"A Pattern": Steelers' Chris Boswell Exposed After Questionable Start To 2026 Season

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been extremely lucky to have veteran defensive lineman Cam Heyward around since the 2011 season. After him, Chris Boswell comes in as the longest-tenured member of the roster in 2026. The organization has had access to one of the most consistent legs in the game for several years. This is why the kicker has been rewarded with more than just one contract extension during his career. Most recently, he inked a deal that spans four years and is worth roughly $28 million. The unfortunate part of that move is that Boswell's campaign has not started as well as the team would have hoped.

In the Steelers' two losses, Boswell has missed a pair of kicks. He also failed to convert on a 56-yarder in Week 1 against the Atlanta Falcons. Overall, fans expected the kicker to maybe miss just a handful in any given season. So far, he is just 7-10, which should spark just a little bit of concern internally. The best in the business always bounce back, so that is the hope with Boswell.

The miss in Week 4 versus the Cleveland Browns proved to be particularly costly. Pittsburgh lost by three points. There's no way to tell how the contest would have finished up had Boswell made the one he didn't convert on; however, it sheds a negative light on him. If issues persist, it will not be a good look for him or the front office moving forward.

Fans are used to Boswell being somewhat automatic. There is a troubling trend, though, that was recently pointed out by a beat writer. Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette hosted a fan chat on Thursday. He was asked a simple question about his level of concern with the missed kicks through four weeks. Overall, the reporter did not shy away from calling out this exact situation.

"Yes, I have concerns. It's been a pattern with him," Fittipaldo wrote. "He always has bad seasons after he signs a new contract. It's like clockwork."

Fittipaldo's analysis is a bit jarring. The first extension for the kicker came in August of 2018. That season, Boswell only was successful on 13 of 20 field-goal attempts. He also missed five extra points. Fast forward to the next deal in 2022, only 20 of 28 were converted during that campaign. Now, after yet another lucrative deal, the Steelers are experiencing the same thing all over again. This happening on three different occasions is worth noting. It's a terrible trend.

It hasn't been all sunshine and rainbows for new special teams coordinator Danny Crossman. His unit has had issues all across the board. One person who he probably didn't think would be someone to worry about was Boswell. Now, things have changed. The kicker got paid, and he seems to be playing as if he is more than comfortable. The small details matter when a field-goal operation is on the field. Those have evidently not been honed in on.

There is too much of an investment in Boswell for anyone to panic or consider changes. However, that doesn't mean the noise won't get louder if he continues to struggle. The Steelers have been so capable of competing in games for years mainly because of the kicker's leg. He has single-handedly won more than just one game because of his consistency. That is something that Pittsburgh is going to want to see return much sooner rather than later.

Steelers' Offensive Approach Will Hint At The Confidence In Boswell

Head Coach Mike McCarthy has not been shy about kicking long field goals. That hints at how much he trusts in his guy. With that said, if Pittsburgh begins to roll the dice and go for it on offense when hovering around an opponent's 35-40-yard lines, it could signal that there's trouble in paradise. The last thing that the Steelers need is to make a kicker the highest-paid at his position, only for him to follow it up with yet another poor season following an extension.

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