The Pittsburgh Steelers fell to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday by a final score of 31-17, dropping to 1-1 on the season. It was a poor performance from the Steelers in all three phases. Pittsburgh allowed 30+ points for the second-consecutive game, the offense only mustered 267 total yards, and a costly special teams mistake in the fourth quarter gave Seattle seven free points.
Taylor Ollason / Pittsburgh Steelers
Mike Tomlin on the sidelines during the Steelers' 31-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 2 of the 2025 NFL regular season.
In his postgame press conference, Head Coach Mike Tomlin kept it pretty blunt and honest when talking about his team's Week 2 performance.
"I'm concerned about a lot of things," said Tomlin.
Tomlin isn't alone. Every Steelers fan has the right to be concerned to some extent following Sunday's loss, as it almost felt like a worst case scenario type of performance. The offense looked sluggish and out of rhythm, the defense couldn’t find ways to get off the field, and injuries plus mental mistakes just kept piling up until the game slipped completely out of reach.
The Steelers offense only scored one touchdown, a two-yard pass from Aaron Rodgers to DK Metcalf right before halftime. Even though they scored, it's hard to imagine that it was Pittsburgh's best drive, given the fact they started it at the Seattle 21-yard line following an interception from Nick Herbig.
Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers
Cameron Heyward knocks down a pass against the Seattle Seahawks.
Nevertheless, the Steelers led 14-7 at the half and it felt as if they could overcome their 1st half mistakes en route to a nice 2nd half win, but that wasn't the case. Seattle tied the game at 14-14 on their first drive of the 3rd quarter, capping off a 9-play, 80-yard drive with a 7-yard touchdown pass from Sam Darnold to AJ Barner.
The unfortunate game-changing play came on the ensuing kickoff. Steelers rookie Kaleb Johnson didn't handle the Seattle kickoff cleanly, and mistakingly let the ball roll into the end zone, not knowing it was a live ball, allowing the Seahawks to recover the ball in the end zone for a touchdown.
Despite the mistake by Johnson, that one play didn't decide the game. Pittsburgh punted four times and had two drives end in interceptions thrown by Rodgers. The Steelers' defense allowed Darnold to throw for 295 yards and two touchdowns, while Kenneth Walker III rushed for 105 yards and a score.
Although the Steelers forced two turnovers, as well as a missed field goal, they couldn't make the plays when it seemed to matter the most. Seattle went 6-for-14 on 3rd down, and the Steelers defensive line only sacked Darnold twice.
"We didn't perform to the level that we desire," Tomlin said. "Certainly there is a lot that has my attention leading into this upcoming week."
With an offense that struggled, a defense that gave up big plays, and a special teams unit that handed away seven free points, the Steelers didn't deserve to win the game.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Jaylen Warren runs with the football during the Steelers' 31-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 2 of the 2025 NFL regular season.
Steelers Have Plenty To Fix Away From Home
The Steelers won’t play at the friendly confines of Acrisure Stadium again for another 28 days. They will travel to Foxborough, Massachusetts next week to face the New England Patriots, who earned their first win of the season on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. Then on September 28th, the Steelers will face the Minnesota Vikings in Dublin, Ireland before their bye week the following week.
That stretch is going to tell us a lot about this team. The Patriots aren’t one of the league's top teams, but they’re always tough at home. The Vikings game in Ireland won't be much easier, and then the bye week could be a much-needed reset. At 1-1, the season is far from over, but if Pittsburgh doesn’t clean things up quickly, this skid could turn ugly fast.
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