The Pittsburgh Steelers have had a rough go of things in the past couple of weeks. Losses to the Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens have significantly impacted the team's chances of securing the AFC North crown, especially with the Kansas City Chiefs on the horizon for a Christmas Day showdown. One of the main reasons for the losing streak isn't necessarily the offense, but rather, the inefficiency on the defensive side of the ball. Two bad losses have highlighted that there are more issues present rather than the obvious one of the team missing George Pickens.
Another piece to the puzzle recently has been the absence of do-it-all safety DeShon Elliott. Without the veteran in the lineup, Minkah Fitzpatrick has had to play closer to the line of scrimmage, leading to issues in the secondary. This has caught the attention of more than just one person, but most recently, legendary quarterback Ben Roethlisberger spoke about the team's passing defense.
On the most recent episode of his podcast, Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger, the retired signal-caller discussed the defense, and specifically the secondary. He acknowledged that there have been injuries, but all in all, is extremely concerned with what has been going on throughout the last couple of games on the defensive side of the ball.
"Our passing defense makes me incredibly nervous. Maybe not nervous - scared," Roethlisberger said. "If we can't get pressure on the quarterback, I don't know that we can cover on the backend. A lot of that's due to injuries, but it just makes me so nervous in the passing game."
Scared is a strong word to use, but Roethlisberger is speaking for the fan base when he says that. Every third down, the black and gold faithful is holding its breath waiting for TJ Watt to get to the quarterback. If he doesn't, it almost seems as if the opposition is converting at a very high rate. The last two weeks, the Eagles and Ravens combined to be an incredibly 14-27 on third downs, good for nearly a 52% conversion rate.
If the Steelers want to make some kind of run in the playoffs, the secondary needs to be able to stop the AFC's best offenses on third downs. The Chiefs are the best in the league, converting over half of the time, which should give Pittsburgh's defense its biggest test yet. Elliott is supposed to be back in the lineup, which will hopefully give the unit a boost as a whole.
Roethlisberger hasn't been the only one to voice concerns with the Steelers' defense, and the criticism is warranted. It has been a bad two weeks, and using the excuse that Pittsburgh played two of the league's best offenses isn't exactly valid. The main point is that to go on a playoff run, allowing 24 or more points consistently is nowhere near acceptable.
It will be interesting to see how the group responds against one of the most high-powered offenses in the AFC. Kansas City will be coming to Pittsburgh with an attempt to clinch home-field advantage in the postseason, so everything will be done to improve to 15-1 and secure that positioning. The Steelers will need to continue focusing on stopping the run, but that gets much more difficult when Patrick Mahomes is on the other sideline.
Steelers Have Arguably Missed Elliott Even More Than Pickens
Fans in Pittsburgh have been very eager to see Pickens back on the football field, but there hasn't been enough talk about what has happened to the defense with Elliott not being able to play. Aside from Watt, it can be argued that Elliott is the most valuable player on the defense based on his versatility and run-stopping abilities. If he plays on Wednesday, fans should except to see a much better Steelers defense trotting out onto the field at Acrisure Stadium.
Are you scared when it comes to the Steelers' passing defense like Roethlisberger is?
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