PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – After having to play on Christmas Day and then losing the way they lost, you might think to give the team some time away and then regroup. Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin called for a team meeting less than 24 hours after a 19-point loss to Kansas City.
Linebacker Alex Highsmith, who was as critical of the Chiefs loss as anyone, and there were several vocal players upset with their effort and play, said the message was to put their head down and work.
“Trusting the guys in this locker room,” Highsmith said. “We know we have a very talented team. We got to trust each other. Trust that everyone is going to do what they got to do.”
“As a team, got to go out and trust the coaches and the position that they are putting us in,” said linebacker Patrick Queen. “Whatever call they are putting us in or whoever is on the field, we got to roll with it. We got to have faith that every single person on the field can do their job. The call is going to be a good call and we get the job done.”
Queen added it was an honest meeting, but no one took it the wrong way when they opened up on their thoughts. He said players noted they have to want to do it, everyone has to do their job and that doing the small things will turn into making big plays.
“They bicker because they care,” Tomlin said. “We weren’t playing well, oftentimes the solutions are born out of conflict and confrontation, particularly when you are in the business we are in. We are not going to let an issue like that be a big issue.”
“It’s really not. Guys expressing truth and working to seek solutions and sometimes emotions are involved in that. We have moved on as a collective.”
“I do care a lot,” Queen said. “For me, I care. I know what this team can be. I know what this defense can be with the players that we got. It’s never personal. We really care. We really want to win. We know how good our team can be if our defense is at a high level.”
Highsmith said there are a lot of guys that feel similarly. Everyone has to put their head down and do more than just say it, but show they want to win.
When the team gathered back on Monday for morning meetings, Tomlin said he saw a lot of bright eyes and rested faces. He said it was a positive start to the week.
“I feel really good about what I felt from them (Monday),” Tomlin said, adding it’s a motivated group. “We were very transparent about what needs to be done and our course of action in an effort to create it. I think we show mentality with our urgency and how we work.”
“I think we have a lot of guys in this locker room that do care,” Highsmith said. “I feel everyone in here wants to win. We have to continue to stick together and continue to put our heads down and work and get better every day.”
“I think we are anxious to go back out there and play how we are supposed to be playing,” Queen said. “I think that’s biggest thing, going out there and showcasing that to the whole world Saturday night.”
“I know these guys in here can’t wait. I can’t wait.”
The first step towards slowing down Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is fixing what is wrong inside. That’s what the Steelers start doing on the field on Tuesday.