The Steelers' 42-37 loss to the Chiefs, Sunday at Heinz Field, exposed a lot of issues and some bright spots for the team.
Let's dig deep ...
TWO-MINUTE DRILL
• Where scheme beat team: Typically an NFL offense looks to help its young quarterback with a plan that allows for quick passing plays that get the ball out of his hands fast and don't force him to have to process defenses as much. But usually that means the quarterback completes short, underneath passes and designed screens rather than targeting players running deep into the defense.
The Chiefs managed to get Patrick Mahomes to throw the ball quickly while also challenging the Steelers' defense all over the field. The Steelers' defense were the ones that never challenged Mahomes as he threw to open receivers on all of his passes.
How fast did he get rid of the ball? I went back and timed all 31 of the Chiefs' called pass plays. Including the sack by Dan McCullers and two scrambles, Mahomes averaged either getting the ball out or crossing the line of scrimmage at 2.54 seconds per play.
That means in the time you read that last two-sentence paragraph, Mahomes took a snap, read the Steelers' defense and completed a 25-yard touchdown to Travis Kelce.
How can that happen? Mahomes was making pre-snap reads all game and the Steelers never made him adjust. The only time they slowed him down was in the second quarter, when his release time was an average of 3.34 seconds per pass play.
Looking at that 25-yard touchdown to Kelce, you can see how the pre-snap read is there. Look at the two deep safeties for the Steelers and how Sean Davis and Terrell Edmunds are spread out. That shows a Cover 2 defense, where typically a quarterback will target the middle of the defense to split the safeties.
Kelce runs right up the middle and the Steelers don't have Morgan Burnett to help. Vince Williams is the only player in Kelce's vicinity as he gets the easy touchdown:
The common theme with all of Mahomes' plays were that his primary reads were open. The Steelers rarely made him think in the pocket or rotate between his receiving options. Even when Mahomes did hold the ball for a few seconds and cycle through his progressions, he could eventually find an open man.
Take his third quarter 3-yard touchdown on a rollout to DeMarcus Williams. Artie Burns does his job in coverage by maintaining outside leverage in a goal line situation to secure his side of the end zone. By shadowing Williams' back shoulder, Burns counts on help from Davis to cover Williams' front shoulder and close on the passing window.
You can see Davis never helps, and even spins his head around as he's confused. He contributes nothing to the play, and Mahomes hits Williams:
This was where the Steelers were woefully unprepared. Against the Browns and Tyrod Taylor, the secondary and linebackers weren't just thinking about how to execute their assignments, but how their assignments must apply to what their opponents are doing.
That was non-existent against the Chiefs, which is why they were shredded. Typically a defense squeezes down on receivers to create tight passing windows for a quarterback, but the Steelers' failure to apply their assignments to the Chiefs' route combinations created entire hallways for Mahomes to throw through.
• All about the tackling: Missed tackles were one of the Steelers' main problems in 2017, as Pro Football Focus revealed with their number-crunching on that team:
Last season, the #Steelers missed a tackle on 16.1% of run plays (31st in NFL).
They added sure tackling veterans this offseason in S Morgan Burnett and LB Jon Bostic, who ranked 1st and 8th respectively at their positions in tackling efficiency. https://t.co/R2sUJejvPY
— PFF PIT Steelers (@PFF_Steelers) July 19, 2018
Because of that, our commitment this season is to keep a close eye on this facet.
Most notable this week is how five of the seven defensive backs who saw action missed tackles; they accounted for eight total misses. Last week, the only DB to miss a tackle was Joe Haden:
Jon Bostic once again found the ball at the highest rate on the team, 16.1 percent of his snaps, but that didn't help against the pass. The most disappointing statistic here is Bud Dupree played 53 of 58 snaps and found the ball only twice.
• Top matchups: I picked three top matchups for the Chiefs game in our preview last week:
And here are how those matchups played out:
• Mahomes' deep ball vs. Steelers' secondary: The Steelers did a good job against Tyrod Taylor, but Mahomes' cannon arm posed a bigger threat. Mahomes had eight of his 23 completions go for 15 or more yards. The Steelers needed to confuse him and they did not. Advantage: Chiefs.
• Chiefs' disguised coverages vs. Ben Roethlisberger: This worked well early in the game and had Roethlisberger confused on in his first few drives. That confusion faded by the second quarter and Roethlisberger figured it out in time to get his team back in the game. Advantage: Steelers.
• Steelers' diverse pass rush vs. Chiefs' protection: The Steelers did get the occasional pressure on Mahomes, but for the most part he was comfortable in the pocket and saw the field well. The goal was to hide where the pass rush was coming from to confuse the young quarterback, but he often got rid of the ball before the Steelers' pass rush could get to its spots. Had the Steelers' secondary been able to take away Mahomes' primary options more, that might have prevented those quick releases and allowed the rush to impact the game. It didn't happen often enough. Advantage: Chiefs.
Had a big play or a decent game 
Very impressive, multiple big plays
Elite performance
Gave up a big play without redemption 
Total performance was a disappointment
Horrible, inexcusable
QUARTERBACK: A
A huge stats day and the biggest reason the Steelers were in the game.
Ben Roethlisberger:
The numbers are elite with 452 yards, three passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown. Roethlisberger adjusted early against the Chiefs' secondary changes and picked at the soft spots of their coverage. The only thing that prevented him from a A+ grade was the fact that he had 12 misfires, some of which could have led to touchdowns with how open Antonio Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster and James Washington were getting. If Roethlisberger connects on two of said passes early in the game, the Steelers never go down 21-0. But he more than made up for it with four touchdowns in the end. Any time he leads you to 35 points, you need to win the game.
RUNNING BACKS: B-
Far fewer touches this week considering how quickly the Chiefs built a big lead, but still had some nice moments.
James Conner:
Conner's numbers weren't good with 17 yards on eight carries, but his touchdown run showed great effort and he looked really good as a receiving back and in protection for Roethlisberger.
While everyone will talk about his highlight reel almost-catch, let's look at one of the plays when he showed up in pass protection. Watch how the Chiefs bring a slightly delayed blitz and how Conner not only recognizes it, but gets up underneath the rusher and blows him up:
Pass protection was a major function that was a reasonable worry with Le'Veon Bell's absence. Through two games, Conner has fit the bill. Still, 65 all-purpose yards is plenty short of the 168 yards per-game average Bell had in his last four games against the Chiefs.
OFFENSIVE LINE: B+
Though non-existent in the run game, this group gave Roethlisberger plenty of time and allowed him to sit in the pocket to make several big throws.
Marcus Gilbert:
When you go up against a talent like Justin Houston and he's limited to four tackles, none for losses, and no sacks, that's a good day. Gilbert was the presence he's supposed to be and kept his side clean.
B.J. Finney:
Usually when your name isn't called in a game, that means you did a good job as an offensive lineman. Finney didn't replace David DeCastro's imposing presence, but he wasn't a player the Chiefs could pick at either.
Alejandro Villanueva:
Dee Ford was the Chiefs' biggest pass rush presence against the Chargers and was limited to two tackles and one quarterback hit. Villanueva didn't have to go up against Myles Garrett this week and did just fine.
WIDE RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS: A
Another big day for this group against a secondary that was holding and playing very physical deep down the field. Got open a lot and gave Roethlisberger plenty of open options.
JuJu Smith-Schuster:
Not only contributed in blocking to spring teammates but had 13 receptions on 19 targets for 121 yards and a touchdown. Smith-Schuster consistently got open for a second consecutive week and took advantage of the Chiefs' intense focus on Brown.
Jesse James:
Worked really well with Roethlisberger on improvised plays and never gave up on a snap. He led the team with 138 yards on five catches and five targets with a touchdown. He even had a 46-yard reception, a career long for James.
Antonio Brown:
While everyone is beating drums about Brown's antics, he had a solid game between the lines. AB beat his man a lot and should've drawn plenty of holding/interference penalties from how aggressively the Chiefs' defense was grabbing him. But Brown's abilities drew a huge focus from the Chiefs and got the other Steelers' weapons the one-on-one opportunities that helped them have a big day.
Here's an example on the fourth down conversion to JuJu Smith-Schuster that kept the Steelers alive. Watch Brown at the top of the formation and how he gets the attention of a safety and a cornerback. That attention opens space up underneath and makes decisions easier for Roethlisberger:
Brown's displeasure at how he's not the beneficiary of these plays shows he misses the big picture entirely. The fact that Roethlisberger distributed the ball to several players is a major plus to this offense and makes it more difficult for opponents to plan against Roethlisberger. Brown doesn't realize it, but in that way he's still helping the team when he doesn't get the ball.
DEFENSIVE LINE: D
As usual, Cam Heyward is the bright spot that he always has been, but the rest of the group was a major let down.
Cam Heyward:
Heyward only had three tackles, but he put the most pressure of any player on Mahomes with two quarterback hits. He also forced a key fumble that almost saved the game.
Stephon Tuitt:
After a strong performance last week, Tuitt was almost a non-factor against the Chiefs. His five tackles couldn't overshadow his lack of a pass rush and how he was blown off the ball against the run. On Kareem Hunt's 9-yard run on the opening play of the Chiefs' final drive, the Chiefs ran right into Tuitt's gap and he was pushed out of the hole.
The Steelers need both Tuitt and Heyward to be a good defense. Having half isn't enough.
LINEBACKERS: D-
When a group that is supposed to bring heat or supportive coverage does neither, a bad grade is required. The fear of this team was that their linebackers would get matched up in bad situations, and that happened all game.
Jon Bostic:
Though Bostic didn't miss a tackle and was solid against the run, the Chiefs showed just how much the Steelers missed Ryan Shazier. Bostic would drop back into coverage and be in position, but couldn't keep up with Kelce and the Chiefs' vertical passing game.
Bud Dupree:
Dupree not only didn't create pressure, but he didn't help in coverage and was poor against the run as well. His worst play came when Sammy Watkins ran a reverse around to Dupree's edge in the second quarter. Watkins came around and Dupree was completely unblocked. Dupree didn't over-pursue or miss the tackle, he just stayed in his spot and did nothing. When Watkins got to his spot, Dupree was so cautious he was completely out of position and Watkins gained 31 yards.
There's a long season ahead, but Dupree isn't playing his way into an extension with the team.
Vince Williams:
Williams was just as guilty as Bostic in pass defense in that he was often able to get to his spot, but was ineffective in sticking with the Chiefs' vertical passing game. The Steelers have to strategize to prevent teams like the Chiefs from exploiting their inside linebackers in the passing game.
SECONDARY: F
This was about the biggest egg this group could lay. Out of place, outplayed and not contributing to the Steelers' cause.
Artie Burns:
Either looked out of place or beat in coverage all game. In a game with Joe Haden out, the Steelers needed to be able to depend on him, but he was picked on by Mahomes. Burns had a rough game last week and this was even worse.
Cam Sutton:
Sutton rotated with Coty Sensabaugh throughout the game but wasn't the replacement for Haden that the Steelers thought he would be when they gave him a vote of confidence last week. The Chiefs may have two of the better playmaking wide receivers in the NFL, but Sutton showed up in big situations against A.J. Green, Brandin Cooks and a number of other upper-echelon receivers last year.
Sean Davis:
Last week Davis was in position almost every play, both against the run and helping overtop against the pass. This week was the complete opposite. Only three tackles for the game and no passes defensed. He may be in just his second game at free safety, but that's no excuse.
Morgan Burnett:
Burnett was supposed to be the guy who took away big-time tight ends for the Steelers. That didn't happen, as Travis Kelce went for 109 yards and two touchdowns on seven catches. Burnett was also supposed to be the veteran presence with the safeties that stabilized the group and kept them up on communications. That didn't happen, either, as the group generally looked lost. The Steelers need more from their biggest free agency move of the offseason.
THE ROAD AHEAD
The Steelers face the Buccaneers on Monday night, a team whose backup quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick, has dissected two defenses that ranked in the top ten in points allowed last season and were projected to be elite in 2018. Fitzpatrick is a veteran who will take advantage of open receivers like Mahomes did. If there's no defensive improvement, he will continue to draw early MVP consideration after decimating the Steelers.
Make note of how 385 of Roethlisberger's 452 yards were to players not named Brown. If Roethlisberger can be that efficient while not targeting Brown, defenses won't have answers for this offense and the double-teams might come less for Brown when Smith-Schuster is lighting up secondaries.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Steelers vs. Chiefs, Heinz Field, Sept. 16, 2018. - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS