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Brooke Pryor, ESPN Staff Writer
PITTSBURGH — Mike Tomlin and his team didn’t mince words in the aftermath of the Steelers‘ third straight loss.
“That sucked, to be blunt,” the coach said after the Steelers’ 29-10 Christmas Day loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. “Not the type of ball we want to play and really kind of eerily similar to our last performance in that we’re not doing the fundamental things well enough.”
In losing to the Chiefs, the Steelers (10-6) not only failed to compete with another one of the league’s top teams, but they also lost the ability to control their own destiny in the race for the AFC North title and a coveted home playoff game. Though they once led the division by two games, the Steelers now have to beat the Cincinnati Bengals in the regular-season finale and have the Baltimore Ravens lose their Week 18 game to the Cleveland Browns in order to capture the crown.
“It’s gotta be a want-to,” linebacker Alex Highsmith said of how to right the ship. “There’s not enough of that right now. There’s gotta be a want-to. It’s that time of the year where we got two guaranteed games left. We’re gonna find out, find out who wants this. Everybody in this room got to want it. That’s the only way we’re going to move on and get better.”
The once-stout Steelers defense has given up an average of 30 points per game in the past three weeks, and the turnovers that once defined the team’s success aren’t coming. The Steelers have just three takeaways in the past three games after collecting three each in the four games prior to the losing streak. The Steelers failed to collect a takeaway against the Chiefs, despite forcing a fumble on a punt return that the Chiefs ultimately recovered.
And in the past two weeks, the Steelers have allowed five touchdowns and not had an interception on throws outside the numbers. Through Week 15, they had allowed just six passing touchdowns and had six interceptions on such throws, per ESPN Research.
“Guys can’t be f—ing wide open. Do your job,” safety DeShon Elliott said of how to fix the Steelers’ recurring problems. “I feel like we communicated. Guys just weren’t doing their freaking job. Get back to the drawing board. It’s Week [17]. Shouldn’t be having these problems. … This is a Week 1, Week 2 problem. So I don’t know where we went, down the line started becoming a whole different defense [than] we were, but we got to get back to who we are.”
The Steelers’ giveaways have compounded the issue. Though they still have the second-best turnover margin in the NFL, the offense has turned the ball over five times during the losing streak, including twice Wednesday. Quarterback Russell Wilson threw an interception in the end zone in the first half, and in the fourth quarter, tight end Pat Freiermuth fumbled on third down to give the Chiefs a short field. The visitors scored four plays later to go up 29-10.
“We regressed in terms of our turnover culture, in terms of maintaining possession of the ball and getting the ball,” Tomlin said. “We’ve been a plus group in most instances, and that’s really been a catalyst for us in terms of the games unfolding the way that we desire. The last two weeks in particular, we haven’t been plused in that area. We’ve been minus in that area, and so the results are what they are.”
Prior to the gauntlet of three games in 11 days, members of the Steelers organization said they’d learn a lot about their team over this stretch. Asked what he’s learned about his team, defensive captain Cameron Heyward was as frank as his coach.
“The last three weeks we played like s—,” Heyward said. “Simple as that. I own that. Every player’s got [to own that]. Can’t squander opportunities, whether it’s turnovers, whether it’s getting off the field, whether it’s scoring touchdowns, it’s a multitude of things, and it has reared its big head.
“My confidence is never going to lack in the group. It’s just from an execution standpoint, it’s just dumbfounding. We have to get it done on those plays. We sit up in meetings, we take it out to the field. That means nothing if you don’t do it in the game.”