the clock. This win was crucial for Pittsburgh as they take on a tough schedule in the second half of the season.

What did you think of Tomlin's aggression against Washington? Let us know in the comments below!

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