Steelers Issues Start With Coaches, End With Players
BUFFALO -- The Pittsburgh Steelers have avoided the inevitable for years, but that's because they've lived and died from players who fit the glue that keeps NFL franchises together.
In the National Football League, no one is good forever. Even the best of the best fall, and while not always to the floor, they don't have the success they're used to. And right now, the Steelers are finding out what that's like.
The Steelers' issues are three-prong. Their head coach is doing almost everything he preaches not to do, their assistant coaches aren't meeting expectations, and their superstars aren't on the field - and therefore, they aren't talented enough to win.
A lot of this blame falls on Mike Tomlin. The head coach has preached things like not living in his fears, taking what you're given and having to say "heel" instead of "sic 'em". Well, what he's shown through five games this season is plenty of fear, not taking what teams have given and avoiding the word heel until he absolutely has to.
That last one isn't 100% on him.
Kicking field goals down 20-plus points isn't something almost any NFL would do. Tomlin does it frequently. Twice against the Buffalo Bills in Week 5 alone - both of which missed, and somewhat felt like the NFL karma making it's way to the Steelers' sideline.
He's allowed his offensive coordinator to continue to kill momentum by making play calls that everyone watching knows won't work. And on top of that, he's let guys like Najee Harris fight through injuries that have clearly killed his play, while players like Jaylen Warren sit on the bench.
The fans don't believe in Harris anymore. That wouldn't be the case if the Steelers pulled a clearly injured running back weeks ago.
The coordinators speak for themselves. Teryl Austin is a scapegoat on defense, and until Tomlin allows his defensive assistants to actually create a gameplan, and call plays, he's doing this team a disservice.
Matt Canada has few fans left in Pittsburgh, and rightfully so. He hasn't shown anything that suggests he's a winning offensive coordinator, or one who can even see what's working within a game.
The real problem, though is the talent.
The Steelers lived behind Ben Roethlisberger for over a decade. The NFL isn't a secret formula - if you have generational talent, you create generational teams. Players win, and right now, the Steelers don't have the players.
Even towards the end, Roethlisberger was a future Hall of Famer whose best attribute was his winning. If the game was on the line and he was on the field, he knew exactly how to lead an offense.
Around him, were some of the best defenses to step foot on a football field. And on offense, he had names like Antonio Brown, Hines Ward, Heath Miller and Maurkice Pouncey on offense.
The Steelers don't have that talent level this season.
Outside of T.J. Watt and Minkah Fitzpatrick - both of whom are injured - Pittsburgh doesn't have a player who sits within the top five of their position. George Pickens, Pat Freiermuth and Najee Harris might one day fall into the category, but right now, they don't, and right now, the team is struggling.
There are pieces to the roster that make you believe the future is very bright in Pittsburgh. But they've rebuilt by winning, and most times, that's only stalling the inevitable.
Pittsburgh is a young team with potential in the upcoming seasons. No one wants this to happen, but a bad year or two sets them up even better for another run at greatness.
Rome wasn't built in a day. Neither were the last great Pittsburgh Steelers teams. Sometimes, you have to hit the bottom to climb to the top.
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