Najee Harris has each proper to be pissed off. The Pittsburgh Steelers offense has been placing Band-Aids over its leaks all season simply making an attempt to get to the subsequent day. It’s a technique that has largely labored. They’ve scored 25 or extra factors solely as soon as this season, but nonetheless stay within the thick of the playoff hunt at 6-4.
The Steelers’ DVOA numbers put in print what the tape clearly reveals: They’re a barely above-average soccer group. Their protection is nice, however their offense is mediocre. The issue the Steelers have with their unspectacular offense is that the worst half is the construction itself.
Harris mentioned as a lot when speaking to the media after Pittsburgh’s Week 11 loss to the Cleveland Browns and their rookie fifth-round quarterback, Dorian Thompson-Robinson. Harris was visibly pissed off and made certain to precise it. He even put some blame on the offensive teaching workers. He was requested if he felt that the opposing groups knew what’s approaching offense, and took a protracted pause earlier than lastly answering.
“Yeah, in some conditions to be sincere with you,” Harris mentioned.
That was a part of numerous venting he did through the media scrum. He additionally mentioned that whereas the Steelers have an excellent document, they will be unable to proceed successful the way in which that they’re enjoying.
Harris principally mentioned the loud half out loud, a few weeks after George Pickens was caught on the sidelines in Week 9 expressing displeasure. Later that week, Pickens scrubbed all of his Steelers content material from his social media and posted “free me.” He would later deny that exercise had something to do with him being upset. Nevertheless, Steelers gamers and coaches did inform the media that he has been vocal about his considerations relating to his function within the offense.
Mike Tomlin has experience in holding an sad group collectively and getting the very best out of them. Nevertheless, getting the very best out of less-than-ideal circumstances will solely take a group to this point. Going into this season, Kenny Pickett was alleged to take a step ahead. Utilizing 20/20 hindsight, nobody ought to have believed that was attainable.
In Matt Canada’s third season as offensive coordinator, the offense is receiving the identical criticism it did when Harris ran right into a brick wall 307 occasions as a rookie in 2021. Canada’s offense is just too primary and predictable. Followers, gasbags and soccer nerds all agree on this.
The Steelers have seven video games remaining on their schedule and now their gamers are, one after the other, coming to a boiling level. Harris is dead-on when he says that the way in which the Steelers are scraping by in victories will not be the way in which to win within the NFL.
Sadly for him and his teammates, that’s the solely manner that they’ll be capable to win this season. The Steelers don’t make adjustments rapidly, and definitely not in season. The Athletic’s Dianna Russini has already reported that the group has no plans to half methods with Canada through the season. That was in mid-October through the Steelers’ bye week. She included in her report that he had the assist of Tomlin and the gamers.
Properly, that kumbaya seems to be sporting skinny. There was first an outburst from Pickens after which a measured, but nonetheless pointed, criticism from Harris.
These tense moments are when Tomlin does a few of his finest work. He has confirmed he can hold the ship from sinking and float it to the shore of a 9-8 season. Nevertheless, except the Steelers do one thing totally in opposition to the character of their franchise by making an in-season change at offensive coordinator, gamers might be sitting on that shore sad that the ship didn’t get them the place they in the end wished to go.
