The Steelers are in the midst of their bye week and there will not be much work done on the practice field this week, but the coaches are still hard at it, assessing the team’s recent performances and studying the Cincinnati Bengals, who they’ll play next, on Sunday Night Football on November 15th.
Offensive coordinator Brian Angelichio sees lots of room for improvement, especially in the passing game, where the receiving corps has been hit by injuries and their replacements are struggling, with the exception of Germie Bernard.
Angelichio would also like to see a better offensive approach in the red zone, where the Steelers rank 26th in the NFL, with only a 50 percent touchdown rate.
Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham has his unit playing very well, with the run defense ranking first in the NFL, the pass defense 16th, and the overall ranking 6th. He says it boils down to trusting your teammates, and that can only come through togetherness.
Graham likes what the Steelers have done, but says they can’t let up.
A frustrated Michael Pittman Jr. said yesterday that he hopes to return to the field after the bye week, but the plantar fasciitis that has grounded him has ““kind of morphed into something else.” The veteran receiver has been on injured reserve the last four games and is eligible to return for the Cincinnati game. He said he began running again last week.
