Mike McCarthy's debut as the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach will go down in the books as a 20-13 win over the Atlanta Falcons. However, the win was somewhat overshadowed by a highly disappointing performance from Pittsburgh's offense. All told, Pittsburgh's offense gained just 264 yards, going 3 for 13 on third down and 0 of 2 on fourth down.
The Steelers had just two trips inside Atlanta's 20-yard-line and set up the Falcons' only touchdown when running back Jaylen Warren fumbled the ball inside Pittsburgh's 30-yard-line late in the first quarter. Fortunately, the Steelers' defense made up for their offensive struggles. Facing third-string quarterback Cooper Rush, Pittsburgh's defense allowed just 238 yards and held Atlanta to 2 of 12 on third down.
The unit forced two turnovers, including T.J. Watt's incredible pick-six that proved to be the game-winning score. Pittsburgh's struggles against Atlanta were a collective failure.
Aaron Rodgers (24 of 40 passing for 221 yards and a touchdown) wasn't his usual accurate self, and running backs Warren and Rico Dowdle didn't produce much splash while combining to run for just 61 yards on 18 carries. The biggest issues, however, were Pittsburgh's offensive line woes and a DK Metcalf's performance that was nothing short of horrific. Despite their promise, the Steelers' offensive line left something to be desired during training camp, and that continued to be the case on Sunday.
The unit failed to open up consistent holes for Warren and Dowdle, and it often put Rodgers in harm's way. Rodgers was "only" sacked twice, but it would have been a considerably higher total against a better defense. Metcalf, the Steelers' highest-paid offensive player, continues to not live up to his monstrous contract.
Of his 10 targets, he caught just four passes for 40 yards. He failed to come up with multiple 50/50 balls and had one inexcusable drop over the middle that — had he caught the ball — would have been a big play. This is why DK Metcalf is overpaid and needs to stop making fun of people online.
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