5 things we learned: Steelers offense shows more consistency staying on field in loss to Jets

Five things we learned from Jets 24, Steelers 20:

1. Time after time

For the first time this season, the Steelers held the edge in time of possession. It was the slightest of edges — a 2 second advantage — but an edge nonetheless.

Of course, giving the defense more time to spend on the sideline overall didn’t come in handy in the fourth quarter when the Jets pieced together touchdown drives that consumed a combined 9 minutes, 24 seconds.

Still, the offense showed more consistency — and that was true before Kenny Pickett relieved Mitch Trubisky to start the third quarter. The offense was on the field for 14:56 of the first half. The trouble came in producing points, with the Steelers getting 51- and 59-yard field goals from Chris Boswell. The offense had a pair of three-and-outs with Trubisky in the game, none after Pickett entered the game.

Where the offense particularly jelled under Pickett was on third down. The Steelers converted 5 of 6 opportunities in the second half after going 1 for 6 with Trubisky taking the snaps.

2. Picking favorites

From the jump, the Steelers were determined to have Trubisky (and eventually Pickett) throw the ball deeper than in previous games and, in a rarity this season, over the middle of the field.

The emphasis on throwing passes between the numbers resulted in a heavy workload for tight end Pat Freiermuth and rookie receiver George Pickens. Trubisky targeted Freiermuth five times in the first half, resulting in four receptions for 49 yards. Pickett targeted his tight end four times in the second half, and Freiermuth had three more catches for 36 yards. Pickens was targeted four times in each half. He caught two passes for 31 yards from Trubisky and four passes for 71 yards from Pickett.

The involvement of Freiermuth and Pickens in the gameplan came at the expense of Diontae Johnson and Chase Claypool. Neither receiver had a catch in the first half (a Johnson TD catch was ruled incomplete because he didn’t get both feet in bounds), and Claypool never did get on the stat sheet. Johnson totaled two catches for 11 yards, matching his rushing totals for the game.

3. Ineligible linemen

The NFL apparently told its officials to be on alert for offensive linemen becoming ineligible receivers downfield.

A week after Chuks Okorafor was cited for being an ineligible player downfield, the Steelers were called for the infraction twice more against the Jets. The offenders were guards James Daniels and Kevin Dotson.

Related:

• Mark Madden: It will get worse for Steelers before it gets better
• Mitch Trubisky ‘disappointed,’ did not expect to be benched as Steelers QB
• Rookie Kenny Pickett leads Steelers to edge of victory in NFL debut
• Steelers' Terrell Edmunds in concussion protocol, 3 other defensive starters evaluated for injury

On a day when the Steelers were penalized eight times, the offensive line was responsible for four of the flags while another was declined. The only player spared was center Mason Cole. Dotson was flagged twice (once for holding). Left tackle Dan Moore was called for a false start, and Okorafor received a penalty for illegal use of the hands, but it was declined.

The line also had difficulty in pass protection. Trubisky was sacked three times in the first half, and Pickett was under pressure during much of his time on the field.

4. Making history

Overshadowed in the last-second loss was the record-setting field by Chris Boswell. He set an Acrisure Stadium record when he kicked a 59-yarder on the final play of the first half. To boot — pun intended — he did it into the so-called open end of the stadium.

That Boswell even got a chance to attempt the 59-yarder was a product of a comedy of errors by the Jets. With 33 seconds left in the half, the Jets were at the Steelers 29 and looking to add to a 10-3 lead. On third down, quarterback Zach Wilson elected not to play it safe and threw deep downfield. He overshot his receiver, and cornerback Cameron Sutton intercepted at the 4. Sutton wiggled his way to the 30 before being brought down with 20 seconds left.

Trubisky hit Freiermuth with a 14-yard completion with 12 seconds left. The half should have ended on his Hail Mary pass that was intercepted at the goal line. But Carl Lawson was called for roughing the passer, moving the ball 15 yards to the Jets 41 and setting the stage for Boswell to make history.

5. Upon further review

Don’t look now, but Mike Tomlin is on another run of unsuccessful instant replay challenges.

Tomlin lost his second challenge of the season when officials didn’t overturn the incompletion to Johnson in the back of the end zone. Tomlin also lost one in the season opener on a line-to-gain dispute.

Tomlin has lost four challenges in a row since he last got a call overturned in the final game of the 2020 regular season. This streak, though, doesn’t compare to the run Tomlin had from 2017-19. He went more than two full seasons without winning one, his streak reaching 11 in a row before he got a call overturned.

For his career, Tomlin has tossed the challenge flag 86 times. He’s gotten 36 calls reversed.