In 2020 and 2021, many Pittsburgh Steelers fans and even people outside of the fan base took great pleasure in slamming quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and putting the struggles of the Steelers offense at his feet.
But I think we can all say that two weeks into the post-Roethlisberger era, he was not the problem. A case can be made the Steelers offense is better this season than it was last season at every position other than quarterback. Running back Najee Harris has a year under his belt, George Pickens is an upgrade over JuJu Smith-Schuster at wide receiver, and several spots were upgraded on the offensive line.
Yet even with a “new and improved” quarterback — Mitch Trubisky — the offense still suffers from the same problems. The scheme is entirely too conservative, completely ignores the middle of the field and inexplicably calls high-risk plays at the worst possible times.
Roethlisberger led this offense to seven comeback wins last season by sheer force of will and talent. That made it seem like the offensive system was fine and an aging Roethlisberger was the problem. But that narrative needs to be put to bed after watching Trubisky throw for only 168 yards on 21-of-33 passing against the Patriots.
Where does the blame fall? It has to start at the top. Head coach Mike Tomlin and offensive coordinator Matt Canada refuse to budge on their offensive philosophies in spite of all the evidence showing they must. If anything good has come from this miserable start, it’s that Roethlisberger is vindicated in how he carried this offense.
