Patrick Queen revealed that the Pittsburgh Steelers have concerning issues to address as an AFC North title slips away from their grasp.
The end-of-semester tests have been handed out to the Pittsburgh Steelers, and after acing the midterm and breezing through the early-year assignments, they’ve finally failed.
In back-to-back weeks, the Steelers went on the road to play Super Bowl contenders in the Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens – games they were not supposed to win, but needed for the sake of keeping pole position in the AFC North. They lost both contests, and neither was particularly close.
Having lost consecutive games for the second time this season, Pittsburgh now gets the privilege of playing host to the reigning champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Winning on Wednesday would keep the Steelers in control of their own destiny with one game to play. A loss puts the ball squarely in Baltimore’s court, with games against the Houston Texans and Cleveland Browns left on the schedule.
Pittsburgh doesn’t need a Christmas miracle. But it does need things in gear before a December losing streak defines the season.
Linebacker Patrick Queen spoke about the biggest issues threatening the Steelers as Santa preps his sleigh.
“I don’t even think it was trying to be Superman,” Queen said, via Nick Farabaugh. “I think it was just trying to make a play for the game. Just not trusting your teammates. So, like I said, the game’s just late in the year. You gotta be on one stream. You gotta be on one accord. Everybody gotta be doing their job at a high level. If they aren’t doing their job at a high level, then (expletive) gonna get ugly real quick with the teams that’s coming up.”
In Week 16, Pittsburgh once again struggled to stop the run, allowing the Ravens to run away with the game with the help of key turnovers. It’s awfully hard to win in January without the ability to run the ball and stop the run – the Steelers did neither on Saturday.
Defensively, that can be attributed to a medley of faults, from a talent disadvantage to physicality to coordination. While the Chiefs don’t create explosives at the same rate of other contenders on the ground, their ability to melt clock with consistent successful gains remains an obstacle.
Perhaps more important is the potential return of receiver George Pickens. He’s missed both losses with a hamstring strain, and the offense is clearly operating at less than full strength.
Without the ability to stretch the field, the Steelers have had a harder time running the ball and finding open windows underneath. The result has been a stagnant offense incapable of climbing back against high-powered offenses.
Getting Pickens back and taking advantage of his skill set is imperative.
“You just gotta come in Monday, whatever, and just go to work and be accountable,” Queen continued. “You’re supposed to be in the meeting room, be in the meeting room. If you’re supposed to be in practice, do what you’re supposed to do in practice. Everybody’s supposed to be accountable. We’re all grown men. Starting from the top to the bottom.
“You just gotta be accountable to your teammates. If you ain’t doing this for your brother, you ain’t trying to see your brother succeed by you just doing your job. You’re doing a disservice to the team, to the organization, to the fans. So, like I said, we gotta take a long look when you’re a personal individual and see where the team wanna go. If we don’t all follow on the same page, then you just gotta get off the show.”
The Steelers have come too far to revert back into last year’s meager playoff participant. It’s possible this stretch is regression to the mean, and that Pittsburgh was paper tigers all long.
Putting an end to the skid against a formidable Kansas City team would go a long way to ending the narratives and the angst as the playoffs approach.
