Steelers' Coach Gets Big Reality Check After Terrible Start To Season: "Totally Underwhelmed In Almost Every Game"

The Pittsburgh Steelers are looking to gain some sort of consistency now that they're in the middle of the season. The offense and defense have each shown flashes, but not at the same time. The good news is that one side is usually able to make up for the other when it's not working, but the inability to have everything click at the same time leads to some very tight games. If Head Coach Mike McCarthy can find a way to get everyone on the same page at the same time, his team could be scary down the stretch. 

There's another side of the ball here however, and this one is actually consistent: consistently bad. In his latest mailbag from The Athletic, insider Mike DeFabo talked about the concerns of the special teams unit as a whole throughout the year.

"I’ve been totally underwhelmed in almost every game, starting with the first preseason game when they committed seven penalties," DeFabo said. "They spent a fourth-round pick on a return specialist yet are 30th in yards per kick return (23.2) and 28th in yards per punt return (6.9)."

Every single week, the special teams issues get brought up. As DeFabo said, this was a conversation everyone was having in the preseason. When this is a noticeable problem every week, it's clear that the coaching is subpar. Danny Crossman seems to have made this unit a complete liability. When the Steelers play tight games against top-tier teams, the field position could end up leading to a loss. 

Throughout the season, rookie return man Kaden Wetjen has been struggling with vision and technique. His biggest issue is that he typically does not get vertical. He keeps trying to go laterally, which almost never works in the NFL. Even when he does have a good return, it's usually aided by a penalty that backs them up. The Steelers can't keep starting on their own 20-25-yard line when everyone else makes it to the 30+. 

The kick coverage is not exactly better. Unless Lew Nichols gets down the field to make a play, the Steelers typically give up longer returns. They are the eighth-worst team in kick return yards allowed on average while being the third worst in getting kick return yards. When the offense has to drive down long fields and the defense has to defend short ones, the advantage goes to the opponent.

It's been a long time since the Steelers were a true threat in the return game, but they used to have one of the better kickoff/punt coverage units in the NFL. Under Danny Smith, this was a gritty, physical unit that would constantly make big hits and limit the opposition to minimal gains. Somehow, Crossman has taken Smith's teams and mangled them into this mess that keeps getting brought up every week.

Special teams is one of those areas where people don't typically notice something unless something goes horrifically wrong somewhere, and that's the case here. The Steelers can't return kicks or punts, and they can't cover either. Everyone in Pittsburgh has seen this. It could -- and should -- lead to Crossman being fired at the end of the 2026 season unless he can find a way to make his unit do a complete 180.

Steelers May Have Lost Trust In Crossman After Offseason Fiasco

One of Crossman's very first decisions in Pittsburgh ended up being the wrong one. His assistant, Derrius Swinton, was fired for "workplace misconduct" all the way back in May. In hindsight, that may have been the first sign of the coordinator's poor decision-making abilities. Between that whole ordeal, as well as the special teams' inability to get going, it would not be surprising to see him be one-and-done in Pittsburgh.

What do you think about the Steelers' special teams being very underwhelming in all facets all season long, including in the preseason? Let us know on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.

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