Steelers Week 12 Winners & Losers

The Steelers may have only scored 16 points this week, but this win in Cincinnati just felt different. The Steelers offense looked composed and prepared. It wasn’t perfect but it gives many yinzers a lot of hope. Let’s take a look at some of the standout players (and coaches) that deserve some extra recognition:

Winners

Sullivan/Faulkner Brain trust 

If you haven’t been living under a rock this week you would know that it has been 59 games since the Pittsburgh Steelers have had a 400-yard offensive performance. Yes, those 59 games line up extremely well with the tenure of a former Steelers Offensive Coordinator, and yes, 1 single game after that OC leaves…they put up 421. I love it for Eddie and Mike. I love it for the city of Pittsburgh and yinzers far and wide. It was absolutely the game we needed to see (yes Mark Madden, even if it is just 16 measly points).

TE Pat Freiermuth

Welcome to the 2023 season, Pat. It's been a rocky start to the year for him this season in a year where it matters most. One game removed from Injured Reserve and Freiermuth is able to lead the revival of this Steelers offense. Kenny looked to him often over the middle of the field, an area that’s been thoroughly neglected so far this season. Pat finished the day with 9 catches and 120 yards, the first time a Steelers tight end since Vance McDonald in 2018, which really goes to show how little the Steelers have under-utilized the position. 

QB Kenny Pickett

While it still wasn’t always pretty, Kenny looked a heck of a lot better than he has in recent weeks. The throws over the middle to Freiermuth and the poise to stand in and take shots deep to his talented wide receivers looked more like the ‘Pre-Season’ Kenny that we hoped to see earlier this year. Coaching really matters and I think that the change is going to make a big difference in what we see from Pickett moving forward. All hope is not lost after all.

Honorable Mentions: RB Najee Harris, OLB TJ Watt, S Trenton Thompson

Losers:

WR Diontae Johnson

Dionte is getting a lot of backlash for “not seeing” the Warren fumble, but that was literally a play after he thought he caught a touchdown (important reminder: he doesn’t get many of those here) but it was ruled incomplete. He was probably really po'd and I get that, but to read about him arguing with coaches and other players really paints a bad picture. I feel like his time with the Steelers will be coming to an end if he continues to not be a team player. 

CB Joey Porter Jr. 

While his play has been fantastic, he really needs to get control over the penalties. I can appreciate Joey’s game, which is physical and handsy, but he consistently gets called for costly penalties. He drew a few more flags this week. He is GREAT in coverage and might be the greatest corner to play for the Steelers since Ike Taylor, so maybe I can learn to live with some of them. In a league where one flag can change the outcome of the game, the Steelers cannot afford costly penalties. 

Former OC Matt Canada

Hopefully the last time his name comes up in this column, but the offensive improvement just 5 days after he was let go speaks volumes to just how much he was holding this unit back. The play-calling of Sullivan was clearly an improvement as the offense appeared to be much more comfortable. An offense that struggled on possession downs for two and half seasons managed to convert 8-17 3rd downs last Sunday resulting in a whopping 68 total offensive plays. The only lingering question in my mind is why this change wasn’t made weeks ago. 

Not-So Honorable Mentions: CB Levi Wallace, OLB Alex Highsmith