Through two games, there’s no rhyme or reason as to what the Pittsburgh Steelers offense is. This group has no identity and it feels like consistency will be the goal all season long. This week, the Steelers travel to take on the New England Patriots and could find themselves in a shootout like they did in Week One against the New York Jets. If the Steelers have to ge tto 2-1 before they head to Ireland next week, here are the keys to victory on offense.
Establish the run
When this offense works best, quarterback Aaron Rodgers is working out of play action. In Week One, the play action worked without the run game clicking, but it didn’t work last week. We don’t expect the Steelers passing offense to work this week if the team cannot run the ball with consistency.
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Don’t count on the defense
Often times, head coach Mike Tomlin makes his decisions in situational football based on the opposite unit. This week, with how poorly the Steelers defense has played, he simply cannot count on them in any circumstances so the offense could end up playing far more agressive, knowing the defense cannot stop anyone.
Take care of the football
The biggest factor in the Steelers success when the stats say they shouldn’t win is by winning the turnover battle. Last week the Steelers lost that battle and lost the game. This week, if the Steelers give up the ball more than they take it away, they are in deep trouble.
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Throw the ball to Pat Freiermuth
It was strange to see that last week tight end Pat Freiermuth only played half the snaps and only had a single target in the passing game. With all due respect to DK Metcalf, Freiermuth should be 1b to his 1a in this passing game and the offense cannot be effective if he’s not more involved.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: Steelers vs Patriots: 4 keys to victory on offense