Mark Madden: Despite offseason additions, Steelers headed for the same destination

The Steelers are a bad team.

The host Los Angeles Chargers were badly banged up for Sunday’s prime-time clash, but the Steelers were flat, Aaron Rodgers performed at a New York Jets level of bumbling, big-money bozos T.J. Watt and DK Metcalf were invisible, and the Steelers committed hara-kiri by dropping interceptions and going 2 for 11 on third down. (Zero for their first nine.)

The Steelers were never in danger of winning.

Excuse-makers say the defense played well and got let down by the offense. But the defense didn’t play that well, betraying their lifeblood by getting zero takeaways.

Anyway, that’s what bad teams do. They find a way to lose.

If you want to keep mining fool’s gold, the AFC stinks. That seems to keep the Steelers in with a chance at 5-4.

But Baltimore has won three in a row, is now 4-5, Lamar Jackson is healthy and the Ravens are poised to zoom past the Steelers in the AFC North.

The Steelers made gratuitous changes in the offseason, acquiring Rodgers, Metcalf, Jalen Ramsey, Darius Slay and Jonnu Smith.

But somehow the Steelers remain stale. Everything feels the same, has the same flaws, the same peaks and valleys, and is headed to the same destination.

We analyze, strategize, fictionalize, proselytize, rally the troops, sweat the trade deadline, lie to ourselves and try to imagine ways the Steelers can get over the top.

They can’t. They won’t.

The Steelers so badly need a coaching change. An organizational overhaul.

If they did that, it might get worse. But the current situation is incapable of getting better. It’s on rinse and repeat. It is buried in the mushy middle.

Mike Tomlin probably never was a good coach. He probably won a Super Bowl with somebody else’s team, culture and leaders.

But now isn’t the time for a history lesson.

Now is the time to recognize that the state of the Steelers is tired and hackneyed. Bringing in old guys just made things older.

How does a coach perceived to be a nonpareil motivator so often allow his team to be flat?

But Tomlin won’t ever get fired. He also won’t ever have the self-awareness to realize that he’s long since worn out his effectiveness.

The owner can’t be fired. So let’s scapegoat players. That’s fun.

Watt disappeared again at Los Angeles.

Once in a while, Watt pops up and plays well enough to remind us of what he used to be. But he fails his expense more often than not. He doesn’t make consistent impact.

Yeah, I know: He gets double-teamed, triple-teamed, chipped, etc. That happens to every edge rusher that’s perceived to be elite. Those who really are elite still prosper.

Watt’s poor performance is his fault.

Same goes for Metcalf.

Three catches for 35 yards at Los Angeles. Thirty-two catches for 502 yards on the season. He’s had one game of over 100 yards. He’s averaging a minuscule 55 yards per game.

Yeah, I know: He’s getting double-teamed, he’s not getting targeted enough, blah, blah, blah. (Maybe he’s not getting open.)

Watt and Metcalf are typical of these Steelers: Big names, big paychecks, big egos, don’t deliver consistently and don’t deliver enough.

The Steelers need a makeover, top to bottom.

Unless you’re not tired of 5-4, the mushy middle, and a very peripheral version of being in the hunt where you imagine every game is meaningful.

The Steelers are not tired of that.

It will continue.

The Steelers will beat Cincinnati next week. The cycle of horse manure perpetuates.