Film Room: Everything That's Wrong With the Steelers Run Game
It's hard to complain when you're 9-0. That's the reality for the still undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers, who look to extend their unbeaten streak this week in Jacksonville as heavy favorites against a 1-8 Jaguars football team. Without a blemish on their record, finding areas to drastically improve may be hard to come by.
Yet when it comes to the Steelers' ability (or lack thereof) to run the ball as of late, it's quite easy to pinpoint where the Steelers should focus their efforts during the week of practice.
Rushing wise, Pittsburgh's season has been a tale of two different stories. The Steelers ran the ball extremely well to start 2020, hitting over 100 rushing yards in their first five games for an average of 136.8 yards per contest during that time. Since then (week seven to be exact), Pittsburgh has hit a dry spell in their effectiveness on the ground, failing to his the century mark in rushing for what is now four consecutive games, with the last three games seeing less than 50 yards total on the ground.
"As a team, you always go through lulls in the season where components of your play are lacking, and it requires a re-center of energy or attention or focus," said Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin to media on Tuesday. "I believe that is where we are in regards to the run game right now. We will get about that task this week."
When things go south in any aspect of professional football, there has to be some sort of reason for the lack of production. Some believe running back James Conner is needed to bring his play to par, while others believe a handful of offensive linemen or even offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner are to blame.
After watching every run play of Pittsburgh's 36-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, I reached a conclusion: All the above needs to improve.
Interior Play
A strong rushing attack can only work with solid interior play. With solidified veterans such as Maurkice Pouncey and David DeCastro taking up 2/3 interior spots, the standards are set through the roof thanks to excellent play in the past.
However, as of late, both players have looked somewhat of a shell of their former selves. We'll start with Pouncey in the video below:
DeCastro (and Feiler) also weren't able to get anything going against the Bengals. While Cincinnati's defensive tackles did a good job to command double teams and free up linebackers to make plays, both guards are needed to step their game up to get the running game back on track:
Play-Calling
Before this article goes any further, I must warn readers that I am not Fichtner's biggest fan.
That being said, the failure to run the ball effectively doesn't entirely fall on his shoulders, although the consistent motion by receivers (likely a Matt Canada wrinkle) failed miserably against the Bengals:
The Steelers even tried getting fullback Derek Watt involved, along with the good ol' fashioned Chase Claypool jet sweep. Neither brought success thanks to a crowded line of scrimmage:
Tight End Blocking
When the Steelers brought Eric Ebron in, it surely wasn't to solidify himself as the league's best blocking tight end. While Ebron has undeniably helped Pittsburgh through the air, his presence was needed in the trenches with the absence of Vance McDonald, who's transitioned into a tight end capable of getting his hands dirty at the line of scrimmage.
Ebron's blocking output last Sunday was less than impressive:
So... What's The Solution?
After watching and rewatching every rushing attempt last Sunday, I've come to realize Pittsburgh's recent rushing struggles had many layers.
Starting with the play-calling, the Steelers simply cannot afford to run into stacked box after box and expect stellar results. It was blatantly obvious the Bengals were going to commit to stopping the run first, loading the line of scrimmage with eight players on typical rushing downs. Utilizing a receiver motion did virtually nothing throughout the game, as Cincinnati's defense stayed true to their assignments rather than get caught looking/out of position.
Getting Vance McDonald back would also be pivotal for the Steelers in their rushing efforts, as McDonald is undeniably Pittsburgh's best run-blocking tight end. That would also allow Pittsburgh to utilize two tight end sets, balancing out the line of scrimmage and getting bigger bodies on the field.
When it comes to the offensive line, i failed to identify one starter who truly played a solid game from start to finish. All five starters are needed to step their game up in some shape or form to help their running backs out, as too many times on film, a big play was prevented due to either a mental lapse or simply losing their battle with a defensive player.
As for running backs, James Conner wasn't given much to work with on Sunday. His best work came when he hit stayed north/south and hit the hole with acceleration as opposed to dancing/shuffling his feet, waiting for an opening.
His vision also leaves room for improvement:
Would Benny Snell or Anthony McFarland play better in the starting role? With limited opportunity and the current state of the offensive line, probably not. However, some sort of change is needed within the structures of the running game in order to remain somewhat balanced, whether that be the ball-carrier, the big men in front of him or the guy with the headset.
There's no magical answer to what's wrong with Pittsburgh's ability to run the ball. No one slight adjustment that will get things back on track or one substitution that will gloss over the recent problems exists.
Simply put, everybody involved needs to execute to higher standards. That's easier said than done, but with the Steelers playing some of their best football in recent memory, time still exists to tweak what's necessary ahead of an expected deep run into the postseason.
Donnie Druin is a Staff Writer with AllSteelers. Follow Donnie on Twitter @DonnieDruin, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
