How can Steelers offense improve? Answers are numerous

Last Sunday, Ben Roethlisberger 10 times in 7 minutes took the blame for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ struggling offense.

Four days later, offensive coordinator Matt Canada maintained a similar pace of accountability, referencing in some way the need to get “better” 14 times in his 9-minute session with media.

By Friday, guard Trai Turner and running back Najee Harris took their turns promising improvement from themselves, their position groups and/or by the offense at large.

To the Steelers’ credit, the finger-pointing about the offense’s punchless start to the 2021 season has been directed by each individual to himself. There is truth in what all say, too — the blame for the lack of production can be shared. Up and down the offensive roster, extending to the coaching staff and schematics, issues and problems abound.

“There’s a lot of different things you look at,” Canada said, “so I don’t want to narrow it down to one. We just have to do better.”

The Steelers rank 28th in the NFL in yards per game (291.5), 25th in points per game (20.0), 21st in yards/play (5.3), 22nd yards per drive (31.6) and 26th points per drive (1.74) — the latter two stats courtesy footballoutsiders.com.

The rushing offense gets all the (negative) attention, and for good reason: The Steelers are last in rushing yards per game (57.0) and third to last in rushing yards per attempt (3.3).

But the passing attack hasn’t been all that great, either. The Steelers are in the bottom half of the NFL in passing yards per game (234.5), but a lot of that meager output is the function of volume out of necessity. Their 6.7 yards per attempt is 24th in the NFL, 10.9 yards per completion 20th and passer rating (85.5) the NFL’s seventh-worst.

Remember when former coordinator Todd Haley openly strove to average 30 points per game? This Steelers offense has produced just 33 through two games (one of the touchdowns in the opener came via special teams).

What about last season, when the Steelers scored 24 or more during each of their first 10 outings?

Dating to December 2020, they’ve scored 24 or more just once in their past eight games.

Canada referenced a relatively simple yet rarely cited number the Steelers want to be better at.

“Every game is so different, but obviously we’ve got to do things better, (so) we have to be on the field more,” Canada said. “Our number of plays has been too low the last two weeks.

“We’ve got to do a better job staying on the field.”

The Steelers have averaged 55.5 plays per game, fifth-fewest in the NFL and down significantly from the 66.3 offensive snaps they averaged in 2020 (seventh-most in the league).

Contrast the 111 plays the Steelers have run on offense so far this season to the 143 their opponents have, and it’s easy to see how the listless offense also can have an effect on one of the NFL’s best defenses.

“The run sets up the pass, the pass sets up the run,” Canada said. “(Opposing defenses) are going to try to take something away, and we have to take advantage of what they give us. We didn’t maximize those matchups well enough (so far this season). I didn’t get those things done well enough. Or we didn’t pick the right ones for that to happen.”

So, where do the Steelers go from here?

One theory is that, in an extension of late last season under former coordinator Randy Fichtner, the Steelers are too predictable with a short, quick passing game.

“If we connect on even one (deep shot) early,” Roethlisberger said, “I think it could change the outcome of the way defenses play you.”

But Roethlisberger trended that way in Week 2, throwing eight passes to targets 20 or more yards downfield after throwing none in the opener at Buffalo. Roethlisberger, though, went 2 for 8 with an interception on such throws.

Would sticking with the running game longer make a difference? Harris is willing to give that a shot.

“I feel like all running backs get better as the game carries on,” he said, “because you have a better feel of the defense and how they are doing things.”

Harris has gotten only 12 carries in the second half of games this season. Then again, considering he’s averaging 3.2 yards per attempt, that might have been wise strategy.

When it comes to the Steelers’ offense, even if Canada and Roethlisberger and Harris shoulder their share of the culpability, many of the issues ultimately circle back to one source: the offensive line.

As the member of that unit with more than three times the combined career NFL starts (91) of the other four on the line combined (29), Turner has a voice worth listening to. And he recognizes that for the Steelers to achieve what they want to this season, significant improvement from the offensive line is paramount.

“(All the linemen) come here, and everybody has it on their mind to go out there and protect … not just about the quarterback (but) the wide receivers and … any ballcarier we have,” Turner said.

“You want to be the big brother of the team, the offensive linemen, and I think we have to adopt that attitude and move as such.”

Hey, Steelers Nation, get the latest news about the Pittsburgh Steelers here.