PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – For as much as the offense is frustrating and is mostly passive in its play-calling, the Steelers dropped to 6-5 not because of the offense, but a defense that is like an expensive stock that you bought high and think you might need to sell, and cut your losses.
This isn’t an opinion piece, it’s fact. Let’s look at the numbers this year:
· No team in the NFL has given up more passing yards in 2025 than the Pittsburgh Steelers (3,054)
· 7th worst in first downs allowed passing (136), one out of being in the top 5
· 3rd worst in Yards After Catch (1,343)-only Cincy worse in AFC
· 2nd in the NFL in missed tackles (93)-only Cincy worse in NFL
6th worst in first downs allowed rushing (86)
· Steelers have allowed the most 4th down conversions in the NFL (19)
· 3rd most 3rd down conversions in NFL (67)
· Only the Bengals, Titans, Jets, Raiders and Dolphins have given up more points per game (23.9) in the AFC—those teams combined record, 12-43
Let some of those numbers sink in, of the positive stats, the Steelers are leading the NFL in forced fumbles (14)-eight of those game in two games, and fifth in sacks (34), that’s 15 behind the NFL leader, Denver.
The last time the Steelers have given up 30 points in a game five different times in a season was 2013, they finished 8-8. Those five equal the amount of times the Steelers gave up 30-plus combined in 2023 and 2024. Here are the five games so far:
· W, 34-32 at New York Jets—Justin Fields quarterback
· L, 31-17 Seattle—Sam Darnold quarterback
· L, 33-31 at Cincinnati—Joe Flacco quarterback
· L, 35-25 Green Bay—Jordan Love quarterback
· L, 31-28 at Chicago—Caleb Williams quarterback
These aren’t even against MVPs like Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen—although Allen is waiting for his chance on Sunday and Jackson still have two opportunities.
No one on defense is playing up to his contract. What is as frustrating and puzzling is that this group has shown up against two of the best teams in the AFC—five turnovers against the Patriots, six against the Colts. They held the Bengals under 300 yards in the second matchup. They are not consistent and likely won’t be.
Sure, the offense has been inconsistent, but for the Steelers to finally win a playoff game again, it was to be led by its defense.
The offense is averaging 24.9 points-per-game, that’s 0.1 points per game behind Baltimore and 0.3 points behind Kansas City. It’s the most points per game the Steelers have scored since 2018 (26.8) when Ben Roethlisberger threw for over 5,000 yards and Antonio Brown caught 15 TD passes, both leading the NFL.
If this season fizzles out, and there is no evidence to support it won’t, blame the defense. There are issues on offense, but it’s good enough. Minus a couple of games, the defense has been some of the worst in decades.