Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin said he called a team meeting less than 24 hours after their third loss in a row, this one on Christmas Day, to the Kansas City Chiefs. During his weekly press conference, he told the media that they not only looked specifically at the loss to the Chiefs, Baltimore Ravens, and Philadelphia Eagles, but also analyzed the trends in their overall performances.
Tomlin said when the players returned on Monday, he was pleased with what he saw. If there is any upside to three games in 10 days, the team gets something of a mini-bye week on the back end. They are in the middle of that break right now as they gear up to face the Cincinnati Bengals in the final game of the 2024 regular season. According to Tomlin, players could get rest and rehabilitation if needed, which is huge at this point in the year when no one is truly "healthy."
The media asked the players about that meeting, and unsurprisingly, many of the defenders were vocal. Linebacker Alex Highsmith said they must trust one another. In a video posted to X by Chris Adamski from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, he praised Tomlin for holding the meeting, saying they are blessed to have a coach as transparent as he is and team leaders who lead by their words and by example.
"Just sticking together," said Highsmith. "Just drowning out any negativity that's out there. Just putting our heads down and working because that's all we can do at this point. We lost those three games and it sucks, no one wants to lose three games in a row. But ultimately, we've just gotta put our heads down and work, we desire to get better."
Linebacker Patrick Queen has been one of the most vocal players. He has expressed frustration over how the league's highest-paid defense has been performing for weeks. Queen told the media after the Chiefs game that they should be ascending at this point in the year, not descending.
Earlier this season, Queen was taking a lot of heat from fans for not performing at the level they expected after signing him from the Ravens. However, Queen has come into his own and not only wears the green dot on defense, but is currently the team's leading tackler. According to another video from Adamski, the media also asked Queen about the meeting.
"It's nothing huge, it's just small things hurting the big things," explained Queen. "That was really just what it was about, everybody doing their job, doing the small things right, being situationally aware. Because the situations he pointed out, he is always spot on. Just the point of us going out there trusting them, trusting the coaches, and trusting each other."
Queen and Highsmith aren't the only players to air aggravations about the subpar gameplay. Team captain Cameron Heyward said they played "like s**t," Calvin Austin III said it felt like they handed the Chiefs the win, and DeShon Elliott said the defense can't keep leaving guys wide open.
The Steelers have already secured a playoff berth, but will likely lose the AFC North regardless of what happens on Saturday. However, they are still playing for seeding, and a win over the Bengals could help them play the Houston Texans in the first round.
Steelers' Mike Tomlin Came To One Player's Defense
The Steelers were finally moving the ball down the field against the Chiefs, and suddenly, Russell Wilson threw an interception that ended it and shifted momentum. While it was credited to Wilson, many blame George Pickens for the turnover.
It appeared that Pickens was supposed to run a go route that would have drawn Justin Reid to cover him. However, he didn't, and the safety tracked Wilson and caught the ball. During the same press conference, Tomlin adamantly defended Pickens, saying he had nothing to do with the interception, his route running was not to blame.
