Three key components for the Steelers to be victorious on Thursday Night

The Steelers have a quick turnaround after their worst loss of the season at the hands of the Arizona Cardinals when they face the New England Patriots.

The Steelers hosted New England last season in Week 2 with Mitch Trubisky at quarterback and lost 17-14. Can they get back on track and secure their eighth win of the season? If they want to, this is how they’ll do it.

1. Secure the middle of the field

This is a copy and paste of last Sunday against Arizona. The Patriots come into the week seventh in the NFL at targets over the middle of the field, and throw it short of the sticks almost as much as anyone in the league. That means that, once again, this off-ball linebacker group will be tested, and they need to step up. Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki are two good receiving tight ends that will be testing this thin unit. If they find success in doing so like the Cardinals just did, that’s going to be a problem.

2. Keep moving George Pickens around

Pickens had four catches for 86 yards on Sunday, and he was utilized in a variety of ways. He lined up in the slot to run shallow crossers, he ran some slants, he caught a deep ball off play action- more of that is needed. Utilize your big athletic freak of a receiver who can catch anything thrown at him. Credit where it’s due to Eddie Faulkner and Mike Sullivan- they haven’t just had Pickens running comebacks to catch back shoulder throws over the last two weeks. Keep moving him around, and keep feeding him. Eventually, he’ll break one open.

3. Don’t baby Mitch Trubisky

The Patriots have the No. 1 defense in the NFL in terms of rush success rate since Week 8, meaning the Steelers can’t be one dimensional and expect to win. Mitch Trubisky can’t have any handcuffs whatsoever. The drop-off from Kenny Pickett to Trubisky is miniscule at best- let him sling it. He made some good throws against Arizona, particularly one to Conor Heyward between the hashes in the end zone that Heyward dropped. If the Steelers allow Trubisky to just play football, they’ll win. If they handcuff him and try to win solely on running the ball and play one-dimensional, they’ll lose their second straight game to a second two-win team.

Steelers news and commentary for Thursday, December 7

Welcome to the Terrible Towel Tales, where we’ll highlight some of the latest stories permeating Steelers media for your reading pleasure every Monday through Saturday. In today’s news…

Steelers Get Huge News Ahead of Patriots Game | Noah Strackbein, Sports Illustrated

The Pittsburgh Steelers get a massive boost for Week 14 as they take on the New England Patriots. Despite being listed as questionable with a knee injury, running back Najee Harris is expected to play, according to NFL Network’s Tom Peliserro.

Harris did not practice on the short week after popping up on the injury report with the knee issue. Head coach Mike Tomlin did not list him when discussing injuries coming out of Week 13 against the Arizona Cardinals, but reports claim the injury occurred earlier in the year.

NFL Fans Crushed the Patriots Over Their Awkward Tweet About ‘TNF’ Game vs. Steelers | Andy Nesbitt, Sports Illustrated

The New England Patriots, to put it lightly, have had a rough season. The once-proud franchise that won six Super Bowls during the Tom Brady era, is 2–10 on the year, has lost five straight games, and has scored just one touchdown (and 13 combined points) in its last three outings.

That all makes what’s going to happen on Thursday night all the more brutal for NFL fans—New England will be taking on the Steelers in a Thursday Night Football game that feels like must-flee TV.

Can quarterback Mitch Trubisky come to the Steelers’ rescue again? | Brooke Pryor, ESPN

Trailing by two scores and facing third down from just outside the red zone in the third quarter of Sunday’s loss, Mitch Trubisky dropped back and rifled a pass toward tight end Connor Heyward, threading it between converging Arizona Cardinals defenders as the blitz bared down on the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback.

Heyward couldn’t corral the pass, and it hit the turf just a few inches to the right of the second-year player, who was steps away from the end zone when the ball arrived.

The pass, which traveled 23.9 air yards, had just a 28.3% probability to be completed, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. But the play — the incomplete pass notwithstanding — offered a glimpse into the kind of quarterback play the Steelers can expect from Trubisky as he prepares for his first uninterrupted stretch of multi-game starts since the start of the 2022 season. Quarterback Kenny Pickett is expected to be sidelined for 3-4 weeks following TightRope surgery on a right high ankle sprain, ushering Trubisky back into the spotlight.

We go over the lines on DraftKings Sportsbook and pick out our favorite player prop bets to consider for the Steelers Week 14 matchup against the Patriots on Thursday Night Football.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots will open up the week on Thursday Night Football — the primetime matchup nightmares are made of. The Steelers enter this game managing injuries to starting quarterback Kenny Pickett, the offensive line, their linebackers, and starting running back Najee Harris.

Meanwhile, the Patriots (2-10) don’t sit with any more leverage, starting Bailey Zappe in place of an interception-prone Mac Jones, with his top two wide receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster and DeVante Parker both questionable and their starting running back Rhamondre Stevenson out with an ankle injury.

How do you make the most unwatchable games watchable? We have to make the game mean something! If you’re looking to get in on the action, here are our favorite Steelers-Patriots player props for Week 14, with odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.

Mitch Trubisky OVER 180.5 passing yards (-115)

Putting stock in any of these assets to hit the over will be a risky venture, but with Mitch Trubisky’s passing yard total sitting at 180.5 yards, the over is looking rather appealing. The Patriots have allowed the opposing quarterback 184+ passing yards in nine of 12 games so far this season; meanwhile, Trubisky has notched 255 passing yards over his last two halves played subbing in for Pickett, combined.

While the point total is exceedingly low in this outing, set at just 30 points on DraftKings Sportsbook, the Patriots, much like the Steelers, have been a bend-don’t-break type of defense, ranking 17th in the league giving up just under 222 pass yards per game to opposing quarterbacks despite allowing the fifth-fewest passing touchdowns per game. The Patriots’ run defense has been a greater point of strength than their pass defense, and given that the Steelers could be without two starting offensive linemen, this game could pivot toward the pass if the run is deemed ineffective.

The Patriots’ 0.02 EPA per dropback allowed ranks fifth-highest among passing defenses this season, while their 54.6% defensive success rate against the pass ranks 11th-lowest, per NFL Next Gen Stats.

Allen Robinson OVER 11.5 receiving yards (-110)

Veteran wide receiver Allen Robinson has been fairly quiet this season, likely a victim of Kenny Pickett’s lack of targets to the middle of the field. Week 14 and onward, Mitch Trubisky might just prove to be the cure for that lack of usage. Throughout the entire second half that Trubisky played in Week 13 following Pickett’s ankle injury, he spread targets fairly evenly through the offense, with Robinson, Pat Freiermuth, Najee Harris and Diontae Johnson receiving three targets a piece. While none of them were overly efficient when targeted, it was an encouraging sign to see Robinson involved with the rest of the offensive weapons given his lack of involvement throughout most of the 2023 season.

You’ll remember, however, that Trubisky’s connection with Robinson goes far beyond their time here in Pittsburgh. That connection goes back to their time together with the Chicago Bears, where they played together for three years, from 2018 through the 2020 NFL seasons. In fact, Robinson’s 324 total targets from Trubisky throughout his career (regular, pre-, and postseasons) make him the most targeted receiver Trubisky has ever had. Robinson notched all 19 of his receiving yards on targets from Trubisky in Week 13; give them an entire game together, and he should exceed his 11.5-yard total with ease given their history together and a fine matchup against the Patriots.

Ezekiel Elliott OVER 15.5 receiving yards (-115)

Once again, it’s not a popular move to hit the over on the receiving yard total for a player catching passes in the New England Patriots offense... but here we are. Running back Ezekiel Elliott is officially set to get the start in Week 14 with Rhamondre Stevenson out, and to the benefit of his receiving yard total, this offense is down several key contributors. With rookies Demario Douglas and Kayson Boutte already ruled out and veterans DeVante Parker and JuJu Smith-Schuster having been limited all week with knee and ankle injuries, respectively, Elliott could very well be in for his biggest receiving line yet as a Patriot.

In Week 13, Zappe’s first game as the starting quarterback, Elliott saw five total targets — the second-most of anyone on the team — catching four of them for 40 receiving yards. Given the Steelers’ injuries at inside linebacker, the middle of the field has been a huge liability, which could give Elliott some room to generate some yards after the catch if they get him involved as a receiver.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are set to play the New England Patriots in Week 14, kicking off the week’s NFL game slate on Thursday Night Football from Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, PA.

On paper, this should be a fairly easy matchup for the Steelers, considering they enter the game with a 7-5 record compared to the Patriots at 2-10. However, they’ll be without starting quarterback Kenny Pickett (who’s struggled to ignite the passing game, anyway), now leaning on Mitch Trubisky with two offensive linemen questionable (LG Isaac Seumalo, C Mason Cole), as well as their starting running back Najee Harris and starting LB Elandon Roberts — not exactly a great recipe for success!

For as many struggles the Steelers have had this season, the Patriots have had just as many, flip-flopping between quarterbacks Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe, throwing to some of the worst depth at wide receiver in the league. They’ll also be without starting running back Rhamondre Stevenson, meaning the weight of the Patriots offense might just fall on 28-year-old vet Ezekiel Elliott to keep the offense running.

Still looking to tune into this Thursday Night Football matchup despite all of that? You’re a brave soul. Here’s all you need to know on how to watch Steelers vs. Patriots on Thursday Night Football to kick off Week 14.

How to watch Steelers vs. Patriots

Date: Thursday, December 7

Game time: 8:15 p.m. ET

TV channel: KDKA (local in Pittsburgh ONLY)

Live stream: Amazon Prime Video, NFL+

DraftKings odds: Steelers -6, O/U 30

If you’re local to Pittsburgh, the game will be broadcast on KDKA (CBS) News Pittsburgh.

If you’re not in Pittsburgh, you’ll have a couple of options to watch the game. Since the Steelers-Patriots is a Thursday Night Football game, it will air on PRIME VIDEO, Amazon Prime’s video streaming service. The good news is that those with an Amazon Prime subscription can watch the game for free. However, if you’re not an Amazon Prime subscriber, it’s a bit of an inconvenience, as the game won’t air on national television, like most other primetime matchups.

With a valid Amazon Prime login, you can watch the game via desktop on Amazon’s website, or using the Prime Video app, available for most phones, tablets, and smart TVs. The monthly cost for Amazon Prime is $14.99, or you can sign up for an annual subscription for $139.

If you don’t have an Amazon Prime subscription but are located within the United States, you can also watch Steelers-Titans with an NFL+ subscription. With NFL+, users can watch live local and primetime games in the regular and postseasons, with additional access to watch NFL Network. A subscription is available for $6.99 per month or $49.99 annually. With just three months left in the season, it makes the most financial sense to subscribe monthly if you’re primarily looking to watch games and don’t intend on watching NFL Network.

Five questions with Pats Pulpit

In what is being billed as potentially the worst game of the NFL season, the Steelers will host the New England Patriots on Thursday Night Football.

Ahead of the game, I sat down with Taylor Kyles of Pats Pulpit to get his thoughts on the Patriots ahead of the Week 14 matchup.

1. This game is being regarded as having the potential to be the worst game of the season. Give me your quick take of how the Patriots got this bad.

Poor roster construction, lack of structure or support for their immobile young quarterback, and horrendous injury luck have been the headliners. I still believe Bill Belichick is a great coach, as evidenced by one of the best run defenses of the past decade, but he’s done significant damage to the offense as a general manager. Mac Jones was at the very least functional as a rookie, but now he crumbles at the word pass rush and his decision-making has eroded. It’s really a shame.

2. What are the odds we see Malik Cunningham in this game?

Slim-to-none. Given the team burned a practice squad elevation on Cunningham without playing him, my guess is he was supposed to be involved in the Red Zone. Unfortunately, New England never got that close to a touchdown. We might see him sprinkled in for short yardage, but Zappe stayed under center in those situations as well last week.

3. If there was one Patriots player who could take over the game, who would it be?

Christian Barmore. He’s always been talented and a formidable pass rusher, but he seems to have gotten stronger and more technically sound as a run defender. Barmore’s become a disruptive, every-down player who can apply quick pressure or overpower double teams against the run. Expect to hear his name a lot if Pittsburgh tries attacking the middle.

4. Who on the Steelers’ offense worries you the most?

Jaylen Warren by a mile. With Trubisky under center, it’s hard to fear the Steelers’ passing attack, though the Patriots’ secondary, specifically corner JC Jackson and rookie safety Marte Mapu, isn’t always the most technically sound. Even if New England continues their hot streak and dominates the run, I think Warren could do some damage as a receiver if given matchups against bruising linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley.

5. Alright, the moment of truth: DraftKings has the over/under set at 30- where are you leaning?

Under. Way under. Which is saying something given this over/under is historically low. But when you have two backup quarterbacks supported by strong run games and tough defenses, that’s pretty much all you can expect!

The Pittsburgh Steelers will play the New England Patriots to open up Week 14. Here’s a look at what to expect for the Thursday Night Football showdown.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots will kick off the NFL game slate on Thursday Night Football in Week 14 — the primetime matchup that absolutely nobody asked for. Kickoff is set for Thursday, December 7 at 8:15 p.m. ET from Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, PA.

Here’s a preview of all you need to know ahead of Steelers-Patriots on Week 14 Thursday Night Football, including game Information, injury updates, odds and more.

Week 14 marks the 35th matchup between these two teams in the history of their franchises since their first meeting in 1972. The Steelers have gone 12-11 against the Patriots in Pittsburgh, having won just 3 of 12 games against the Patriots in the Mike Tomlin era overall, dating back to 2007.

The Steelers enter this Week 14 with a 7-4 record, which would grant them the No. 5 seed in the Wild Card if the season ended today. However, they’ll enter this week without their starting quarterback Kenny Pickett, who underwent ankle surgery Monday and is set to miss 2-4 weeks. In his absence, Mitch Trubisky will get the start, with Mason Rudolph working as his backup.

Though the Steelers have matched up pretty evenly with the Patriots offensively from a statistical standpoint this season, they enter this matchup not just without Pickett but also potentially without two of their starters on the offensive line with center Mason Cole (neck) and left guard Isaac Seumalo (shoulder), and running back Najee Harris (knee), all questionable ahead of Thursday.

Seumalo suffered his injury in Week 13, with backup OL Nate Herbig stepping in at left guard to finish out the game. If both Seumalo and Cole are both unable to go, seventh-round rookie Spencer Anderson could be in for his first snaps of the season. Both Herbig and Anderson got work on both sides of the line and limited time at center through training camp and the preseason, with their versatility having earned them their spots on the 53-man roster.

The Patriots, meanwhile, head into Week 14 at 2-10, holding what would be the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft if the season ended today. Their offense has struggled on most fronts, with turnovers being a huge problem for third-year quarterback Mac Jones, who’s been benched in favor of backup Bailey Zappe several times this year. It will be Zappe who gets the start Thursday night, coming off a 141 passing-yard effort in Week 13, with 0 touchdowns and 0 interceptions.

Like the Steelers, the Patriots are managing several injuries on the offense. They’ll be without starting running back Rhamondre Stevenson, dealing with an ankle injury, as well as rookie wide receivers Demario Douglas and Kayson Boutte. That means they can likely expect some steady involvement from tight ends Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki in the receiving game, while veteran Ezekiel Elliott gets the start at running back.

Despite the mismatch in their overall record, the Steelers and Patriots are pretty evenly matched in most offensive categories, though the Steelers have a slight edge in terms of yards per game and per play. The greatest difference between these two teams offensively has been in their protection of the ball, as Jones’ issues with ball security had a huge part in his benching in the first place. Jones has thrown 12 interceptions (at least one in all but two games started this year) and lost two fumbles throughout this season.

The greatest edge that the Steelers have over the Patriots at this point — on paper, at least — is on the defense, specifically in the turnover and sack department. With a slew of weapons in T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, Cam Heyward, Joey Porter Jr. and Minkah Fitzpatrick on deck, this team should, hypothetically, have the edge. However, they are dealing with several injuries that could have an impact in Week 14, including Fitzpatrick himself, who broke his hand in Week 13 (though he’ll be available in this game), and several losses at inside linebacker this season that are proving a significant hurdle to overcome.

Most unfortunate for the defense this week is the questionable tag for starting ILB Elandon Roberts, who’s stepped in admirably into a more significant role amidst season-ending injuries for Cole Holcomb and Kwon Alexander. Roberts suffered a groin injury in Week 13, and communication on the defense noticeably suffered in his absence. If he’s unable to go this week, fans can expect plenty of involvement from Mykal Walker and Mark Robinson. Walker wore the green dot last week following Roberts’ exit, leading communication on the defense, though it’s unclear if he’ll maintain that role with a “full” week of practice leading up to the game should Roberts miss.

Heading into the weekend, the Steelers are installed as six-point home favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook, with the line not having moved at all since opening earlier this week. The over/under is set at 30 points — the lowest point total for a game in the last 15 years, SteelersNow notes.

59% of the point spread bets and 46% of the total money wagered on the point spread for Steelers-Patriots has been placed on Pittsburgh, indicating there’s likely some sharp money coming in on the Patriots to cover six points. Incredibly, despite a historically low over/under, the public is still backing the under on the point total, with 85% of the bets and 90% of the total money wagered on the point total coming in on the under.

All odds come courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook. Odds/lines are subject to change. T&Cs apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for details.

Four players listed as questionable ahead of Thursday night matchup with Patriots

The Steelers enter Week 14 coming off a string of injuries sustained in their Week 13 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

In light of that, the Steelers have listed four players as questionable for Thursday. Running back Najee Harris did not practice for the second straight day with a knee injury. Left guard Isaac Seumalo went from being limited on Tuesday to not practicing on Wednesday. He is dealing with an injured shoulder. The man who plays next to him, Mason Cole, was limited in practice for the third straight day with an injured neck. And the quarterback of the defense, Elandon Roberts, was limited for the second straight day.

It also goes without saying, but Kenny Pickett is not practicing and was officially listed as out for Thursday. Cornerback James Pierre is also listed as out with a shoulder injury.

The full injury report is as follows:

• QB Kenny Pickett (ankle): DNP all week (out)
• RB Najee Harris (knee): DNP Wednesday, DNP Tuesday, not listed Monday (questionable)
• S Minkah Fitzpatrick (hand): FP all week
• CB James Pierre (shoulder): DNP all week (out)
• LB Elandon Roberts (groin): LP Wednesday, LP Tuesday, DNP Monday (questionable)
• DT Montravius Adams (ankle): FP all week
• C Mason Cole (neck): LP all week (questionable)
• G Isaac Seumalo (shoulder): DNP Wednesday, LP Tuesday, DNP Monday (questionable)
• DT Keeanu Benton (oblique): LP all week
• DT Cam Heyward (Not injury-related- rest/groin): LP Wednesday, LP Tuesday, DNP Monday

The Patriots may be 2-10, but they still have players to watch out for on their roster.

The Steelers’ Thursday Night Football matchup this week is against the New England Patriots. The Patriots sit at 2-10, making for a very winnable game on paper. However, last week showed that the Steelers can’t afford to overlook anyone in the NFL as they lost to the Arizona Cardinals, who entered the game with the same record the Patriots sit at entering this week.

Like the Cardinals game last week, the Patriots’ dismal record doesn’t exactly mean there isn’t talent on their roster. Here are eight players on the New England Patriots’ roster to keep your eye on heading into Week 14.

WR JuJu Smith-Schuster

James Conner last week. JuJu Smith-Schuster this week. This will be the second straight game that will serve as a homecoming for a former selection in the Steelers’ excellent 2017 draft class, of which TJ Watt remains the only member still on Pittsburgh’s roster.

Smith-Schuster left Pittsburgh following his injury-plagued 2021 season. He spent 2022 as one of the Chiefs’ top receivers, winning a Super Bowl ring in the process. In 2023, he joined his third NFL team, the Patriots, signing a three-year deal worth $33 million.

Smith-Schuster isn’t exactly the playmaking force he was during his first few years as a Steeler anymore. His game is now defined by his ability to be a tough possession receiver. However, he’s struggled to even do that in the New England offense, recording only 25 catches for 170 yards and a single touchdown in 10 games played this year, on track for the worst full season of his career.

Smith-Schuster is questionable to play on Thursday, and even if he is fully healthy for the game, he hasn’t proven to be an impact player in New England’s train-wreck of an offense this season. Still, he could make some plays in the middle of the field as a pass-catcher from the slot, something Pittsburgh has struggled defending so far this season.

At the very least, he’ll be a player to watch due to his history as a Steeler and the fact that he left Pittsburgh as one of the most polarizing Steelers of the past few seasons. Will fans boo him upon his return to the city that drafted him? Or will he receive a warmer welcome?

RB Ezekiel Elliott

Ezekiel Elliott listed as a player to watch... in 2023? And as a member of the Patriots? What alternate reality is this?

That would be this year’s low-scoring, injury-ridden hellscape of an NFL season. New England’s top running back Rhamondre Stevenson, arguably the best player on their entire offense, will be out for some time with an injury he suffered last week, leaving Patriots’ backup Ezekiel Elliott to shoulder most of his team’s carries in Week 14.

Like Smith-Schuster, Elliott is a few seasons removed from when he was a legitimate, game-breaking threat, but the former Dallas Cowboy has still performed solidly when called upon this year, with over 400 rushing yards, two touchdowns, and a 3.8 yards per carry average.

When Stevenson left with injury last week as the Patriots took on the Chargers, New England relied heavily on Elliott, who touched the ball 21 times for 92 total yards. With the Patriots’ passing offense as dismal as ever, he’ll likely see another large number of touches on Thursday. Don’t be surprised if Elliott puts together a solid game as the Patriots’ feature back — the consensus is that he’s washed up, but the veteran runner is less than a year removed from an 876-yard, 12-touchdown rushing season. He still has some fuel left in the tank.

TEs Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki

The Patriots will probably ride Elliott into the ground on Thursday, but if they have any success through the air, expect it to come from the tight end duo of Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki.

For one, both are solid NFL tight ends. Even though they haven’t had the greatest individual seasons, combined they’ve put up a very respectable stat line (53 catches, 495 yards, four touchdowns so far this year). It’s worth noting that Henry started off the year very strong with two straight 50+ yard, one touchdown games to start his season.

Henry and Gesicki have certainly proven that they are capable starters, and even though their numbers have been down recently, the Steelers’ defense will be a great opportunity for them to get back on track. Pittsburgh has been decimated by injury at inside linebacker this season, and as a result, they have struggled greatly covering the middle of the field. Last week, the Steelers allowed 11 catches for 120 yards and a touchdown against the Cardinals’ tight end room. There’s a chance the Patriots’ group could put up similar numbers on Thursday.

OL Michael Onwenu

Michael Onwenu has made a name for himself as one of the better guards in the NFL, but this year he’s been forced to play some right tackle due to the Patriots’ injuries on the offensive line. He’s been solid all year up to last week, where the Chargers’ pass-rush combined for five total sacks en route to a shutout win over New England. Onwenu was primarily lined up against LA’s Khalil Mack, who had two sacks and five tackles on the day.

There will be no rest for the weary as Onwenu preps to take on another elite talent in the Steelers’ TJ Watt this week. Although he’s playing out of position, Onwenu has the talent to record a bounce-back performance against the Steelers on Thursday. But with a pass-rusher of Watt’s caliber on the other side of the ball, there’s a chance that last week repeats itself for the Patriots’ offensive line.

CBs J.C. Jackson and Jonathan Jones, S Kyle Dugger, and the Patriots’ secondary

For an offense as bad as the Patriots’, a lot of this article was dedicated to discussing it. So let’s end on what has been a legitimate strength for them this year: secondary play.

To prove it, look no further than last week, where the New England pass defense held the Chargers’ high-octane passing offense out of the end zone all game. Los Angeles quarterback Justin Herbert was held to 212 passing yards while his top wideout Keenan Allen didn’t even break 60 receiving yards.

The Patriot secondary is led by the cornerback duo of J.C. Jackson and Jonathan Jones, who have held down the fort well with top cornerback Christian Gonzalez out with injury. Neither are household names, but they’re a rock-solid starting cornerback lineup who have quietly shut down a number of passing attacks over the past few weeks. However, their production hasn’t been anything special this season, with only one interception between the two of them.

The same can’t be said of Patriots safety Kyle Dugger, who has been among the best in the league for the past few seasons. He’s a versatile defender with lots of production, with 74 total tackles, two interceptions, one sack, four passes defensed, and 5.5 stuffs this season. If someone is going to make a play on the Patriots’ defense on Thursday, it’ll probably be Dugger.

However, while the New England secondary gets the spotlight here, don’t sleep on the team’s defense as a whole. They’ve been excellent against the run this year, holding Chargers’ star running back Austin Ekeler to a mere 18 rushing yards last week. They’ve held opponents to 10 points or less in each of their past three games.

It’ll be tough sledding for Mitch Trubisky and the Steelers offense on Thursday Night Football this week.

It’s time to stop living in the past according to the former Steelers safety

Ryan Clark was one of the hardest hitters of his day, and a vital part of the Steelers’ defense of the late 2000s and early 2010s that made trips to two Super Bowls, winning Super Bowl XLIII over the Arizona Cardinals in the 2008 season.

Now, the current ESPN analyst and host of Inside The NFL says the Steelers need to stop living in the past.

“The problem for me is, is when Mike Tomlin says he’s going to fix a problem, I expect him to fix a problem. If the offense was going to be the issue, that means you were supposed to execute everywhere else. You were supposed to execute in the linebacker position. Minkah Fitzpatrick comes back, I expect you to take a step up defensively. But simple things like quarterback exchange, right? Being able to snap the ball from center to Mitchell Trubisky. You’re already playing with a backup. What are you going to do as a team to execute and play complementary football that allows you to win? The Pittsburgh Steelers have to start to accept that they’re no longer the organization that can live off of the fact that there are six Lombardi trophies in the staircase.”

The former Steeler has been outspoken about his former team plenty of times in recent memory, including criticizing Diontae Johnson for his lackluster effort on a fumble against the Bengals, and Matt Canada’s poor offensive play-calling that was dealt with for too long. Clark referred to the Steelers as “Imposters” earlier this season, as well, noting that they are not good enough to make a run in the playoffs.

Steelers news and commentary for Wednesday, December 6

Welcome to the Terrible Towel Tales, where we’ll highlight some of the latest stories permeating Steelers media for your reading pleasure every Monday through Saturday. In today’s news…

Teams try ‘Hack-a-Shaq’ strategy vs. T.J. Watt, Steelers say | Brooke Pryor, ESPN

“I think T.J. runs into what all the elite rushers do,” Teryl Austin said. “These guys are going to hold you until they can’t because a lot of times that’s the only way they can block.

“I mean I share in his frustration, but I don’t think there’s anything that we can do about it. We can complain and we can do all that, but that really doesn’t solve the problem. So I think we just deal with it. We just continue to fight and go. It’s almost like the Hack-a-Shaq.”

Watt, of course, doesn’t go to the free throw line when he’s held, but the idea is similar. In going to great lengths to hold Watt, Austin said, offenses are hoping to minimize his impact on the game and on their quarterback. And, it has become so commonplace that officials aren’t calling it.

Steelers’ No. 3 QB Mason Rudolph is now one snap away. Will he get another chance? | Mark Kaboly, The Athleitc

There is no guarantee that Mason Rudolph will take a snap on Thursday against the New England Patriots. He might never take a snap with the Pittsburgh Steelers — or, realistically, in a regular-season football game — ever again.

Rudolph’s window was opened and then slammed shut after 10 starts and a long list of events that no quarterback would want their name associated with. Through it all, here he is — looking football justice right in the face after two long years.

Bailey Zappe in line to start for Patriots Thursday night against Steelers | Khari Thompson, Boston.com

There hasn’t been confirmation from coach Bill Belichick, but Zappe told reporters on Tuesday that it likely will be him.

”Coach has, you know, made it pretty clear,” Zappe said. “But I’ll let him announce it to everybody. That’s private right now, and whenever he announces it, that’s with him.”

Zappe made his first start of the season on Sunday against the Chargers, completing 13 of 25 passes for 141 yards. Zappe did not commit any turnovers, but the Patriots did not score.

Lessons from playing a different quarterback and a forecast for the next few games...

Pittsburgh Steelers second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett will miss at least the next few games after undergoing ankle surgery their Week 13 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. Moaning and groaning about injuries doesn’t change that fact, and Mitch Trubisky is now the next man up. Trubisky doesn’t excite many fans — not in a good way anyway.

Could Trubisky temporarily taking over the reins be a positive thing for the Steelers and their young quarterback? What has held Pickett back as much as anything could be a reluctance to take chances with the football. Trubisky has a reputation for being a bit more reckless. Observing Trubisky could allow Pickett and the Steeler coaches to learn lessons, good and bad, from a less conservative style of play.

Winning through ball security

Ball security has been a staple of the winning formula for the Steelers since the bye week last year. Looking at the 20 games since last year’s bye, Pickett has thrown only five interceptions, helping the Steelers to a 13-7 record. Pickett hasn’t fumbled over that stretch either, despite being sacked 38 times. The Steelers are an amazing 12-4 when Pickett doesn’t turn the ball over and 1-3 when he does. That’s a hard correlation to ignore. His five interceptions happened in four games, having thrown two against San Francisco. Injuries have knocked Pickett out of four games since that bye. He may be better at protecting the ball than he is at protecting himself.

While supreme ball security has been the way the Steelers have been winning games, is this conservative style the only way for the current Steelers to win? Enter Trubisky to help us find the answer.

The ghost of Trubisky's past

I wouldn’t be surprised if someone read this article’s title, skipped the article to go straight to the comment section with their answer to the question. “I’ll tell you what to expect, interceptions!” Trubisky has been tagged by many as a pick machine. Steelers fans find it hard to forget that when he came on in relief of Pickett against the Ravens last year, Trubisky threw three interceptions and the Steelers lost 16-14. To make it worse, all three were on Baltimore’s end of the field with the Steelers already in field goal range on two of them. Fans are an unforgiving lot, and it can certainly be understood when they blame Trubisky for that two-point loss.

But a lesson can be learned even from performances like that one. The Ravens scored only 3 points off of Trubisky’s picks. The Steelers lost out on opportunities for points on all of them. A little research shows that when Trubisky took his first snap that day the Steelers were trailing 10-0 after the Ravens scored their only touchdown on a 48-yard drive following a 17-yard Pressley Harvin punt. After Trubisky was done throwing to purple players, Chris Boswell would have a 40-yard field goal blocked and then the defense would allow a fourth-quarter eight-minute field goal drive that provided the winning points. As is usually the case, it was a team effort but the quarterback will always be the focal point and Trubisky didn’t do enough to take that focus away from his costly picks. The turnovers didn’t put the game out of reach; even three of them could have been overcome that day by better special teams play and a defensive stop.

Mitch Trubisky’s forecast

Trubisky’s style of taking more chances coupled with a recent three-interception game might have fans shielding their eyes for the next few weeks. A look at his career stats shows that the fear may be over-hyped. In the 54 games where Trubisky has attempted more than 20 passes, he has just 12 multi-interception stat lines. 80 percent of the time his games have one or less. While turnovers can be killers, one per game doesn’t necessarily dictate the outcome.

Projecting 30 pass attempts per game over the remaining five games and applying his career rate of touchdowns and interceptions yields a forecast for Trubisky of six touchdowns and four interceptions. Those numbers exactly match what Pickett has done through 12 games this year. If the Steelers could win games with that ratio before Trubisky, they should be able to win games at roughly the same rate with him. Perhaps the Steelers and Pickett learn that taking risks and failing can be overcome.

Trubisky won’t be perfect, but it’s easier to take notice of mistakes when others make them. Learning from others’ mistakes could be the only way for Pickett to learn as he is too cautious to make his own mistakes to learn from. This caution could be directed from the coaches. Maybe it was acquired in Steelers training camp, when every day ended with the Seven Shots segment, where every day at the 2-yard line, Pickett would face his share of the one-play reps against the league’s highest-paid defense with then-healthy talent at every level. That could certainly make a young quarterback unsure of himself.

There’s most likely going to be some ups and downs to the offense with Trubisky at the helm. Maybe the ups open some eyes that taking chances isn’t any worse than never taking chances. Maybe the downs don’t turn out to be the nail in the coffin for the Steelers’ season.

Sound off, Steelers Nation!

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Steelers fans entered Week 13 on an all-time high — at least, for this season, that is — after snagging a Week 12 win over the Bengals, notching 400 offensive yards for the first time since Week 2 of the 2020 season in the team’s first game without Matt Canada. Their hopes and dreams promptly crashed back down to earth, however, with a disastrous and embarrassing home loss against the Arizona Cardinals, who held a 2-10 record heading into the matchup.

First off, how is the faith of Steelers Nation holding up?

With Kenny Pickett out over the next 2-4 weeks, which quarterback on the Steelers roster do you think gives the team the best shot at a playoff run

To what do fans attribute the greatest portion of the team’s struggles in Week 13?

And last, but not least — what do you predict the Steelers’ final record will be at the end of the regular season?

Vote now in the poll below, and elaborate on your answers in the comments! Check back Thursday for the results from your fellow Steelers fans.

The Pittsburgh Steelers will face the New England Patriots to kick off Week 14 on Thursday Night Football, holding a walkthrough Tuesday in preparation for the game. That practice report yielded one big surprise for the day, as running back Najee Harris was listed as a non-participant, newly listed with a knee injury.

Here is a full look at Tuesday’s practice report ahead of Week 14.

Steelers practice report Week 14: Monday, December 4

FP: S Minkah Fitzpatrick (hand), DT Montravius Adams (groin)

DNP: RB Najee Harris (knee), QB Kenny Pickett (ankle), CB James Pierre (shoulder)

Limited: DT Keeanu Benton (oblique), LB Elandon Roberts (groin), LG Isaac Seumalo (shoulder), C Mason Cole (neck), DT Cam Heyward (rest/groin)

Running back Najee Harris’ knee injury is a new one as of Tuesday, coming off a Week 13 outing where Harris totaled 16 carries — tied for the second most he’s seen in a game all season — while playing a season-high 59% of snaps. The team had been quite cautious throughout the offseason and training camp in regards to Harris’ workload, so it remains to be seen if this is more of a load management situation as the team sits on a short week or it is actually concerning for his availability. The run game will be as crucial as ever with quarterback Kenny Pickett out, which could mean a career day for teammate Jaylen Warren if Harris were to miss the game due to injury.

The Steelers did receive some good news Tuesday, as both linebacker Elandon Roberts and left guard Isaac Seumalo returned to practice in a limited fashion. Tomlin noted that both of them were looking “questionable” heading into Thursday’s game, but logging a limited session is a step in the right direction for their availability.

Once again, quarterback Kenny Pickett remains on the injury report, a non-participant with an ankle injury after undergoing surgery on Monday morning. Though he’s expected to miss 2-4 weeks, he’ll continue to be listed on the injury report since the team is not placing him on the injured reserve list.

What went wrong on the play that knocked Kenny Pickett out of the Cardinals game

The Steelers lost to the Arizona Cardinals by a score of 24-10 bringing their record to 7-5. While they still sit on the inside of the playoff picture, their prospects for the game and the postseason took a big hit in the second quarter on a failed goal-to-go situation. Kenny Pickett would be knocked out of the game on the third down play with an ankle injury that required surgery. Any hiccups in his recovery process could make this the last play of the year for him. Let’s have an in-depth look at the play to see what all went on with the added advantage of hindsight.

The most important play of the year for the Steelers

Losing a quarterback to injury can have season-altering effects. Before this snap, there was nothing overly intense about the game situation. To set the stage, this play happened midway through the second quarter and was a third-and-goal from the three yard-line while the game was in a 3-3 tie. Pickett takes the shotgun snap and sets briefly at the 11 before trying to run it in for a touchdown. He will get caught from behind by a defensive lineman as a linebacker from the end zone peels off of his coverage to stop him before the goal line.

From the end zone view, we see a snap high and to Pickett’s right. After a quick glance to the left, pressure comes from Pickett’s right and as that Cardinal starts to get around Broderick Jones, the quarterback tucks the ball for a football version of Pickett’s Charge.

History note, Pickett’s Charge was a maneuver used by the Confederate Army in the Civil War battle of Gettysburg.

From battlefields.org

Pickett’s Charge was ultimately a futile all-out assault on an extremely fortified Union position. Many historians consider Pickett’s Charge to symbolize the turning tide of the war for the Union Army, although Lee’s army fought on for nearly two more years.

Watch the end zone as Pickett starts his charge up the hash marks, it certainly looks to be an “extremely fortified position”. Pickett’s injury on the play would “turn the tide” of the game and possibly the season. And, if you watched to the end of this game, it felt like it went on for “nearly two more years”.

Also of note from the end zone angle is that Calvin Austin is at the left of the screen and in motion at the snap. This caught my eye as the small and speedy Austin doesn’t seem to be much of a red zone weapon for the Steelers. In fact, through 12 games Austin has been targeted 28 times in the passing game and has run the ball eight times. According to Pro Football Reference, zero of those targets and zero of those runs have been in the red zone.

You couldn’t fault the Arizona defense if they ignored Austin based on his historical non-involvement down by the goal line. The next clip shows they pretty much do just that, as Austin never has a defender within five yards of him throughout the play. The Arizona cornerback on George Pickens backs up to take away a possible sideline fade while the safety sits and waits for a possible slant. Austin starts doing jumping jacks by the front pylon to get the attention of Pickett. The Cardinals were able to get away with the “Ignore Austin” defense as the Steelers were running a play that could have had that same name.

Now a closer look at why Pickett didn’t see the wide-open Austin. Right tackle Broderick Jones will get caught a little flat-footed against a speed rush and dip his head in a lunge to slow it down. Jones does use his athleticism to recover a bit and his strong arms will push the defender to the ground back at the 12 as Pickett steps up to avoid contact.

What caused there to be so many defenders clustered in the end zone in front of Pickett? Watch the bottom of the screen as tight ends Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington perform an exhibition of what could be the next Olympic sport—synchronized route running. Both will run to their left about three yards into the end zone and turn to face Pickett. Four cardinal defenders have them surrounded.

The Cardinals rushed four, had two at the top of the play covering Pickens, and had four in the end zone around the tight ends. That leaves only one other defender to cover Najee Harris as he leaked out to the right toward the goal line. In the clip below we see Pickett crossing the 10 and tucking the ball. He starts to the outside of James Daniels’ block but then cuts it up the hash marks and tries to beat a tight-end defender in a head-on race to the goal line. Had he kept going to the outside, he would have had a one-on-one race with 286-pound defensive tackle Dante Stills and an option to throw to Harris should Harris’s defender go toward Pickett. If he cleared Stills it would have been Pickett and Harris against a lone Cardinal.

4th and goal decision

Fans and pundits are split on whether the Steelers should have gone for it on the resulting fourth-and-goal. One stat that may sway your opinion on the decision is that at this point of the game the Cardinals had gained only 26 offensive yards on their four possessions. With hindsight, we know that they would go on a 99-yard touchdown drive and take a lead they would never lose. A big part of the difference between those first four drives and the 99-yard drive was Elandon Roberts. Roberts would leave the game with a groin injury on the second play of that drive and would not return. Roberts was hampered by the injury earlier in the game but tried to play through it. Here is a play from the previous Cardinal drive. Roberts will blitz from in between the hash marks and reach for Kyler Murray as the quarterback sidesteps him. At the end of the clip in the top left of the screen, Roberts will be bent over in pain. Earlier plays showed him walking a bit gingerly after the whistle. Credit to his toughness for trying to play, but with the two starters ahead of him already out for the season, perhaps resting instead of testing was the better path to pursue.

Canadian exchange rate

This next clip shows a mainstay of the offensive woes for the Steelers this year—blocking confusion when tasked with blitz pickup. The five offensive linemen will block three pass rushers while two other rushers have a free run at Pickett. Add to the mix that we see two receivers clumped together and this play might be Exhibit A for offensive coordinator Matt Canada getting fired. Freiermuth will release down the left hash before settling at the back of the Steeler midfield logo while Pickens crosses from the right and settles immediately in front of him. If they weren’t on the same team you might congratulate Pickens for covering the open guy so well. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and Canada can’t be erased in a week.

Deja what?

One of my favorite dad jokes goes like this: Do you know what “deja vu” is? (pause) Do you know what “deja vu” is? *I’m a big hit at parties. Whether it’s deja vu or Groundhogs Day, I saw this next play and had flashbacks. This wasn’t a blast from the past as it originally happened about a nanosecond ago. The Steelers ran this play against the Bengals in the previous game. It resulted in a lengthy replay review that allowed the Steelers to retain possession of what looked like an incomplete backward pass. They must practice this play a ton as the execution here is amazingly similar. Pickett takes a shotgun snap and, as he turns to his right, rifles the ball to Jaylen Warren. I should clarify, he rifles the ball near but behind Jaylen Warren the same as he did last week. Warren again has to do a 360 to try and catch the ball and head up the field. The release point from Pickett’s hand looks to be at or in front of the 29-yard line, while Warren appears to first contact it at or behind the 29. Too close for comfort again, and the adjustment Warren has to make to catch the football wipes out any chance for the play’s success.

With Matt Canada now gone, there are new faces in charge of the Steeler offense. They have their work to do with receiver route running, blitz pickup confusion, and finding time to rip out and shred a certain play from the playbook. They get the added level of difficulty of having to do it with a backup quarterback. This process may take a while.

The third-string veteran is seemingly an afterthought in the Steelers plans sans Kenny Pickett

Following the injury to starter Kenny Pickett, the Steelers have two quarterbacks remaining on their active depth chart — Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph.

Trubisky, the highest paid backup quarterback in football (tied with Jacoby Brissett at $8 million per year) entering the season, was signed by the Steelers in free agency two summers ago to be the starter — at least until rookie first-round pick Pickett was ready to take over, which happened in week four of last season.

In five starts with Pittsburgh in 2022, Trubisky went 2-3, and threw five touchdowns to six interceptions. Not exactly shocking that he was benched.

That doesn’t exactly scream “highest paid backup” numbers, in my estimation.

Next in the pecking order is Rudolph, who I believe has been treated about as unfairly as one possibly could in his five years in Pittsburgh.

When you play behind Ben Roethlisberger, there are going to be moans and groans anytime the backup QB is forced into action. Rudolph was that guy from 2019-2021, when Ben was still at the helm. But his numbers in hindsight should make you do a double take.

In 17 total games, including 10 starts, Rudolph has thrown 16 TDs to 11 INTs. His QB rating is 80.9, and he went 5-4-1 in those games.

In 25 games, including 24 of them which were starts, the now injured Pickett has thrown 13 TDs and 13 INTs.

Rudolph has been objectively better than Pickett - and I know the “Matt Canada” narrative will be built in, but it’s not like Rudolph’s coordinator, Randy Fichtner, was exactly Andy Reid.

Rudolph is basically the ex you later realized wasn’t so bad following a few years in the dating game.

I’m not here to say he’s going to save the season. But I don’t think it’s crazy to think he could be the best quarterback on the Steelers current roster. This is a team in need of a spark. A spark that Trubisky probably won’t provide against the New England Patriots Thursday night at Acrisure Stadium.

The backup quarterback is usually the most popular player on the team whenever the starter is struggling.

In this case - it may just be the third string.

I don’t think Pittsburgh and Head Coach Mike Tomlin will seriously consider starting Rudolph in the next few weeks — but it should certainly be revisited if the team continues to struggle offensively.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are 7-5 and in the AFC playoff hunt, but where does that place them in the NFL power rankings?

The Pittsburgh Steelers are 7-5 heading into Week 14 of the NFL season. After losing to the Arizona Cardinals, the Steelers are currently the No. 5 seed in the AFC playoff picture, but where do they stand in power rankings across the internet?

Here’s a look at the Pittsburgh Steelers’ standing in NFL power rankings ahead of Week 14.

NFL.com writer Eric Edholm ranked the Steelers at No. 11, two spots lower than last week.

There have been numerous stretches where we’ve questioned whether the Steelers are truly a playoff team — not whether they will get in, but whether they even deserve to. Following Sunday’s shocking home loss to Arizona, the Steelers will be without starting QB Kenny Pickett for this Thursday’s game against New England. He was knocked out in the second quarter Sunday with an ankle injury, but even prior to getting hurt, Pickett wasn’t able to build on new play-caller Mike Sullivan’s strong first outing the week before. Pittsburgh was also guilty of self-inflicted errors galore, including basic stuff like getting lined up correctly, before backup QB Mitch Trubisky’s crippling fumble. Mike Tomlin has somehow led this team to 7-5, but it’s hard not to get the smoke-and-mirrors vibe, especially with Pickett possibly set to miss multiple games. Heck, the Steelers have looked quite beatable with him.

The Athletic’s Josh Kendall at No. 18, seven spots lower than last week.

Pittsburgh got a bump the first week after firing its beleaguered offensive coordinator, but it was back to business as usual Sunday. The Steelers scored 10 points against an Arizona defense that ranks 30th in points allowed (25.5 per game). On top of that, quarterback Kenny Pickett suffered an ankle injury that is expected to keep him out multiple weeks. The AFC North lead looks a long way away now.

Bleacher Report had the Steelers at No. 18, six spots lower than last week.

One week after finally surpassing 400 yards of offense for the first time in over three years, Pittsburgh managed just 317 yards. And now the team will be without starting quarterback Kenny Pickett for the foreseeable future—Pickett will have surgery to repair his injured ankle this week and could miss a month.

That wasn’t even the only major injury the Steelers endured Sunday. After missing the past month with a hamstring injury, Pro Bowl safety Minkah Fitzpatrick returned to the lineup—and promptly broke his hand.

If there’s a silver lining, it’s that while the Steelers have a short week to get ready to play on Thursday night, they are taking on New England.

And the Patriots have been making everyone look good this season.

The Steelers have been bit hard by the injury bug this season

It’s no secret that the Steelers have had a wide range of injuries this season. Receiver Diontae Johnson and defensive lineman Cam Heyward both went down in Week 1 and missed the next month and a half of the season. Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick dealt with a hamstring injury that forced him to miss a month. And now, quarterback Kenny Pickett will be out for 2-4 weeks with an ankle sprain.

The position group hit the hardest, though, has been inside linebacker. The Steelers lost Cole Holcomb and Kwon Alexander in consecutive weeks to season-ending injuries, and Elandon Roberts went down with a groin injury in Week 13 against the Cardinals.

When asked about the slew of injuries, defensive coordinator Teryl Austin didn’t mince words.

“Really nobody gives a sh*t,” Austin said. [We’ve] got to get it done.”

The Steelers gave up a 99 yard touchdown drive on the same drive in which Roberts was injured. The Cardinals targeted the middle of the field heavily and took advantage of the Steelers’ weakness to score before halftime.

Mike Tomlin said in his press conference on Monday that the Steelers will turn to Myles Jack and/or Blake Martinez for more help at the position.

Steelers news and commentary for Tuesday, December 5

Welcome to the Terrible Towel Tales, where we’ll highlight some of the latest stories permeating Steelers media for your reading pleasure every Monday through Saturday. In today’s news…

Report: Steelers Nearly Benched Kenny Pickett | Noah Strackbein, All Steelers

During an appearance on DVE Morning Show, Dulac said the Steelers were considering benching Pickett because of his struggles.

“After the Cleveland game, there was some discussion that maybe a change needed to be made at the position because of the way Pickett had been struggling for those three games, right up until the mess in Cleveland,” Dulac said.

Instead, the team fired Canada with hopes that the move would boost Pickett’s performance. It worked for one game before the team and their quarterback went back to their old ways.

Steelers Must Admit Tough Truth with Kenny Pickett | Nick Farabaugh, Steelers Now

Heading into this season, the promise for Kenny Pickett was all there. He had an excellent preseason and training camp, and all the reports had him trending up. He even played some good football down the stretch of the 2022 season. Most of this hype was not contrived out of thin air. The stats did not back it all up, but Pickett’s tape was solid down the stretch. But it has not translated into the year. This has been a slog.

With Pickett now sidelined for two to four weeks after ankle surgery, it’s hard for me to tell you what they should do this offseason. Firing Matt Canada was supposed to spark the offense and give them a chance to see what Pickett could do without him. That small sample size got even tinier now. And Pickett has not shown enough flashes of being the guy to earn unquestioned starter status heading into year three. That stinks, but it’s the fact of the matter.

Alex Highsmith Agrees Refs Ignoring T.J. Watt | Stephen Thompson, All Steelers

“T.J.’s held almost every play. That’s just how I feel,” Highsmith said. “He’s up there rushing like hell. He’s crazy. I can sense his frustration but he’s a guy who’s balls to the walls every single play. When he doesn’t get some of those calls he should get, it’s definitely frustrating.”

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin added that frustration is part of the game for a player like Watt, whose talent, pedigree and history of consistently excellent performance make him the target of double-teams, chip blocks and every method of slowing pass rushers an opponent can conceive of. That could make anyone a little cranky.

Color rush jerseys are back!

The Pittsburgh Steelers announced that they would be wearing their color rush alternate jerseys in Week 14 against the New England Patriots. The team is encouraging fans attending the game to don “blackout” attire to get the vibe just right for this primetime showing.

The Steelers have a 7-2 record when wearing their color rush jerseys, though they’ll look to avenge them this week, having lost their most recent outing in the jerseys back in Week 11 of the 2022 season at home against the Cincinnati Bengals.

This week we’re covering the loss to Arizona, the road ahead, and Mike Tomlin’s hot seat.

Welcome to Steel Curtain Sound-Off, where I journey through the irradiated morass of the comments section here at Behind The Steel Curtain dot com, and I return with your takes (...and respond).

“Honestly this might be okay. We don’t need this mentally charmin soft team buying into their own hype anymore. Mitch will maybe win 1 out of the 4 if we’re lucky, we’ll get a higher draft pick, Tomlin is still likely to preserve is absolutely asinine, completely and utterly meaningless .500 or better streak, and we miss the playoffs. This team has NO BUSINESS anywhere near the postseason and this is the football gods putting us out of our collective misery.

Then in 24, we can add a center, a second center just to be sure Mason Cole never sees another snap for this team, a tackle, a QB or 2, an offensive coordinator, a defensive coordinator, a special teams coordinator, several corners, 5-7 inside linebackers since 4 will be on IR by week 6 next year anyway, ah who am I kidding…this team will be trapped in purgatory for eternity as long as Lucky Sperm Art II and Tomlin are running the show.” – JV2K13

The Steelers season reached its nadir Sunday thanks to a 24-10 home loss to the Arizona Cardinals, and this comment in particular appears to capture the ethos of the current state of things (bonus points to JV2K for concisely addressing both bargaining and acceptance in a single stream of consciousness; a grief masterclass).

I wrote last week that parity runs rampant in the NFL and that overall records are little more than kindling for the false underdog narratives that fuel media discourse but probably don’t exist within the context of the locker room’s actual lexicon. I don’t mean to suggest that players aren’t necessarily motivated by what could be interpreted as disrespect against their teams, but I also don’t think a single member of the Cardinals announced, “Hey gang, let’s go shock the world today!” before running out of the tunnel to face a Steelers team currently averaging fewer than 16 points per game. Point spreads are more helpful for informing fans’ perspectives about whatever game they’re watching than they are gassing players up to play David in a battle versus Goliath. They’re professionals, and self-motivation is in their job description; they don’t need all the extra thoroughfare.

In a similar vein, I believe in tanking as a legitimate organizational ambition, and the fact that the Cardinals traded away a first-round pick in last year’s draft to goose their prospects in this year’s draft is indicative of how their management views the team’s shorter-term outlook. And as a team clearly in the midst of (or in the very nascent stages of) a rebuild, the Cardinals are better off losing. HOWEVER, I think what tends to get left out of tanking discussions is that the teams doing the actual tanking are comprised of professional athletes and coaches, all of whom have a vested interest in performing above expectations to solidify their longer-term career prospects. Like, the best-case scenario for the New England Patriots is that they lose the remainder of their games, secure the number one pick, and draft Caleb Williams (or whoever; I’m not splitting hairs in this article, you guys can feel free to do so in the comment section), but that strategy is a tough sell for current quarterbacks on the Patriots. “Hey Mac Jones, please continue to perform as if you gained object permanence yesterday; we need to draft your replacement. Thanks!” It’s illogical.

This is all a very roundabout way of saying that the Steelers most recent loss is indisputably gross, but if you zoom the lens out far enough as if you’re observing an exoplanet from a telescope, it’s easier to ignore that the atmosphere of said exoplanet is composed entirely of spiders. Any given Sunday, etc.

Of course, attributing the Steelers' most recent loss wholly to parity isn’t telling the entire story. The Cardinals played well—James Conner had 100+ rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns, and Kyler Murray made a number of genuinely outstanding throws; neither of these things occurred purely by happenstance—but the Steelers appeared to simply give up midway through the second quarter after Kenny Pickett shredded his ankle into Big League Chew and they subsequently failed to convert on 4^th-and-goal from inside the one-yard line. The Steelers then allowed Murray to engineer a 15-play touchdown drive that put the Cardinals up 10-3—converting what felt like a million third downs in the process—and that, as they say, was that.

JV2K13 is a reliable purveyor of keen insights (I mean that sincerely) and while I think there is truth to the notion that the Steelers are floating around aimlessly in a foggy purgatorial hellscape, it could be that they remain on the precipice of legitimate contention and that they sort of resigned themselves to losing that last game once the starting quarterback got injured, meaning that everything that occurred thereafter didn’t provide an entirely accurate representation of the team’s true capabilities (they are 7-5, after all, and still occupy a playoff spot as of this writing). That is, very admittedly, a wildly naïve perspective about Sunday’s outcome, and one could just as easily argue that the Steelers’ seven wins resulted from their opposition not performing in accordance with their true capabilities. One could also argue that watching and correspondingly rationalizing this current iteration of the Steelers has smoothed the contours of my brain to a bowling ball-like consistency and alchemized my cerebrospinal fluid into Mountain Dew Baja Blast. Equally valid arguments, both.

“Art Rooney II is responsible for this mess. he is a lucky guy to have inherited a great dynasty and has no clue on what it takes to maintain one.

1) He learned the wrong lesson about what makes a franchise elite. the whole only 3 coaches for so many decades is not something to praise a team for necessarily. Noll should have beenn let go in the 80s. He did not adjust with the times. A coach should not be held to such high esteem that it holds back a franchise.

2) Tomlin is not Noll’s equal. And it is even crazier that he has more job security than Noll. What is concerning is Tomlin backs all his dumb decisions. I understand you dont want to give away your real thoughts about what went wrong all the time to the public. But damn, I think he is really that clueless. He needs to be traded for a first round pick or two as long as there is a contingent of football folks stupid enough to believe that Tomlin is still a great coach. He is flat out a joke. He would never consider hiring a guy like Spagnaulo or Jim Schwartz to coach his defense. He just hires lackeys for the most part because he goes by his comfort level.

3) When too many players make mistakes, maybe it’s not the players. Maybe its players with the lack of focus caused by a second rate coaching staff leading them.” - insaneman

Art Rooney is very decidedly not too stupid to ask what is going on with his team, because he is fully cognizant of its inner workings. Listen: I get the impulse to assume that the guys who wear bespoke suits to the games care as much about the outcome as the ones who wear Zubaz overalls and face paint, and that owners of bad teams are so disgraced among their peers that they eat chateaubriand alone in silence and simply cannot imagine showing their faces at the yacht club until things get back on track, but I can assure you that Rooney’s—and every other professional sports owner’s—principal concern is turning a handsome profit. And, buddy, business is a-boomin’, and it will remain so more or less indefinitely because the NFL is a monolith. Winning is great for business, sure, but it absolutely is not compulsory, so Rooney and Co. will continue to pocket boatloads of money regardless of how many games the Steelers win, how many people attend or watch those games, or how much merchandise they sell. So, it’s not that he isn’t aware, it’s just that profit supersedes everything else.

This is because the Steelers are a brand, and Steelers market their continuity and stability and Family Business and The Steelers Way in the same way that Apple positions itself at the cutting edge of technology and luxury. And what better way to uphold the veneer of continuity than adhering to the same management practices that have persisted since the 1970s?

Cynicism aside, the Steelers have excelled in running a successful business that also yields desirable results on-field, so they are due credit for that. At least they aren’t the Pirates.

As for Tomlin, there’s little point plumbing those depths too extensively, because it’ll take a lot more than a verbose blog to talk most of you from one side of the fence to the other concerning Mike Tomlin. I will say that teams frequently contend on the strength of their defense, but it isn’t often that teams with offenses as putrid as the Steelers remain in the playoff hunt. The Steelers are 7-5, and for whatever blame gets foisted on Tomlin for the losses, he deserves at least some credit for the wins. He is now two years removed from Ben Roethlisberger (three if you’re inclined to count that final season in which Great Value brand Ben Roethlisberger helmed the offense), so the idea that his success was wholly incumbent upon Hall of Fame quarterback play or Cahhr’s players or whatever else doesn’t strike me as an especially cogent one.

That all said, the NFL is a “what have you done for me lately?” kind of league, and the Steelers in particular are an organization for which postseason wins represent a barometer of their prosperity, so Tomlin’s lack of recent success on this front is inarguably grim. Even so, I can’t envision any scenario in which Tomlin is not the head coach next season. Unless…

“Tomlin’s seat needs to be hot after losing to New England this Thursday...” - arkansoul

Oh, buddy, Thursday Night Football this week is gonna be a national disgrace. And I hope it is. I hope viewership is almost entirely restricted to Steelers and Patriots fans and that both Amazon and the NFL lose money as a result.

Not that it’ll matter to either entity. Thursday Night Football is a dismal abyss, the snarling inbred love child of corporate greed and unchecked commercialism. It exemplifies the wanton hubris with which the NFL governs itself, not to mention the league’s blithe disregard for player health and safety that borders on contempt and its absolute derision for the viewers at home. Jeff Bezos sits alongside Roger Goodell in a luxury suite, sipping expensive brandy and shouting to the groundlings below “Eat the slop from your troughs, you vile pigs.” Carissa Thompson reports that she spoke fluent Pig Latin to two little piggies, who consumed so much slop that they felt unbothered by speculation about lupine lung capacities and shoddy building materials. Adam Schefter will send congratulatory tweets to Thompson for her journalistic integrity and to the wolves for their bravery. And like sick dogs returning to their vomit, we’ll oblige and watch the Steelers defeat the Patriots by the score of 4-2. Clowns in a perverted circus.

Anyway, getting around to actually addressing the comment — I’m not sure if this was intentional or a syntactic inconsistency, but I like that the commentor eschewed speculative language and presented losing as somewhat of a foregone conclusion. The Patriots are so bad. They held their last opponent to 6 points and said opponent still covered the spread. Unimaginable, profoundly unserious stuff. However, the Patriots have held each of the last three opponents to 10 points or fewer, which does not bode well for a dogwater Steelers offense coming off its worst loss of the season and down its starting quarterback.

As such, I am inclined to agree with Arkansoul’s take. The Steelers are already in a rock fight for a Wild Card spot that will grant them swift evisceration at the hands of Kansas City or Miami and falling to 7-6 with a handful of difficult games remaining could put them outside the playoff picture altogether. If that were to happen — them missing the playoffs largely because they lost back-to-back weeks to two of the three worst teams in the NFL — I think it’s fair to conclude that Tomlin’s proverbial seat would be cast aflame.

“Starts with a head coach who’s best known for “never having a losing season”.

Lowest IQ football team in the NFL and it’s not even close. It’s never a question of “if” they will make a mental mistake, it’s now how many and how big of a situation will they be in.

Mike Tomlin is supposed to be “ a great leader of men” but his team consistently underperforms, looking undisciplined and unprepared so clearly it’s not on him, it must be the trainers.” – wood1098

There is veracity to the third part of this. I do think Pickett’s injury and the failed fourth-down play thereafter were huge shots to the morale, but the Steelers have certainly demonstrated a penchant for losing to purportedly lesser teams during Mike Tomlin’s tenure. However, the Steelers are (or were) among the least-penalized and least-turnover-prone teams in the NFL this season, and part of the reason they’ve managed to overcome their stagnant offense is by limiting mistakes elsewhere.

Everything is 20/20 in retrospect, but I started to get bad feelings about this game when I saw this graphic on Twitter:

48-10! 37-10! I understand that columnists are supposed to be purposely bombastic to garner attention and generate discourse (I personally would never... [*someone in the crowd throws a rotten tomato*]), but what evidence could have possibly informed these declarations?

The Steelers are nominally “better” than the Cardinals based on their overall records, but a side-by-side rendering of the rosters doesn’t put either team head and shoulders above the other. The Steelers have a better defense, but the Cardinals have a better quarterback, and the respective offensive skill players and offensive lines are probably a wash (the Cardinals' line might even be a little better than the Steelers' line). Hence, while I do agree the Steelers underperformed against the Cardinals, I think any talent gap that separates the two teams is marginal.

Please feel free to borrow this blueprint to talk yourself into rationalizing even the gnarliest losses.

“Also, how do we expect Kenny not to get injured when this is what he is working with?” - Yinzer

In the words of famed lyrical wordsmith Chad Kroeger, look at this photograph:

Like any great work of art, taking the time to analyze the particulars of this image yields intensely nuanced semiotic interpretations. What the artist was trying to communicate here is that for all the bad press afforded to Kenny Pickett and Matt Canada, the unsightly façade of the Steelers offense is underpinned in large part by cartoonishly inept offensive line play. To the left, we see tight end Pat Freiermuth running into open space in the seam and—critically—Pickett’s sightline and hips pointed directly in Freiermuth’s direction. This could have been a nice little 10- or 15-yard completion!

To the right, though, is havoc and hilarity in equal measure. Two Cardinals defenders, unimpeded, categorically unbothered, making a free run toward Pickett, and two Steelers linemen, disoriented, utterly bewildered, inexplicably blocking each other, belly to belly looking like the “b” and “d” in—fittingly—“subdivide.” The reddish flag looming in the foreground represents an apt metaphor for the whole ordeal.

Mason Cole and James Daniels count roughly $17.5 million against the cap next season, by the way. Yikes!

“It’s certainly not the reason they lost today but yes, these egregious non-holding calls against the best defensive player on the planet need to stop. It’s been going on for years and someone needs to take a stand. Hopefully Tomlin is heading that charge behind the scenes.

There’s clips going around on social media with all the obvious blatant holding calls not called against him over the years. I mean what the hell?” - RenoSteelersFan

The “best defensive player on the planet” in question is T.J. Watt, who spent part of the postgame mewling about how the NFL is being mean to him. Watt, like every stud pass rusher in the history of organized football, is frequently the subject of offensive holding that escapes referees’ purview. “There is offensive holding on every play” is a well-worn axiom, and I would imagine that similar clips depicting blatant un-called holding could be easily compiled in support of Myles Garrett, Nick Bosa, Danielle Hunter, Khalil Mack, and anyone else who makes a living rushing the passer.

I think holding is one of those things that, like pass inference, is probably technically enforceable on virtually every play but is mostly left to the officials’ subjective interpretation, how egregious the penalty was, the context in which it occurred, etc. NFL games already take too long and flagging something like offensive holding with greater regularity is only going to prolong them further, which benefits nobody aside from owners (boo!) and the NFL (boooooo, hiss).

In Watt’s defense, his animus in this particular instance is well-founded because he was injured during the play in question, which does suck but is also the kind of thing where you’re left with little choice but to charge it to the game. Get well soon, big fella.

“Yuck. Would have been really nice to see Pickett for a few more games without Canada’s influence. Might have to consider going QB round 1 next draft.” - dinner

Yeah, I admit I’d started sipping the Pickett Kool-Aid after that game against the Bengals. He looked like a completely different quarterback in that game, and I was excited to see if languishing within Matt Canada’s offensive system is what primarily stunted his development. Alas.

I am very confident in stating that the Steelers will not draft a quarterback in the first round, though. This is partly logistical. Caleb Williams and Drake Maye will almost assuredly be off the board by the time the Steelers make their selection. Bowl games, the Senior Bowl, and the NFL Combine will shake up the current ranking of top quarterback prospects, but even if someone like Jayden Daniels (unlikely) or Michael Penix Jr. (interesting…) is still available, the Steelers must be fully committed to the idea that selecting another quarterback is essentially communicating their abandonment of Pickett as the franchise quarterback. That’s not outlandish to the point of being outright impossible, but assuming Tomlin is the head coach next season, I would imagine that management would prefer to see a full season of Pickett under a new coordinator before making any formal decisions about his longer-term career prospects.

“After today’s game, I’m wondering if the money I spent yesterday on tickets and parking for the Indy game was money well spent..... at least I won’t get rained on.” - wbrianr

Nah, you made the right decision. I know I just said a bunch of insanely cynical stuff about the NFL and team owners above, but the game-day experience is worth the price of admission. And I say that as someone who has only ever seen Steelers games at Heinz Field and dealt with the North Shore’s byzantine infrastructure, which functions as if it was developed by the most misanthropic civil engineer in history.

I remember every Steelers game I’ve attended in person fondly. Whether they won or lost the game is immaterial. My advice to you is to drink everything in and luxuriate in the minutiae. For me, it’s the fleeting refreshment of the brisk cold hitting your face after leaving a cramped bar to head toward the stadium, or the long walk from the parking adjacent to PNC Park along West General Robinson Street, with each tailgate imbuing the air with their own unique sounds and smells. I cannot remember the final score of every game, but I can vividly recall where I sat, and most importantly, with whom. I am sincerely hopeful that your experience is a good one, regardless of who wins that game.

“short yardage....and..............wait for it.........wait for it .....shotgun.” - Pittsblitz56

Buddy, I’m saying. It wasn’t long ago that I’d be like “lol, okay boomer” whenever someone derided the Steelers for lining up in shotgun on short yardage, but now when I see Pickett standing five yards behind the center on third-and-1, I react like it’s a personal affront. If you’re keeping score at home, 32 is apparently the age at which Steelers fans become their own fathers.

Anyway, yes, on down and one or less, I want the quarterback’s knuckles scraping the center’s perineum.

“Watching this game was worse than prepping for a colonoscopy.” Fuqua shoes

I’ve never had a colonoscopy, so I Googled “colonoscopy prep” for enlightenment. Per Kaiser Permanente:

· Three days before your colonoscopy, eat only low-fiber foods. Also, stop taking any fiber supplements or anti-diarrheal medication.

· Two days before, continue eating only low-fiber foods.

· One day before, go on a clear-liquid diet.

· The evening before, drink half of a prescription laxative drink to clean out your colon for the procedure. (You’ll finish it the next morning.)

I then consulted a low-fiber food chart and discovered that it looks a lot like my current diet. As if I’m gonna be here like Oh no, I can’t eat any Brussels sprouts, noooo, I guess I’ll just slam home a mountain of pulled pork. Get outta here. The day before would be rough and I cannot imagine taking that prescription laxative drink to the face is much fun, but colonoscopy prep doesn’t look bad at all. I’ll be sure to document my first colonoscopy in rigorous detail in a blog post.