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The Pittsburgh Steelers are hoping to do really well in the 2024 season. They made big changes to their offense after not doing so great last year.
General manager Omar Khan took bold steps to revamp the team.
In the 2024 NFL Draft, the Steelers focused on bolstering their offensive line, using three of their first five picks on linemen. Two of these rookies are set to start right away. The biggest changes came at quarterback. The team signed Russell Wilson and traded for Justin Fields from the Chicago Bears.
Pittsburgh also brought in Arthur Smith as their new offensive coordinator. They hope his run-oriented system can revive their struggling offense.
However, things haven’t gone smoothly yet. Wilson and Fields are competing for the starting spot, but neither has stood out during preseason games.
Arthur Smith isn’t worried about the offense’s slow start. He told reporters that preseason games can be misleading and that it’s better to struggle now than during the regular season.
“Preseason can distort reality, good or bad,” Smith said. “We’ve all seen it. That’s not making excuses… We’ve got to get out of our own way.”
Smith’s comments sound a bit like an excuse though, don’t they? Even if preseason isn’t perfect, veteran quarterbacks like Wilson and Fields should be performing better as they vie for the top job.
Fields struggled in his first preseason game, failing to score any points. In his second game, he had as many fumbles as points and led the team to just three points over five series.
Wilson missed the first preseason game due to a calf injury but played in the second one without much success. He didn’t manage a first down until the second quarter.
Through two games, Pittsburgh’s offense has been sluggish. They’ve gained only 124 yards and six first downs with their starting unit. Their longest run was nine yards; their longest pass completion was 20 yards, according to Greg Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Even more worrying is that both quarterbacks have been sacked five times combined.
Holding onto the ball too long seems to be a habit for both quarterbacks. Since 2022, Wilson has been sacked 100 times and Fields 99 times — no other quarterback comes close.
It’s not just about blaming the offensive line either. Among QBs with at least 250 pass attempts in 2023, Fields had the slowest average time to throw (3.23 seconds) and Wilson was next (3.06 seconds), according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
The Steelers have one last preseason game against the Detroit Lions this Saturday for Wilson and Fields to prove themselves.
