PITTSBURGH — Each Wednesday, the NFL hands out awards for the defensive, offensive and special teams player of the week in each conference.
Steelers kicker Chris Boswell didn’t need to wait until mid-week to enjoy his accolade, as he was the obvious AFC special teams winner after connecting on six field goals during Pittsburgh’s 18-16 win over the Baltimore Ravens.
“I love Bos. I’m tired of him getting player of the week,” coach Mike Tomlin said Sunday, half joking. “It reminds us of our warts. It reminds us of the work we have to do.”
Those warts have been recurrent in one critical area: the red zone.
On Sunday, Russell Wilson led the Steelers inside the 20 four times. They did not score a touchdown, with three field goals and a Wilson interception. That continues what’s been a bit of a trend this season. Through 10 games, the Steelers have converted only 44.4 percent of opportunities into touchdowns, the third-lowest rate in the league. They’re also dead last in goal-to-go situations with a 52.9 percent touchdown rate.
“I think the biggest thing is just consistency down there,” Wilson said. “We’ve done some good things. I’ve always told you guys this: Every game has a history of its own. It’s really true.”
When it comes to eradicating this wart, the conversation is complex due to the Steelers’ unique dynamic at quarterback. In Wilson’s four starts, the Steelers have produced a touchdown on 38.9 percent of opportunities. In fairness, that number would look better had George Pickens gotten his other foot down on a double toe tap against the Giants, had Broderick Jones not been flagged for a penalty that negated another touchdown in the same game, or if Jaylen Warren hadn’t fumbled at the goal line against the Washington Commanders.
Russell Wilson on the Steelers’ recent red zone struggles pic.twitter.com/kiIlZLUe2D
— Mike DeFabo (@MikeDeFabo) November 19, 2024
Wilson has completed 68 percent of his passes outside the red zone, but that figure drops to 29.2 percent inside the 20, per TruMedia.
Meanwhile, through his six starts, Justin Fields completed 66 percent of his passes outside the red zone and 68.4 percent within it. He also led the Steelers to a touchdown on 50 percent of chances, often using his legs as a cheat code near the goal line. But even those numbers aren’t necessarily up to par. The Los Angeles Rams have turned 50 percent of chances into touchdowns this season, and they rank 25th. So no matter who is at quarterback, the Steelers need to improve.
Still, it is worth wondering if Fields can be part of the solution. After unveiling the Fields package for the first time on Sunday — the backup QB played three snaps, rushing twice for 17 yards — there might be an opportunity to exploit the Cleveland Browns on Thursday night. Cleveland just allowed 138 yards and three rushing touchdowns to Taysom Hill, another quarterback who can line up in numerous places on the field, including as a wildcat QB.
“A lot of teams try to find a Taysom Hill,” Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith said. “But there’s only one Taysom Hill. They have been playing him at fullback this year, and that’s a completely different setup from Justin. I’m not going to ask Justin to do that. He’ll think I lost my mind.”
Smith seems open to the idea of playing Fields more. He said Tuesday that he’d have liked to incorporate the more mobile QB earlier against the Ravens, but too many third-and-long situations derailed his plans. He also said he considered utilizing Fields on a fourth-and-1 in the first quarter.
“Obviously, there’s a fine line to it,” Smith said. “I don’t view Justin in this role as a gadget guy. To me, we’ve got two starting quarterbacks.”
This isn’t the first time that a Smith-led offense has started the season slowly in the red zone. When he first became a play caller in 2019 in Tennessee, the Titans’ red zone offense ranked 19th (53 percent) through six weeks. However, the unit transformed as the season unfolded to finish first by scoring touchdowns on 75.6 percent of opportunities. That included an 86.7 percent conversion rate from Week 7 until the end of the season. The success rolled over to 2020 when Tennessee finished second in this category (75 percent).
So certainly, Smith does have a track record of success inside the 20.
“That’s why you keep working,” he said. “You see it and try not to get caught up in it. Whatever it is. Storylines change for five seconds. Used to be 24 hours and now it’s maybe 24 seconds. I think our attention spans are all shrinking thanks to Apple. But in all seriousness, you keep working, and sometimes it is momentum and confidence.”
In some instances, the spark can be as simple as a QB switch, as it was in Tennessee from Marcus Mariota to Ryan Tannehill. It also doesn’t hurt to have a great goal-line back like Derrick Henry. Other times, Smith got creative, digging into the game’s rich past for inspiration.
“Arthur was always trying to bring up plays from the past, whether it was in the run game or having Derrick (Henry) throw the pop pass. He always liked finding plays that complemented each other,” former Titans head coach Mike Vrabel said. “We would look up old plays from the goal line back in the day that people ran, or we would look up plays from different offenses and try to implement those and see where they fit us. He embraced the history of the game.”
As Smith looks at his current situation, he identified two specific areas where he’d like to see the Steelers make progress. First, they need to protect the ball better inside the 20. Two weeks ago, Warren was running into the end zone for what could have been the go-ahead score when he fumbled. Last week against the Ravens, after the Steelers were already 0-for-3, Wilson tried to force a jump ball to Darnell Washington that sailed over the 6-foot-7 target’s head.
Marlon Humphrey picks off Russ in the end zone!
📺: #BALvsPIT on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO8ZBqG pic.twitter.com/DDPaPeZ5Yz— NFL (@NFL) November 17, 2024
“The biggest thing that concerns me overall is we haven’t turned the ball over a lot, but that’s two weeks in a row in close games we turned the ball over in the red zone and come away with no points,” Smith said. “That’s the stuff you’ve got to fix because that can cost you.”
The other area where Smith would like to see progress is in the mid-to-high red zone — outside of goal-to-go situations.
“That’s kind of where we’ve stalled out,” he said. “There’s things that we’ve got to do different, better, all the way around.”
(Photo of Arthur Smith, left, and Justin Fields: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)
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