With six games in the books, the Pittsburgh Steelers season has not gone as planned. The team is 2-4 and has already seen a quarterback change. But that isn’t one of the biggest surprises from the first six games. Here are the four biggest surprises so far.
The defensive collapse without T.J. Watt
Anyone who has followed the Steelers long enough remembers how bad it would be when safety Troy Polamalu would miss time with injury and the entire defense seems to take a step back. This is identical to what we are seeing now with linebacker T.J. Watt out with a partially torn pectoral. it was good to see this group step up against the Buccaneers but overall this group seems lost without Watt.
Najee Harris struggling
The one player I am most shocked by through six games is running back Najee Harris. After rushing for 1,200 yards in 2021, most expected an even better sophomore season. But through six games, Harris only has 264 rushing yards and is averaging 3.2 yards per carry.
Matt Canada's offense
There is no coordinator doing less with more than Steelers offensive coordinator Matt Canada. Most OCs would love to have the cast of skill players Pittsburgh has to find a myriad of creative ways to carve up opposing defenses. But Canada’s scheme is lacking in creativity and is tame in comparison to the talent on the roster.
Bad but still in the mix
If you’d have told me the Steelers would be 2-4 after six games, I wouldn’t have been terribly surprised. But if you said that at 2-4, the Steelers would only be one game out of first place in the AFC North, I’d have called you a liar. The struggles of the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals have left the door open for Pittsburgh to win the division despite playing some terrible football.
