By: Morgan Urtso, @morganurtso on Twitter
SteelerNation.com
The Pittsburgh Steelers have an offensive problem, and this is news to nobody - except maybe Offensive Coordinator, Randy Fichtner, who doesn't seem to know anything. The glaring issues on offense have been present all year, successfully masked by an offensive scheme that was working well... ish, and a defense that always compensated. Unfortunately for the Steelers, it's Week 14, and the mask is off (figuratively - don't catch a fine), and as Washington Football Team Defensive End Montez Sweat said, "I knew it! I knew it," the Steelers have been exposed.
But, ok, hear me out:
This defense is still elite and I'd put them up against anybody. Despite mounting injuries, they've allowed an average of 13.8 points in the last five games. Nobody can hang. It's dope.
The offense is... different. Specifically, they're struggling to catch easy passes, run the ball, and gain in short yardage situations, particularly at the goal line. And, yes, we can chalk some of this up to bad play calling, but Fichtner isn't going anywhere, so let's work around him. The Steelers are a playbook dive (and some quality time on the JUGS machine) away from working it out.
1. James Washington
I almost just left it at that, but I'll elaborate. I'm not sure why, but Washington's snap count is clocking in at 43%, the second lowest snap rate of all Steelers wide receivers, followed only by Ray-Ray McCloud. This is a wildly low rate of involvement for a guy who Ben Roethlisberger considers, vocally, one of his most reliable targets in traffic. Pittsburgh leads the NFL by a margin of 10 with 31 dropped passes on the year, and it's been a debilitating point of contention for several Steelers receivers for weeks, but Washington isn't one of them. In fact, Washington's catch percentage is 89.3% (he trails only JuJu Smith-Schuster at 96.1%) when Roethlisberger delivers a catchable ball. Oh, mama.
2. We don't have to run more, we have to run better
The following stat should concern you: The Pittsburgh Steelers are 6th best in the league against the rush, allowing 1,208 yards YTD, and 4th worst in the league at rushing, stacking a whopping 1,111 yards YTD. Our ELITE defense has allowed more yards than our offense has earned. To put it simply, defenses aren't confused by anything we throw at them. The short, quick crossing and underneath routes are predictable and lifeless, and forcing them is annihilating the ground game. The past two games in particular, I've watched Baltimore and Washington's defensive backs LIVE at the line of scrimmage. They, eat, sleep, and breathe right on top of our offense; they're not worried about our receivers stretching the field. They're set to stack the box, and they do it consistently because our one-dimensional offensive scheme showed them that they could. Whew, it's getting hot in here, are you hot? I'm hot.
Essentially, this is happening for a myriad of reasons. We are solely focused on protecting Roethlisberger at all costs, we run roughly 90% of our plays out of the shotgun with 5-wide, the Derek Watt package is so small that defenses know exactly what's coming when he taps in, and same with Jerald Hawkins. We're experiencing Mike Munchak withdrawal symptoms, our player personnel isn't ideal for a run-heavy offense, and there's a lack of physicality and energy on the OL. But I digress.
Because we're solution-oriented here, there are a few options for Pittsburgh to shore up the run game, and all of them come down to creativity and opening up the playbook. A few off the top of my head? I'm so glad you asked.
Broaden the package for our fullback and situational players. We can't be afraid to put Roethlisberger under center with two guys in the backfield and run a two or three tight end set with block-motivated personnel. Shuffle the line and throw Kevin Dotson in at guard, his bread and butter is run blocking and it's tough to successfully run the football without an agile offensive line up front. Run more intermediate routes, that's where Washington comes in clutch. Hell, line Chase Claypool up at tight end and let's get real weird with it. I could sit here for hours discussing different schemes and formations and suggesting we try them all to see what sticks, but I'm just a writer, what do I know. The point here is this: the stagnant predictability is public enemy number 1, and it's time for our offense to go on offense.
3. Let. Ben. Cook.
It's no secret among Steelers fans that when the offense is failing, it's on Fichtner, and when they're balling, it's on Roethlisberger. The theory is a Pittsburgh staple, and I don't believe it's baseless. Statistically, Roethlisberger is arguably unstoppable in the No Huddle, and that's where we like him; reading a defense, reacting accordingly, commanding the offense, and orchestrating the ideal play. He's proven year after year that this is the move - so why are we waiting until we're down by 10 in the 4th quarter to hand the big man the reigns? I'm not advising we adopt the No Huddle 100% of the time, that would be asking a lot of an old offensive line that isn't matching the energy of young positional players, but the goal should be to incorporate it throughout the entirety of the game in varying series. And when we don't? Oh, Canadaaaaa. Where's Matt been?
In my personal opinion, this is the single largest obstacle to offensive success for the Steelers. They're utilizing the No Huddle offense less than 15% of the time, but it's accounting for about one fifth of their total yards. I'm no mathematician, but the solution here seems obvious.
So Steeler Nation, what ya got? What's your key for the Steelers offense? Let me know below!
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