6 weak links in the Steelers season that must be fixed before the playoffs

The postseason stretch is all about coming to terms with truths. By midseason, teams are catching their reflections for the first time. Past the three-quarter mark, teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers are getting more specific results back from their blood test. It’s either time to change some unhealthy habits or continue trending down the same path.

Pittsburgh’s season has revealed some truths and confirmed what many have already known. However, after losing in Week 15, the Steelers have secured a playoff slot. Without knowing their seeding or their opponent, examining their shortcomings is the only way to prepare for a Wild Card showdown.

Here are six cracks in the Steelers foundation that must be sealed for them to experience postseason success. 

Steelers red zone woes

You don’t need an x-ray to be concerned with the Steelers red zone numbers. Their offense ranks 29th in red zone scoring.

When the field shrinks, Russell Wilson’s deep ball becomes less important. In the red zone, the offense also relies heavily on Pickens, targeting him on 32 percent of the Steelers pass attempts, which is seventh-highest in the league despite missing the last two games.

One promising sign is the connection Wilson has been forming with Pat Freiermuth across the middle. Only three tight ends, George Kittle, Mark Andrews, and Tucker Craft have been more productive in the red zone than Freiermuth’s 10 catches on 11 targets for five touchdowns

Joey Porter Jr.’s overaggressiveness

Joey Porter Jr.'s has a little too much of Joey Sr.’s linebacker mentality. His habit of mauling receivers has gotten him into hot water with zebras at a prolific rate.

Cornerback requires a bit more finesse or else it attracts yellow laundry in bunches. Nobody knows this more than Porter who has been whistled for an obscene number of penalties in the secondary. 

Against the Bengals in Week 13, Porter was penalized six times which fueled the already-high-powered Cincinnati offense. Against a bonafide playoff opponent, his penchant for handing out free yards by holding and committing unnecessary pass-interference calls may prove costly.

Minkah Fitzpatrick's turnover drought

The Steelers have the league's lowest defensive expected points added per play, particularly against the pass, but what elevates their really good unit to a higher pantheon is the version of Minkah Fitzpatrick who has a nose for the ball and tracks its scent before a ball is released. That preternatural sense is what separated Super Bowl champs like Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu from Eric Berry.

The Steelers lead the league in takeaways, but Minkah Fitzpatrick has only forced one. In addition to his two-year interception drought, Fitzpatrick has only forced a single fumble in two seasons. After recording 17 picks in his first four seasons as a Steeler, including a career-high six in 2022, his relative invisibility every Sunday has been curious. He hasn't been poor in coverage, but he also isn't making instinctual reads resulting in splash plays that a roving safety of his caliber should manifest a couple times a year.

In the postseason, a playmaking safety is the difference between a secondary that’s just preventing explosive plays and one that is great when the pass rush gets home and a championship coverage unit blotting out the sun sufficiently enough to account for an unremarkable offense.

Najee Harris's inconsistency

The Steelers rank 28th in yards per carry and dial up the third-highest ratio of rushes in the league. Since the bye week, Harris has averaged a mere 3.2 yards per carry since the Week 9 bye. Every now and then, Harris gets shaken up and fizzes for 100-plus yards, but he’s not consistent enough for there to be any faith in him.

Rex Ryan implied that Fields’ presence opened up the field for the rushing attack, but the numbers tell a different tale. The Steelers have run outside zones and the notorious HB Toss to get Harris one-on-one with a smaller edge defender, but those concepts with Harris have resulted in disastrous results lately.

Somewhere in the kinetic chain, their blocking is collapsing and Harris is hitting the wrong hole after it's closed. Time is running out for Harris to make his imprint on the Steelers.

The Justin Fields question

One solution to Harris’ trouble advancing the ball, has involved the Taysom Hill-ization of Justin Fields. Fields is rapidly twisting into a decreasing asset for Pittsburgh as the season winds down. Much has been made of Fields’ red zone numbers vs Wilson’s this season, but Arthur Smith’s paint-by-numbers playcalling ingenuity has been sorely lacking. The Steelers haven’t looked back since Wilson took the reins of the offense, but Fields was supposed to open up their options in tight spaces near the end zone. 

In fourth-and-1 scenarios, the Steelers should be bullying their way forward with Fields in a rugby scrum. The Steelers talked a big game about packages featuring Fields behind center.

Instead, Fields has operated outside of the red zone on a handful of plays, and the results have been mixed when he’s used his legs to matriculate the ball. Unfortunately, he was injured after taking a shot to the abdomen on his only snap on Sunday.

Patrick Queen’s tackling 

Mike Tomlin’s defenses are notable for their discipline and fundamentals. Not wrapping up ball carriers leads to breakdowns in the defense and explosive game-altering runs or demonstrative YAC gains.

Last season, Pro Football Focus credited Queen with 22 missed tackles, the most since his rookie year. Through 14 games this season, he’s missed 18 tackles.

Queen was brought in this offseason to shore up the second level of the defense, but in hotly contested playoff matchups, tackling like he's covered in Crisco oil could be the difference between a stop or a drive extending first down or a score.