Mitch Trubisky #10 of the Pittsburgh Steelers heads off the field after losing to the Cleveland Browns 29-17 at FirstEnergy Stadium on September 22, 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images)
Steelers fans have had enough of this stagnant offense, but would Mike Tomlin go far enough to pull Mitch Trubisky from the Jets game if he’s not performing well?
It doesn’t take long for NFL fans to sour on a player if the results aren’t good, and when it comes to Pittsburgh Steelers QB Mitch Trubisky… well, he’s been less than ideal. Over the past few weeks, I have voiced my opinion numerous times that I believe the majority of the blame falls on offensive coordinator Matt Canada and his dry, scripted game plan. However, Trubisky’s performance has been anything but ideal.
In his first three games, Trubisky has managed a dismal 5.5 yards per attempt passing the football. While unlikely, if this trend continued throughout the 2022 season, it would be the lowest yards per attempt the NFL has seen in the last decade of football.
Remarkably, Trubisky is currently first in the NFL in passes thrown beyond 20 air yards. He just can’t seem to connect with his receivers when doing so. All of this has equated to a Steelers offense that has passed for just 182.7 yards per game and has mustered up just 15.6 points per contest (not counting Minkah Fitzpatrick’s pick-six in Week 1).
Just a bit more offensive production over the past two weeks could have potentially been the difference in starting 3-0 or 1-2. Now Mike Tomlin is looking to avoid a disastrous 1-3 start when the Steelers play the New York Jets on Sunday. If Mitch Trubisky struggles in the first half, could Tomlin pull the plug on this experiment and insert Kenny Pickett?
As much as the vast majority of fans want to see Kenny Pickett take the stage, I wouldn’t bet on it happening during the Jets game on Sunday. After falling to the Browns on Thursday Night Football last week, the Steelers had 10 days to prepare for a home game against an unspectacular Jets team. This would have been the time to make the switch, and the fact that Tomlin was reluctant to do so shows that he still believes in Trubisky.
Though Trubisky has had some high moments that have been few and far between, nearly every statistic points to Pittsburgh’s offense being one of the worst in the league right now (yardage, scoring, efficiency, etc.). Even with this, the team has not given up on the veteran.
The Steelers also know what’s waiting for them on the horizon — daunting matchups against the Bills, Buccaneers, Dolphins, and Eagles over the next four weeks. This would not be an ideal time to insert a rookie QB into the lineup.
I wouldn’t say that there’s no chance Pickett sees the field this week, but Trubisky would really have to struggle with decision-making and moving the ball on offense — p[probably to a point that’s even worse than what we’ve seen already.
I still think the most likely route for Kenny Pickett to see the field is after the Steelers Week 9 bye when he will have ample time to prepare and a slightly easier slate of games. Mike Tomlin seems likely to ride the waves with Mitch Trubisky even if things go south against the Jets this week.
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