Turnover ratio affecting Steelers fortunes
The Pittsburgh Steelers had their six-game winning streak snapped against the Broncos and head coach Mike Tomlin knows why. The Steelers turned the ball over four times and did not create any in the 24-17 loss in Denver.
And it wasn’t just a one-game hiccup. The Steelers also turned the ball over three times against Jacksonville the previous week. As a result, they are among the worst teams in the NFL in turnover differential.
The Steelers are 26th in the league with a minus-7 differential. They have committed 19 turnovers and have created only 12.
“If you look back at the last eight quarters of football for us as a football team it’s something that we have to tighten up and tighten up rather quickly,” Tomlin said. “We’ve turned the ball over some on offense. We have to do a better job of safeguarding and preserving it in everything that we do, whether it is passing or running with the football.
“On the defensive side of the ball save the last snap of the game in Jacksonville, we’ve played eight quarters of football without creating a turnover and I think you can’t have one discussion without the other. Turning the ball over is less of an issue if you are getting it. Not getting turnovers is less of an issue if you are preserving and taking care of it. So, we have issues in both areas and it’s created issues for us.
“We were fortunate to get out of Jacksonville. We talked about that and obviously we couldn’t get out of Denver, so we have some work to do in those areas. It’s very fundamental. We always work in that area but it’s a re-centering, a point of emphasis and we’ll continue along those lines until we got the desired result.”
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has thrown 12 interceptions, second-most of any quarterback in the NFL this season. Running back James Conner also has lost two fumbles.
The defense hasn’t been very good at taking the ball away either. The Steelers only have six interceptions and no one has more than one.
“We just have to keep ripping at the ball,” defensive end Cameron Heyward said. “We have to be more opportunistic. We have to keep preaching it just to make sure we’re all aware of the significance. We have to be the aggressors.”
Not being able to consistently stop the run the past two games certainly hasn’t made it any easier to generate turnovers. The Steelers could not generate much of a pass rush against the Broncos because they allowed 124 rushing yards.
“We feel like if we slow the run game down that will give us a chance to ball search and force the quarterback to throw the ball and give us opportunities to make plays,” cornerback Mike Hilton said. “We just have to slow it down and try to make plays on the ball.”
The loss in Denver was costly for the Steelers, who fell from the No. 2 seed to the No. 4 seed. The date with the Chargers Sunday night at Heinz Field is the first of three difficult games over the final five weeks of the season. The Steelers also play the Patriots and Saints in December.
The Chargers are playing well on both sides of the ball. Quarterback Philip Rivers completed 28 of 29 passes for 259 yards and three touchdowns in a victory against Arizona. Running back Melvin Gordon injured his knee against the Cardinals and won’t play this week, but the Chargers have the line to challenge a Steelers front that has been leaky against the run the past two weeks.
“I’m not going to overblow it, but we have to be more accountable,” Heyward said. “We have to make sure we’re following our assignments, tackling well. And then when we do get the opportunity, we have to strip the ball.”
SERIES HISTORY: 30th regular-season meeting. Steelers lead series, 22-7, and have won 9 of the past 11 meetings. This is only the fourth meeting since 2009 and the first since the Steelers beat the Chargers in San Diego on the final play of the game in 2015, when Le’Veon Bell scored as time expired. The Chargers won the last meeting at Heinz Field in 2012. These two teams have met in the playoffs three times, and they might be on a collision course this year. If the playoffs started now the Chargers would play the Steelers at Heinz Field. The Chargers have won two of those three playoff games, including two that took place in Pittsburgh.