Ron Cook: Defense, coaching fail do their part in loss

Ron Cook: Defense, coaching fail do their part in Steelers loss

November 30, 2015
By Ron Cook / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

SEATTLE — Ben Roethlisberger did all that he could. So did Markus Wheaton, DeAngelo Williams and the rest of the Steelers offense. But it wasn't enough to overcome a horrible decision by Mike Tomlin and a lousy day by the defense. It wasn't enough to steal a win from one of the top teams in the NFC in, arguably, the most difficult stadium in the NFL for a visiting team.

"It just makes you sick to your stomach," Cam Heyward said Sunday night after the Steelers lost to the Seattle Seahawks, 39-30, at CenturyLink Field in, easily, their most entertaining game of this season and many seasons.

Heyward's dismay is understandable. The Steelers did a lot of good things but still came up short in a loss that left them with a 6-5 record and little margin of error the rest of the season. Roethlisberger threw for 456 yards before leaving late, after the outcome was decided, to be checked for a concussion. Wheaton stepped up when the Seahawks doubled outside receivers Antonio Brown and Martavis Bryant and had nine catches for 201 yards and a touchdown. Williams, though rushing for only 29 yards, scored a touchdown and had seven catches for 88 yards. The offense put up more than enough points to win most games.

But the Steelers defense was abysmal. It allowed quarterback Russell Wilson to throw for 345 yards and five touchdowns. It had just two sacks and didn't force a turnover. It gave up a 16-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Doug Baldwin on a third-and-goal play early and, much more hurtful, an 80-yard touchdown pass to Baldwin on a third-and-10 play late that clinched the win for the Seahawks. Mike Mitchell and Antwon Blake missed tackles on that second Baldwin touchdown.

"There's no way we should be letting them score on those plays or convert on those plays," Heyward said. "Five TDs as a passing group? That means you weren't getting any pass rush and we weren't doing good on the back end. That shouldn't be sitting well with any of us."

It wasn't.

"As a secondary, we've got to get better," Will Allen said. "We've got to get tighter. We had some loose coverages today, some holes in the coverage. We've got to have more attention to detail."

Tomlin couldn't have liked reviewing his defense's performance on tape on the long flight back to Pittsburgh later Sunday night. But he wasn't at the top of his game, either. He went 0 for 2 on critical coaching decisions.

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http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/ron-cook/2015/11/30/Defense-coaching-fails-do-their-part-in-defeat/stories/201511300159

Cockrell didn't have a good game, but at least he's in the picture. If Blake were covering him it'd be just the receiver

can't blitz all the time when you don't have a Ike and Troy type of players in coverage or your secondary will be burnt toast like in Sunday's game.

effyou515 wrote:

can't blitz all the time when you don't have a Ike and Troy type of players in coverage or your secondary will be burnt toast like in Sunday's game.

I think that is a good nickname for #41 "Burnt Toast" Blake!!