After starting the preseason on a high note in the tackling department, alleviating some of the big concerns regarding the lack of tackling in Mike McCarthy’s first training camp as head coach, the Pittsburgh Steelers have taken a significant step back in recent weeks.

The Steelers missed 15 tackles in their preseason finale against the Buffalo Bills and 13 in their regular-season opener against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday. Four players missed multiple tackles, while one miss came on special teams.

It’s still early, but it’s concerning to see that number of missed tackles right out of the gate.

Let’s look at this week’s missed tackles report.

TOTAL MISSED TACKLES VS. FALCONS — 13

Payton Wilson – 3 (13 tackles on 16 attempts, 18.75% miss rate)
Nick Herbig – 2 (2 tackles on 4 attempts, 50% miss rate)
Patrick Queen – 2 (7 tackles on 9 attempts, 22.2% miss rate)
Asante Samuel Jr. – 2 (1 tackle on 3 attempts, 66.6% miss rate) 
Jalen Ramsey – 1 (4 tackles on 5 attempts, 20% miss rate) 
Jaquan Brisker – 1 (6 tackles on 7 attempts, 14.3% miss rate) 
Alex Highsmith – 1 (3 tackles on 4 attempts, 25% miss rate)
Robert Spears-Jennings – 1 (special teams) (3 tackles on 4 attempts, 25% miss rate)

Coming into Week 1, the emphasis was on shutting down star running back Bijan Robinson with Atlanta down to third-string quarterback Cooper Rush. Even with that emphasis on Robinson, the Steelers had a tough time getting the two-time Pro Bowler on the ground, both as a runner and a receiver.

The Steelers missed 10 tackles against Robinson, which makes sense considering he accounted for 173 of the Falcons’ 238 total yards. He was a one-man wrecking crew.

While inside linebacker Payton Wilson had a great performance with 13 tackles and two tackles for loss, he missed a team-high three tackles. He was much more aggressive attacking downhill against the run, something he showed in the preseason, which is encouraging. He just has to eliminate some of the misses.

One Wilson miss I wanted to highlight came on a quick throw to Drake London in the right flat.

Highlighting some the worst missed tackles from the #Steelers Sunday against the #Falcons.

First one is from ILB Payton Wilson. He had a great game, but at times he played a bit out of control, particularly in space.

Short throw to the flat. Takes a bad angle. pic.twitter.com/iMvwHXIZ7K

— Josh Carney (@ByJoshCarney) September 14, 2026

Wilson does a nice job of getting out there, but he doesn’t take a proper angle and is a bit overzealous closing in on London. That allows the Falcons’ star receiver to set him up in space, cutting back inside, causing Wilson to dive and grasp at air for a rough missed tackle.

Where the Steelers really struggled though was against Bijan Robinson.

Asante Samuel Jr.’s first miss was a rough one to watch.

Asante Samuel Jr. did an admirable job stepping in for Joey Porter Jr. Sunday, particularly in coverage. He had some issues tackling though, which isn’t a surprise. Always been a struggle for him.

Here on a swing route to Bijan Robinson, ducks his head and doesn’t try to wrap. pic.twitter.com/8TcIzpK82u

— Josh Carney (@ByJoshCarney) September 14, 2026

It’s a simple swing route to the flat, and the Steelers have it guarded well. Robinson has one lead blocker with a handful of Steelers defenders closing in on him. Samuel has the sideline as an extra defender for help, but he allows Robinson to slip inside.

As Robinson does that, Samuel ducks his head and whiffs in space. That allows Robinson to pick up a couple of extra yards to cap a 7-yard gain.

Finally, I want to highlight Herbig’s miss on Brian Robinson Jr. in the backfield.

OLB Nick Herbig’s miss was the toughest one to see.

He played this run so well, defeating the WR on the end of the line before shooting into the backfield. Plays with good form here and gets two arms wrapped around the RB.

Herbig just didn’t have the play strength to finish. pic.twitter.com/nO6S7heFzg

— Josh Carney (@ByJoshCarney) September 14, 2026

After signing a massive contract extension this summer, this is the exact type of play Herbig needs to make, particularly against the run.

He does everything well initially, defeating the block from the wide receiver and shooting into the backfield. He’s square and plays with good form, too. There’s just a lack of strength here.

That’s the most concerning part. Brian Robinson Jr. just outmuscles him to shake off the tackle, and he picks up 15 yards after what should have been at least a 3-yard loss.

While their defense and special teams missed 13 tackles, the Steelers forced 10 missed tackles by the Falcons, but that means they lost the all-important tackle battle by -3, falling to 0-1 on the season in the category. Fortunately, they came in a win where it truly counts.

TOTAL FORCED MISSED TACKLES VS. FALCONS — 10

Jaylen Warren – 6
Darnell Washington – 1 
Pat Freiermuth – 1 
Rico Dowdle – 1 
Eli Heidenreich – 1 (special teams) 

I’m not sure if Angry Runs are still a thing with Kyle Brandt after all the changes the NFL Network underwent this summer. But if the popular segment remains, Darnell Washington is undoubtedly going to win the Week 1 scepter.

Offensively, Pittsburgh closed the game on a high note in the forced mixed tackles department.

Darnell Washington has done it again, folks. This should have another Angry Runs scepter headed his way. Bounces the Atlanta safety off the turf. pic.twitter.com/4kFEFnPxkO

— Josh Carney (@ByJoshCarney) September 14, 2026

Much like he did last season against the Cincinnati Bengals to win his first one, Washington bounced a defender off the turf with a violent stiff arm. This time it was Atlanta safety Xavier Watts on the receiving end.

Washington is a cheat code. Good luck trying to tackle him one-on-one in space.

I also want to highlight Jaylen Warren in this space. The Steelers’ ground game sputtered throughout the day, but late in the game they were able to run the football and ice the win. Warren played a critical part in that, particularly with this fourth quarter run.

The run game wasn’t all that good throughout the game, but when it mattered most the #Steelers ran the ball well.

Jaylen Warren made three defenders miss on this run and finished with force, dragging defenders at the end. pic.twitter.com/Lvv7QXI2Ud

— Josh Carney (@ByJoshCarney) September 14, 2026

Warren makes the linebacker miss in the hole. He then splits a pair of defensive backs to force two more misses before then finishing the run like he usually does: barreling forward and dragging multiple defenders with him.