The Steelers can pass, but they can't run, which can be problematic for many teams. But for the Steelers, who haven't lost yet this season, it's introduced the question of whether they have to run the ball effectively to be a Super Bowl contender.
It's not an unfamiliar question among NFL teams. Some of the best teams over the past two decades have specialized in pass-heavy offenses with rousing success. So far, the Steelers have just dabbled in it, using their passing personnel when needed while not fully committing to it.
They haven't been afraid to go empty with five-receiver sets when they've needed it to win games, but they strive for balance and still attempt to run the ball. There was no better evidence of this than what happened in the 36-10 victory over the Bengals on Sunday at Heinz Field.
Ben Roethlisberger threw for 243 yards and two touchdowns in the first half and helped the Steelers jump out to a 22-7 lead. On their first possession of the third quarter, the Steelers came out with their heavy running package that includes 6-foot-6, 305-pound tackle Jerald Hawkins as an extra tight end.
James Conner ran for 1 yard on first down. On second down, fullback Derek Watt entered the game in place of a receiver and the same three tight end set. Same result: Conner ran for 1 yard.
On third down, Roethlisberger completed a 6-yard pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster, and the Steelers punted the ball back to the Bengals.
The Steelers finished with just 44 rushing yards against the Bengals, who have one of the worst run defenses in the league. It was the third consecutive game the Steelers failed to rush for 50 yards, something that never happened to them previously since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger.
But the failures haven't deterred coach Mike Tomlin, who doubled down Tuesday and promised to fix the problems in the run game.
"We always talk about being able to run it when we want to run it," offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner said Thursday. "You have to be efficient at that. It keeps the chains moving."
In an ideal world, yes. But Fichtner has long been a proponent of the adage that the short passing game is merely an extension of the running game. He views those forward pitches to receivers, almost handoffs, as running plays just as he does screen passes or short throws to receivers at the line of scrimmage.
In the end, it's about moving the ball effectively, controlling the clock and scoring points. How it's done doesn't really matter.
Fichtner and Tomlin are feeling their way through the season with the offense. They've leaned on Roethlisberger to come back in games, but they're still intent on trying to operate a traditional offense at times too.
If the Steelers are merely dipping their toes into the water when it comes to eschewing the run for the pass, other teams have dived in head-first and received scores of perfect 10s.
In 2002 the Raiders, under the direction of an aging, journeyman quarterback, rode a pass-happy offense to the Super Bowl. Rich Gannon, at age 37, set career highs in pass attempts, completions and yards as the Raiders threw the ball 60% of the time en route to the AFC title.
Against the Steelers, in the second game of the 2002 season, Gannon was 43 for 64 for 493 yards in the 30-17 Raiders win at Heinz Field. They threw it 41 times in the first half and on 32 of their first 39 plays from scrimmage. In their 83 plays from scrimmage, they attempted to pass 70 times.
Gannon's game came on the heels of the season opener against the Patriots when Tom Brady threw 43 times against the Steelers. At one point, Brady threw 25 consecutive passes, setting the blueprint on how to defeat the Steelers, who would eventually right themselves and finish 10-5-1.
The 2002 Raiders team finished 18th in the NFL in rushing. Some Super Bowl champions have had even worse rushing attacks. The 2003 Patriots were 27th in the league; the 2011 Giants 32nd and dead last; the 2019 Chiefs 23rd.
All of those teams preferred the pass over the run. Like Gannon in 2002, Patrick Mahomes last season threw the ball 60% of the time for the Chiefs, who only attempted 375 runs the entire season and did not have a running back with more than 500 yards.
From a balance standpoint, the Steelers are on a similar path. Through nine games they have attempted 338 passes and 238 runs, a 58.6% pass-run slant. It's been even more slanted to the pass in the past three games, when they've thrown it 123 times and ran it 54 times (69% passes).
That's not the type of balance Fichtner and Tomlin are seeking, which is why on Thursday morning Fichtner was enthusiastically talking about Watt and how the Steelers have to get him more involved in the offense after an injury-plagued first half of the season.
For the Steelers, it's not about morphing into a run-heavy team at this late stage of the season. It's more about running efficiently in certain situations and being versatile enough with their personnel to keep defenses off balance.
"When we got Derek, we were all excited about it," Fichtner said. "Then COVID comes and Derek had some offseason clean-up things that limited him in training camp. That probably put him behind the 8-ball a little bit and a little bit with us.
"But it's time to figure out how to use him the best. What can we get out of it? It's got to be a part of our football moving forward because it can help. If nothing else, it will help potentially in the running game and the play-action game."
