Mike Tomlin has to answer for Steelers' inconsistent trend (article)

PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Cameron Heyward has too much youth and too much of a pleasant disposition when he isn't chasing quarterbacks to look as weary as he did late Sunday afternoon.

Then again, it has become all too common for one of the better talkers in the Steelers' locker room to have to answer questions about a loss as confounding as it is deflating.

Another inexcusable loss on coach Mike Tomlin's watch happened after the Steelers played like a 4-7 team coming off a short week instead of a 7-4 team coming off a bye week and playing at home.

A 35-32 loss marked the seventh time, dating to the past season, that the Steelers have lost to a team with a losing record. Three times this season, the Steelers have lost to a team that was at least three games under .500.

True, the loss to the Saints wasn't quite as embarrassing as earlier ones to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets, but it continued a disturbing pattern for the Steelers of losing games they should win.

"It's got to stop," Heyward said. "We've got too many good guys, too many good players to not win these games. Top to bottom, we've got to stop doing this."

Blame for the Steelers' inconsistent playing has to start with Tomlin.

Read more: http://espn.go.com/blog/pittsburgh-steelers/post/_/id/10907/mike-tomlin-has-to-answer-for-steelers-trend-of-losing-games-they-should-win

Tomlin made it clear to his players there is still time for the Steelers to define themselves as something other than what they are 12 games into the season: an unpredictable, underachieving team that cannot be trusted.

Right now I'm not sure anyone trusts this team.

"If we win these next four, we'll put ourselves in great position," center Maurkice Pouncey said. "If we don't, we're going to have to sit around and hope somebody else does it for us again. I just wish we would stop losing to teams that don't have great records, but I think we're fine."

WE ARE NOT FINE MAURKICE!!! WE ARE LOOOOOSING GAMES WE SHOULD WIN If he honestly thinks "we" are fine he is part of the problem IMO.