It is no secret that many who root for the Pittsburgh Steelers have been calling for the organization to move on from Offensive Coordinator, Matt Canada since the end of the 2021 season. The playcalling has proven to be predictable and his offense has been ranked in the bottom half of the league for his entire tenure.
The attention for the majority of the 2022 campaign has mainly been focused on Canada, but Sunday's loss to the Baltimore Ravens marked the second time an opponent ran the ball down Pittsburgh's throat late in order to seal a victory. Defensive Coordinator, Teryl Austin should also be a topic of conversation.
CLEVELAND, OH - SEPTEMBER 22: Defensive coordinator Teryl Austin of the Pittsburgh Steelers (R) reads his play sheet during the second half against the Cleveland Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium on September 22, 2022, in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
Austin was promoted from being the team's secondary coach to defensive coordinator following the retirement of Keith Butler almost a year ago. In a small sample size, there have been flashy moments, but the inconsistency has proven costly. The Steelers have the highest-paid defense in all of football and along with being one of the worst against the pass in the NFL, have collapsed late in games, despite the one obvious goal of teams that have beaten them late.
In Week 2 against the New England Patriots, the defense for Pittsburgh played a solid game, but it was versus a weak offense. Down 17-14, all Austin's unit needed was a stop in order to put the ball back in the hands of then-starting Quarterback, Mitch Trubisky and the offense. New England took control of the ball with 6:33 left in the game and wound up ending the contest on a drive that saw 13 plays go for just 46 yards. No one watching believed the Patriots would throw the ball, up three points and on the road. It didn't matter. Two third downs were converted on the drive.
The majority of the plays were runs but allowing one pass on second down to go for 11 yards with 13 yards and getting them to the line to gain, ended up being a killer. There was not another throw completed on the possession. Sitting on the run and preventing big plays should have been on the top of the agenda in that situation and neither seemed to be at the height of the defense's mind.
The loss to Baltimore on Sunday was even more embarrassing. The Ravens had a third-string quarterback toward the end of a crucial divisional matchup. After a field goal was blocked midway through the fourth, a drive consisting of 13 plays and just 57 yards gained led to a Justin Tucker field goal.
The defense for Pittsburgh couldn't up with a stop in a critical time once again. That wasn't the end though. The offense drove down and scored a touchdown quickly. Down two, all that was needed was a stop to get the ball back. Austin's group failed, allowing a third down conversion. The shotgun set apparently confused the defense and Gus Edwards coasted for six yards with the first down mark only being three yards away.
Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher, TJ Watt (#90) stretches during the 2022 training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, PA. | Photo Credit: Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO
Edge Rusher, T.J. Watt even admitted to the media after the game that the defense didn't do enough to come up with a big stop. He was asked about what went wrong on the final couple of drives and wasn't shy about the blown opportunity.
“Not executing when everyone in the stadium knew what they were going to do and that was run the ball," Watt said.
The Steelers have held opponents' rushing attacks to under 100 yards four times this season, yet still fall in the middle of the pack in the league due to games like Sunday, when Baltimore ran for 215 yards on the ground. The most concerning number is the 145 rushing yards allowed per game within the division. The teams that the coaching staff is supposed to know the best have had a great amount of success handing the ball off.
The fourth-quarter defense was also one of the main reasons for blowing a 10-point lead against the New York Jets in Week 4. The now-benched, Zach Wilson led his offense to two drives of 81 and 64 yards. They took almost 9:30 off the clock and after allowing just 10 points in the first half, a 14-point fourth quarter ended up being enough for New York to come in and shock the Steelers in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh Steelers Senior Defensive Assistant/Linebackers coach Brian Flores participates in the Organized Team Activities(OTAs), Tuesday, May 31, 2022, at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. (Photo Credit: Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers)
The only positive statistic worth noting is Pittsburgh is second in the league with 14 interceptions. Unfortunately, that doesn't help late in the game when you need to stop the run so your offense has a shot to win the game for you. Mike Tomlin and Brian Flores absolutely have to be held accountable to some extent, but if Austin's defense had merely played in the fourth quarter in line with how they are paid in the three games mentioned above, it would be a completely different final four games of the season.
The offense has not been nearly consistent enough and absolutely deserves to be held accountable. But a defense that has minds to the likes of Austin, Tomlin and Flores should be prepared to get a stop and show up late in games when necessary. It could certainly be the difference in the Steelers being 5-8 instead of 7-6 or 8-5. Who knows? Maybe demoting or firing Austin could open the door for Flores to lead a clearly inconsistent defense.
Will Austin be fired? The odds are very much in his favor to be retained given the franchise's history, but it is certainly hard to ignore that if his defense was prepared to stop a rushing attack everyone in the stadium knew was coming in multiple games this year, Pittsburgh may have ended up playing meaningful football in December and January. Don't forget allowing a now-benched quarterback for the Jets to effectively move the ball and score two touchdowns in the fourth quarter in September. Austin's performance needs to be reviewed following the 2022 regular season.
What are your thoughts on Austin's first season as the defensive coordinator? Let us know in the comments below!
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