Mike McCarthy's debut as the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach will go down in the books as a 20-13 win over the Atlanta Falcons. However, the win was somewhat overshadowed by a highly disappointing performance from Pittsburgh's offense.
All told, Pittsburgh's offense gained just 264 yards, going 3 for 13 on third down and 0 of 2 on fourth down. The Steelers had just two trips inside Atlanta's 20-yard-line and set up the Falcons' only touchdown when running back Jaylen Warren fumbled the ball inside Pittsburgh's 30-yard-line late in the first quarter.
Fortunately, the Steelers' defense made up for their offensive struggles. Facing third-string quarterback Cooper Rush, Pittsburgh's defense allowed just 238 yards and held Atlanta to 2 of 12 on third down. The unit forced two turnovers, including T.J. Watt's incredible pick-six that proved to be the game-winning score.
Who's to blame for Steelers' offensive struggles?
Pittsburgh's struggles against Atlanta were a collective failure. Aaron Rodgers (24 of 40 passing for 221 yards and a touchdown) wasn't his usual accurate self, and running backs Warren and Rico Dowdle didn't produce much splash while combining to run for just 61 yards on 18 carries.
The biggest issues, however, were Pittsburgh's offensive line woes and a DK Metcalf's performance that was nothing short of horrific.
Despite their promise, the Steelers' offensive line left something to be desired during training camp, and that continued to be the case on Sunday. The unit failed to open up consistent holes for Warren and Dowdle, and it often put Rodgers in harm's way. Rodgers was "only" sacked twice, but it would have been a considerably higher total against a better defense.
Metcalf, the Steelers' highest-paid offensive player, continues to not live up to his monstrous contract. Of his 10 targets, he caught just four passes for 40 yards. He failed to come up with multiple 50/50 balls and had one inexcusable drop over the middle that — had he caught the ball — would have been a big play.
As he has done throughout his career, Metcalf showed flashes of his brilliance during training camp, but only in spurts. His lack of consistency remains an issue.
What can be done to fix the offense?
Fortunately for the Steelers, there are tangible things they can do to improve their offensive output. And it starts with Metcalf.
As noted above, Metcalf was unable to come down with several combat catches, but some of the incompletions between him and Rodgers were the byproduct of Rodgers' accuracy issues. Metcalf was also the victim of a missed pass interference call on a deep sideline pass. He should — and needs to — improve.
Two positives from Sunday were the performances of Michael Pittman and Pat Freiermuth. Pittman, an offseason acquisition who missed practice time this summer with an injury, caught each of his three targets for 58 yards, including a 28-yard reception. Freiermuth, who was underutilized by former offensive coordinator Arthur Smith in 2025, caught each of his five targets for 46 yards, including Pittsburgh's only offensive touchdown.
One can assume that rookie Germie Bernard's role in the offense must increase in the coming weeks. Bernard, a second-round pick who had an impressive training camp and preseason, didn't receive a single target on Sunday while playing behind Roman Wilson, who caught half of his six targets for 26 yards. Wilson's so-so performance on Sunday may give Bernard a chance to have a bigger role sooner rather than later.
An improved passing game should open things up for Warren and Dowdle. That should, in turn, increase the Steelers' third-down success rate. On Sunday, Warren showed his resolve after his early fumble by averaging 4.6 yards-per-carry and accumulating 73 total yards on 15 touches. He also helped in pass protection.
As far as the offensive line, time should help the young but promising unit. Pittsburgh's offensive line includes two semi-experienced starters (right tackle Dylan Cook and right guard Spencer Anderson) and a new left tackle in Troy Fautanu, who moved over from right tackle. There was a period on Sunday when Rodgers' blind side was being protected by rookie Max Iheanachor, who made his NFL debut when Fautanu was temporarily sidelined after suffering an injury scare.
Sunday wasn't a banner day for Pittsburgh's offense. But when you consider all of its new pieces — plus a new coaching staff — it wasn't the worst of starts for Rodgers and Co. Fortunately for them, they were the beneficiaries of a defense that showed it is capable of winning games when the offense isn't at its best.
