The Pittsburgh Steelers lost a heartbreaker to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 5 during Sunday Night Football. The Steelers, despite their many injuries, were favored to win over a very banged up Dallas team. Under the direction of Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith, quarterback Justin Fields was expecting to mount a punishing run game. That didn't happen. The offense couldn't sustain drives, and the defense ultimately couldn't stop the Cowboys when it mattered most.
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Steelers' Justin Fields gets brought down against the Dallas Cowboys in 2024.
When a loss like this happens, there is always enough blame to go around, but many pointed fingers squarely at the defense, even though they were responsible for causing three turnovers. The Steelers had Dallas on the ropes 17-13 and allowed the Cowboys to drive down the field, convert a fourth down, and score a touchdown to win the game.
It isn't just the fans blaming the defense, the captain of that squad isn't happy with their performance. On his podcast Not Just Football with Cam Heyward, defensive tackle Cameron Heyward said he was proud they had the turnovers they did. He credited Donte Jackson and Joey Porter Jr. for having interceptions, Isaiahh Loudermilk for blocking a kick, and Elandon Roberts for forcing a fumble. However, they still didn't do enough to get it done, and that's on the defensive players.
"We had a chance to win it at the end and didn't play our best football. I'm kicking myself because we had a chance to get that fumble at the end and really seal the deal, just unfortunate that we weren't able to capitalize on the last one. You couldn't have told me we'd get down to the red zone, three stops in a row, we weren't going to get off that field. It felt like it was position for us, especially after that fumble. We had a good opportunity to get off, but you got to take your lumps."
Heyward's co-host, Hayden Walsh, said that he knows the Steelers run a "bend and don't break defense," but they allowed Dak Prescott to throw for 352 yards and Rico Dowdle to run for 87 yards. He wanted to know if the turnovers at least took the sting off the loss, making him feel better.
"It doesn't make me feel better at all. I still feel like c**p about it. A lot of things were on the perimeter, quick passes to the receivers, and then they had success running the ball late. You can't have that. We had sacks; we had a fumble recovery by Nick Herbig; T.J. [Watt] had some good pressure throughout the entire game, so when you look at that, there are some positives, but not enough. Offense put up enough points, defense has got to clearly hold them, make sure they don't score and we didn't."
The defense wasn't the only group to take the blame; a lot of it was pointed at the coaching staff, especially at Head Coach Mike Tomlin and his questionable use of timeouts. On that fourth down, Tomlin chose to call a timeout, saying later that he wanted to be sure he had the proper defense called. Instead, he gave Cowboys Head Coach Mike McCarthy a chance to change his personnel after he didn't like what he saw, thus giving them the score to the game.
Aaron Anastasia / Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers' Justin Fields handing it off to Najee Harris.
Steelers' Defense Taken More Than Its Share Of Lumps
The Steelers have the highest-paid defense in the NFL, but money cannot protect you from the injury bug. Entering the 2024 season, the Steelers had an embarrassment of riches at outside linebacker. The whole world already knows the magic the team possesses with T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith, and many were excited about what a young Nick Herbig might be able to do. When Highsmith got injured, Herbig was ready to step up, and he performed quite well, having two sacks on Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert after Highsmith left during that game.
Aaron Anastasia / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers OLBs T.J. Watt and Nick Herbig making a play during Week 3 against the Chargers in 2024.
Now Herbig is also injured, and it seems likely that we will see a lot of Jeremiah Moon across from Watt, with Highsmith likely out for another week. Tomlin also mentioned he brought some players up from the practice squad.
Who do you think deserves the most blame for the loss to the Cowboys? Click to comment below.
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