Steelers offense shows positive signs early before regressing

The first half of Sunday’s game was more productive than any 30-minute span the Pittsburgh Steelers had played all season.

For that matter, by the measure that counts most — points scored — it matched the Steelers’ offensive previous high production for any full 2022 game.

The second half, though, was more of the same for an offense that statistically has been among the NFL’s worst this season. The result was another defeat, this time a 37-30 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals that dropped the Steelers to 3-7.

“We were scoring (in the first half), we were moving the ball, we did what we were (supposed to do) executing our gameplan,” running back Najee Harris said. “Then we came out in the second half just not firing, and that was (to be blamed) on the people on the field, nobody else.”

Over the first nine games of the season, the Steelers did not produce more than 20 points, and the team overall did not score more than 20 points in regulation. The offense had not topped 14 points in any half of play this season before Sunday.

After an opening-drive three-and-out against the Bengals, though, the Steelers scored on four consecutive possessions to close out the first half holding a 20-17 lead.

“I think both (the running game and the passing game) really worked well together (in the first half),” quarterback Kenny Pickett said, “and I don’t think we had both working together well in the second half.”

Diontae Johnson on why the first half offense was so good and the a sec one half so bad pic.twitter.com/bPMrztpdFl

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) November 21, 2022

That’s an understatement. Taking away a long touchdown drive in the final three minutes, when the Bengals had a two-score lead and were content to let the Steelers bleed the clock, the Steelers totaled just two first downs over their first seven second-half possessions.

They had 19 yards and no first downs on 12 offensive snaps during four third-quarter drives.

It was reminiscent of the Steelers offense for most of the first half this season, one that entered the week with them ranked 27th in the NFL in yards per game and 28th in scoring. But what made Sunday’s second-half flop so vexing was it immediately followed a second quarter that was the Steelers’ most productive of the season — 17 points, nine first downs, 164 yards on 23 plays over three possessions.

“Our defense did a great job of giving us a chance to win the game, and we didn’t come through in the second half,” Pickett said. “That’s on us. We’ve got to get it fixed and have two strong halves in order to beat a team like that.”

Pickett had a 112.0 passer rating in the first half, going 14 for 19 for 141 yards and a touchdown. But in the third quarter, Pickett went 3 for 8 for 13 yards. Only that meaningless final drive helped lift the Steelers’ second-half offensive numbers into respectability.

More Steelers:

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Coach Mike Tomlin pointed to the 15 yards in penalties the Steelers were assessed on offense in the second half. But all of those — on two infractions — occurred during one fourth-quarter possession in which the Steelers took over at the Cincinnati 47 and used a Harris run to set up a first down at the 34-yard line before the flags did in that drive.

“We weren’t able to get in the type of rhythm we needed to in order to control the game in manner in which we did in the first half,” Tomlin said.

Aside from that aforementioned 13-yard carry by Harris, the Steelers managed just 18 rushing yards on nine other second-half carries. The 5.1 yards Harris averaged in the first half devolved into an unproductive rushing attack after halftime.

“We just couldn’t get into a rhythm,” receiver Diontae Johnson said. “When we had those field position opportunities, we just didn’t capitalize on them.

“The rhythm we had at first, we had a little roll, we came out running the ball well, we have to continue to run and put it on film because if you can’t do that obviously, stuff like this happens. We’ve got to go back to the drawing board.”

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