Mueller: Steelers' first post-Canada outing a step in the right direction

A nasty side effect of the Steelers’ putrid offensive performances this year is that every Kenny Pickett drop back has been scrutinized like a life-or-death proposition. Every positive play a sign of something big to come, every negative one another nail in his coffin, further evidence that the 20thpick of the 2022 NFL draft is headed for bust status, and quickly.

Pickett, of course, is the primary focus for just about every Steelers fan, but his struggles are the offense’s struggles, and vice versa. And there have been struggles, to say the least. Fifty-eight games without a 400-yard output. Pickett becoming the butt of jokes because of his aerial impotence. A locker-room dust-up between Diontae Johnson and Minkah Fitzpatrick. Najee Harris looking and sounding like a man close to his breaking point after last week’s loss to Cleveland.

It was so bad that even firing Matt Canada only provided a temporary shot of football dopamine. Plenty of people, myself included, were of the opinion that things were too broken, that Pickett just didn’t have it, that the vibes surrounding the offense were too terrible to overcome.

One win, 421 yards and (yes, only) 16 points later, the vibes are much better. It makes more sense to focus on that, rather than dissect every good play (there were more than we’ve ever seen from Pickett in a single game), nitpick the bad ones (there were still a handful) and draw agonized conclusions after tallying up the results.

Here’s what seemed obvious both as the game was happening and on reflection afterwards; the offense and its quarterback looked better. Freed up, looser, whatever you want to call it. I hesitate to fall back on the “they were having fun out there” trope, but, well, it seemed like they were having fun.

The calls certainly looked better. Shots attacking the middle, some of the more familiar deep balls, even throws to the tight end. To all three of them, actually. Pat Freiermuth emerged from witness protection to rack up 9 catches for 120 yards, and looked like the weapon the Steelers expected him to be.

It’s anyone’s guess how things look after the bump from Canada’s dismissal wears off – by the way, teams that have fired their offensive coordinators this year are undefeated in their first game after the move – but it’s even clearer now that he had long overstayed his welcome. CBS’ broadcast team might not have been trying to drive home the point, but it was glaringly obvious that the lines of communication between players and coaches was better with Canada out of the picture, even with the unorthodox arrangement whereby Eddie Faulkner designs the game plan, and Mike Sullivan calls it.

The same team that looked like it had just left a funeral after last week’s loss was full of dancing and dapping after this win. A bunch of happy players isn’t exactly a guarantee of success, but this group surely doesn’t have the talent to thrive without everyone pulling in the same direction.

Now, the larger question: Will the improvement continue?

They have to, of course, because points are still what matters, and 16 is only good enough to beat Jake Browning, Mac Jones and perhaps Tommy DiVito. Will the Steelers see the success they had moving the ball and realize that they have to pursue more? Will Pickett, who looked more comfortable in the pocket than he has all year, continue to mature in that area, stand in and make quality throws? Will Faulkner and Sullivan self-scout effectively, and keep opposing defenses guessing? (Free suggestion: Find ways to get Pickett attacking the right side of the field more often.)

Will Mike Tomlin, having seen his offense move the ball better than they have in years, continue to encourage all parties involved to be selectively aggressive, which they attempted to be against the Bengals?

Truth be told, I’m surprised these questions are even relevant. I thought this game would be more of the same. Thought the Steelers would lose, actually. Thought Lou Anarumo, despite his defense not being very good, would be too wily for Pickett, Faulkner and Sullivan, and kill them with halftime adjustments.

Instead, it was the Steelers who dictated terms in the second half, and who kept winning on third down in those final 30 minutes. Pickett saved one of his best throws for the fourth quarter, a 43-yard sideline strike to George Pickens. The offense grabbed a second half lead, extended it to two scores, and closed the door.

Being good in the NFL means playing well more often than not. Being great in the NFL means playing well every week. Minus Matt Canada, Kenny Pickett and the Steelers are 1-for-1. It’s still not much, but it’s better than nothing.

This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Mueller: Steelers' first post-Canada outing a step in the right direction