Essex: Steelers Offense Lacks Complete Identity And Confidence: "Always On Our Heels"

The Pittsburgh Steelers are trying to rebound following at 13-6 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 17. They had won three straight prior to their loss in Cleveland. In those three wins, it felt like they finally found their offensive identity, riding behind their rushing attack of Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell. That all went out the window during a three-hour span in Ohio, and one former Steelers offensive lineman doesn't understand how that happened. 

Pittsburgh had just gone on the road in Week 16 and defeated the NFC’s top seed from a year prior in the Detroit Lions, leaning heavily on a dominant ground attack. In that win, the Steelers rushed for 230 yards, their highest single-game total since 2016, consistently controlling the line of scrimmage and keeping Detroit’s offense on the sideline.

That blueprint, however, was largely abandoned against Cleveland. Although the Steelers still out-rushed the Browns 131 to 78, the commitment to the run never truly materialized. Warren and Gainwell combined for just 19 carries, a puzzling decision given the recent success of the rushing attack. Instead of wearing down Cleveland’s defense and dictating the tempo, Pittsburgh shifted away from what had just proven to be its most effective formula.

The flawed offensive strategy ultimately showed up on the scoreboard, with the Steelers mustering only six points in the loss. The defeat was a costly one, as it could ultimately keep the Steelers out of the playoffs. 

Former Steelers offensive lineman Trai Essex joined The Fan Morning Show on Tuesday, where he voiced the same confusion shared by much of the fan base. Essex questioned Pittsburgh’s offensive approach, particularly the decision to move away from the run game despite its recent success. From his perspective as a former lineman, the lack of commitment to the ground attack made little sense and took away one of the Steelers’ biggest strengths, ultimately contributing to the offensive struggles seen against Cleveland.

"With our offense, it feels like we're always on our heels. We're always adjusting to what the defense does, we don't come in with the confidence that we have an identity and we're gonna do what we wanna do offensively," Essex said. "We should've went into that game and handed the ball off to [Kenneth] Gainwell and [Jaylen] Warren 30 or 40 times. There was no other reason not to."

The Steelers' offense certainly had to make some adjustments to their game plan without DK Metcalf in the lineup, as he was serving his first of a two-game suspension. 

With Metcalf out, the Steelers had to look elsewhere to fill his shoes in the passing game, and that didn't particularly go very well. 

Steelers Ignored Kenneth Gainwell In Second Half Against Cleveland

Aaron Rodgers threw the ball 39 times on Sunday, completing 21 of those passes for just 168 yards with no touchdowns to show for it. The passing attack lacked explosiveness and struggled to consistently move the chains, especially with the Steelers shorthanded at wide receiver. 

Under those circumstances, the offense seemed primed to lean more heavily on the run game or, at the very least, feature the running backs as primary options in the short passing game to create easier completions and keep the offense on schedule.

"With your big number one receiver out in DK [Metcalf], and you're next best receiver being Kenneth Gainwell, you would've thought he had six plus catches and at least 10 targets, and he wasn't targeted in the second half at all," Essex said.

Essex’s frustration is understandable when looking at Gainwell’s production over the course of the season. Gainwell has arguably been Pittsburgh’s offensive MVP, providing consistency and versatility in an otherwise uneven offense. 

Gainwell leads the team in receptions with 65 and ranks third in receiving yards with 422, while also adding 527 rushing yards and seven total touchdowns. Given his reliability and ability to make plays in space, the lack of second-half involvement was especially puzzling and highlighted a missed opportunity for an offense searching for answers.

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