Opinion: Here We Go Again, A Steelers Disaster
In 2020, “Big” Ben Roethlisberger, returned to the Pittsburgh Steeler lineup after suffering a season-ending injury the previous year. The Steeler faithful finally had hope after their 2019 season which was led by Devlin “Duck” Hodges.
11-0. They were 11-0 in 2020. They ended up 12-4 with a disappointing first round exit in the playoffs against the Browns. That’s how the Steelers collapsed last year. This year is much more painful.
Following Week 4, the Steelers are now 1-3, tied with the New York Jets. Big Ben is showing the NFL that injuries have caught up to him.. He is going from the Hall of Fame to the hall in the retirement home. It’s not just Roethlisberger’s fault, there are many factors leading to the failures of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The receivers are dropping passes, there is no creativity in the offensive playbook and players are getting hurt left and right. Rib, groin, knee, you name the body part, there is likely a Steeler with an injury.
Star linebacker T.J Watt was out for the contest against the Bengals, but my longtime Steeler fan father was right, “it doesn’t matter who’s playing, we still stink”.
For my 15 years of life, I have watched the Steelers with my father, who is a fan since the Franco Harris era. I have never seen him so upset about how the Steelers are playing.
Quoting him again: “We will not win 8 games this year, we’ll be very lucky to win 5”. (His original prediction for a record was 8-9).
Mike Tomlin and Aaron Rodgers had a staredown mid-game at Lambeau Field, smiling about the previous play. The only person left smiling ten minutes later was the above-average jeopardy host (i.e not Tomlin).
Having hope and losing hope has been the story for the Pittsburgh football fans for the last few years, but this year just hurts. Watching my all-time favorite quarterback getting killed by defenders at an old age is difficult to watch. One can only hope that Big Ben steps it up going forward.
The Steelers have one of the hardest schedules in the NFL, and it will certainly be a long season for the Steel City if changes are not made to both the offense and defense. Despite the current losing streak, the Steelers still have one factor on their side: the fans. Hopefully, with the power of Steeler Nation, the team can hear the chants “Here We Go Steelers, Here We Go!” while on a game-winning drive in an important game…
