Steelers news: George Pickens' return and defensive reinforcements revitalize team?

Investigative journalist Alfred Henry Lewis once opined “There are only nine meals between mankind and anarchy.”

Nine meals equate to three days of starvation or in NFL terms, three games. Pittsburgh could descend into despair if the Steelers lose a third consecutive game against the world-champion Kansas City Chiefs. The matchup has lost much of its luster as the Steelers have fallen out of contention for the top two seeds in the AFC. The bottom is falling out, but there are reasons for hope.

The return of several defensive impact players and George Pickens may be the antidote to what’s ailed the Steelers in recent weeks.

Patrick Mahomes vs the NFL’s turnover kings

In a battle of strength vs. strength, Pittsburgh has its own ingredients to combat Patrick Mahomes’ brilliance. Mahomes is having an understated season compared to his usual standard. He’s on pace for a career-low in passer rating, yardage, and touchdowns. Midway through the season, Mahomes was on track to shatter his single-season career-high of 14 interceptions. 

However, after throwing nine picks in the first seven games of his season, Mahomes has thrown just two in the eight games since, both of which came against Buffalo in their lone loss of the season. That streak will be tested against Pittsburgh’s opportunistic defense that leads the NFL in takeaways.

In Week 16, safety Minkah Fitzpatrick finally joined the turnover party for the first time in two years by picking off Lamar Jackson. The downside is that Fitzpatrick’s interception was the Steelers' only takeaway. In games where the Steelers create two or more takeaways, the Steelers are 14-4 since 2023. If the Steelers hope to pull an upset, they’ll have to count on forcing Mahomes into uncharacteristic mistakes.

Injuries shroud an underachieving defense

George Pickens’ re-entry into the active roster comes when Russell Wilson's trademark downfield passing attack is waddling through the muck. At the time of his injury, he had nearly twice as many yards as any other Steelers receiver. He would occasionally go into business for himself and go on foolhardy side missions that made you question whether one of them would cost the Steelers a win one day. You never know what you got til it’s gone. The Steelers learned that axiom applies in the last two weeks. Pickens was one of the league’s most targeted receivers in the red zone and a splash play generator.

No injury has had as much of a regressive effect on the offense as Pickens’ did. Receiving him back just in time for the big, bad Chiefs could be a huge pick-me-up for Pittsburgh. The focus on Pickens’ hamstring allowed the defense’s shortcomings to slip under the radar. Injuries to cornerback Donte Jackson and DeShon Elliott have only exacerbated the softening of the Steelers previously staunch defense. 

However, the Steelers red zone defensive woes have stemmed deeper than superficial injuries. Since the bye week, Pittsburgh’s red zone defense has allowed touchdowns at a rate that would be second-worst in the league if extrapolated for a season.

At the time of their bye week, the Steelers red zone defense ranked first in the entire NFL. Entering Week 16, they rank in the middle of the pack. Donte Jackson sat against the Eagles rehabbing a back injury suffered against Philly. Joey Porter exited their loss to the Ravens with a knee injury and has been ruled out for Christmas Day.  Defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi missed Week 16's tilt against Baltimore and is expected to be active for Wednesday against the Chiefs.

Jackson has been the Steelers most consistent cornerback while DeShon Elliott’s absence in the last two weeks has been to the detriment of their run defense. The defensive talent Pittsburgh has missed the most in the last two weeks is Elliott. 

According to Pro Football Focus, Elliott's run defense grade ranks fourth out of 164 safeties.  Elliott being sidelined is just a contributing factor to the Steelers' degenerative state.  Mike Tomlin's defenses have typically overachieved through a mastery of the fundamentals including exquisite attention to detail, excellent communication, and efficient tackling of ball carriers.

Poor tackling by Steelers defenders has become an endemic phenomenon as whiffs by tacklers have risen significantly in the last two weeks against a pair of offenses built around the run. For the NFL’s most expensive defense touted as one of the league’s best against the run

Steeler Depot’s Josh Carney charted missed tackles this season and found that the Steelers have failed to wrap up ball carriers at a prolific rate in Weeks 15 and 16. According to Carney’s tabulations, the Steelers entered Week 15 averaging merely six missed tackles a game. However, after missing on a season-high 20 tackles against the Philadelphia Eagles, Steelers tacklers missed out on 16 against Baltimore. 

If the Steelers are going to make waves in the postseason, it’s not enough to return wounded defensive stars. There are serious fundamental issues that need to be resolved.