The Pittsburgh Steelers are a bad team at this juncture of the 2023 regular season. Once 6-3, the downward spiral has been steep and precipitous as the team now stares at a 7-7 record and the playoffs looking like nothing more than a pipe dream.

Fans everywhere want to know who is to blame. Who should be the person we all point out collective fingers at in disgust and demand they either lose their job or be demoted.

Is it Mike Tomlin??

He’s an easy target as the man in charge, and he certainly shoulders a lot of the blame for the team’s latest unleashing in December.

Is it the quarterback(s)??

Quarterback play has not been the best, and once Kenny Pickett’s injury occurred it’s been downhill ever since. Mason Rudolph is the next man up, but let’s not pretend Pickett was setting the world on fire when he was healthy and in the starting lineup.

Is it the diva-like receivers??

Everyone wants to blame the receivers for their lack of effort and immature behavior. Even Peter King took to the airwaves to talk about how George Pickens’ recent behavior is unacceptable.

NFL insider @peter_king on @937theFan:

"What George Pickens is doing right now is absolutely, totally, unacceptable."

"I don't really care how great he could be or should be, I care about how great he is & he's not great right now. There are plays were he absolutely dogs it."

— Matt Koll (@MKoll15) December 19, 2023

Is it the injuries??

Injuries to players like Cam Heyward, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Kwon Alexander, Cole Holcomb, Kenny Pickett and many others has put a strain on the team which many feal is the real reason for the team losing as of late.

I could go on, but the main point here is there is so much wrong with the Steelers right now you can’t just blame one person. No, not even Mike Tomlin. Everyone who claims he’s a “defensive coach” and should be able to figure things out with the inside linebacker situation, it isn’t as if the man can just make quality NFL linebackers appear out of thin air.

This team is in a bad place, and there is no genuine hope in sight. But to try and blame any one individual for the downturn in both play and production is a waste of time.

So, who is to blame? You might be able to save yourself time by pointing out those who are NOT to blame for the current fiasco. Come to think of it, we can start that very list right now.

People who are not to blame for the Steelers lackluster play:

• Omar Khan
• Andy Weidl

While not all of the team’s free agent acquisitions have panned out, they did knock the 2023 NFL Draft out of the park, and that has held true throughout these rookies’ first season in the NFL. Other than that, everyone has a hand in the Steelers poor play, let’s not try and fool ourselves, and others, that it is just one person, group, or side of the football.

No, this failure has been a collective for the vast majority of the 2023 season.

Be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 16 at Acrisure Stadium.