PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Why did Mike Tomlin go for it late in the first half? A key player dealing with the flu including reaction to starting the postseason on a four-game losing streak. Do the Steelers believe the defense took a step forward? All those notes and the best quotes from the Steelers 19-17 loss to Cincinnati Saturday night.
Tomlin said often after the game they didn’t do enough routine playmaking. He said that’s the signature of a team playing well, they obviously are not that team.
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“I thought particularly on the offensive side we didn’t do enough routine things well to move the ball with fluidity, to possess it, to score and so the game was touch-and-go because of that.”
Tomlin used that as reasoning for only 12 pass attempts in the first three quarters. He also mentioned that in the lopsided time of possession, 38 minutes to 22 in favor of the Bengals.
Go to Justin?
Making a quarterback change and going to Justin Fields was not a consideration when they were struggling, particularly in the first three quarters.
“Not really, no, because our failures were collective,” Tomlin said. “I think at this juncture the most prudent thing for us to do was to stick with those that were on the field and work through it.”
Russell Wilson ended up 17-31 for 148 yards with a touchdown to Pat Freiermuth.
4th and 1 call end of 1st half
After ending up just short on 3rd and 1 with a quarterback sneak, Tomlin decided to go for it from their own 38-yard-line and the pitch to Jaylen Warren ended up short. Bengals turned that into three points.
“We had timeouts, they had timeouts,” Tomlin said. “Didn’t want to give the ball back to them. I like to be aggressive in those moments. If you can’t get a yard, you don’t deserve to win, and so obviously we didn’t.”
Defensive step
While there were still issues, especially with the quick passes, the Steelers did hold Cincinnati to just one touchdown. Coming into the game Joey Burrow had thrown at least three touchdown passes in each of the last eight games.
“I thought from a communication standpoint on defense, a lot of the guys took ownership over it,” said captain Cam Heyward. “I like how we, as things progressed in the game, we adjusted and corrected. You know, not always going to be perfect, but I thought we made some adjustments.”
“I think we took a step in the right direction,” said linebacker Patrick Queen. “It wasn’t as good as it needs to be, obviously. There are plays for us to make and we have to make those, but I definitely think we took a step in the right direction.”
“I felt we grew on the defensive side of the ball,” said corner Cory Trice, Junior. “We just got to keep growing with our communication and keep executing.”
Bengals ended up with 314 yards (246 passing as Joe Burrow was 37-46 with a touchdown and an interception-Beanie Bishop) and 68 yards rushing.
“It’s stuff we understood all week,” Queen said. “We took a step in the right direction, we just need to start faster.”
“There were some things that we did fix, but we didn’t get a ‘W’ and that’s all that matters,” linebacker Alex Highsmith.
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1st start
With starter Donte Jackson unable to go due to his back injury, the Steelers went to second-year corner Cory Trice, Junior to play in his position.
“My first start, I definitely feel I have to get better,” Trice said. “There are definitely some things I will go back to the film room and look at. I did a pretty good technique-wise, it’s just I have to start playing the ball when the ball is in the air.”
Trice led the team with 11 tackles (7 solo) and had a tackle for loss. He was beaten for the only Bengals touchdown, a 12-yard pass in the first quarter.
Flu
Steelers captain Cam Heyward had a trio of pass deflections, a couple at huge moments. We found out after the game he was playing with the flu. He said it didn’t start until Friday night and he’s just been dealing with it. His brother Connor also appeared sick after the game.
Quotes
“We need to play winning football. We are not doing that right now.”
OLB TJ Watt
“It sucks. It’s painful, the only way to dig yourself out of this is go 1-0 next week, who cares now. It’s the playoffs. We are in it.”
TE Connor Heyward
“We got to flush this and we just got to know that the next opportunity is do or die now. Of course, we didn’t end the season the way we wanted to. We just got to flush it and move on.”
LB Alex Highsmith
“We earned the opportunity to go in the postseason. It sucks we lost these last four games, but we earned that right.”
TE Pat Freiermuth
“Next week is 0-0, it’s win or go home. All of that seeding and all that stuff don’t matter. Home field advantage don’t matter. It’s win or go home.”
LB Patrick Queen
“We got the guys in the locker room to get it right, we just have to get back to the drawing board.”
S DeShon Elliott
“We got to be complementary, offense, defense, special teams. That’s where we thrive. Slate is clean. They don’t remember your record once you get to the playoffs.”
DE Cam Heyward
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