A Browns reporter describes the mood in the Steelers locker room after Sunday’s loss.
Losing in the NFL is always a bitter pill to swallow. All the work and preparation of the week, the blood and sweat of the game day goes until you lose the game and try again the next week. Although the Pittsburgh Steelers are still in a good spot at 6-4 and the No. 7 in the AFC, the frustration with a team that can no longer maintain its ugly winning ways is evident in the locker room.
In a short YouTube video, Browns reporter Jimmy Watkins described what he saw and felt in the Steelers locker room after the game. “His players were frustrated, not just with the Browns’ defense.” Watkins said, referring to Mike Tomlin’s comments about how good Cleveland’s offense has been. “Deontay Johnson aggressively waved at the media who were trying to start a scrum around his locker room after the game. George Pickens gives a brief description of the media. I can’t comment on what exactly happens with the murder. And Naji Harris, you can barely hear Naji Harris, but you know he’s talked a lot about the attacks.
Harris, like every player in the locker room, spoke openly to the media after the game, questioning the Steelers’ ability to win in bad fashion throughout the season. It’s a low-scoring battle with minimal advantages. You can win in the regular season, but especially at the end of the year, especially if your team makes the playoffs, a streak that is unlikely to last requires scoring 14 or more points to advance.
Johnson did not speak to the media, but responded on Twitter to a user who claimed he took the wrong view during a critical part of the game. Johnson dismissed the idea, but regardless of who exactly was to blame, the level of offense yesterday was off the charts.
Pittsburgh’s frustration stems from a tough loss to Cleveland. This comes from a defense that struggles to keep up with the offense, an anchor around their ankles that drags them down, and a passing attack that can’t put anything together despite playing one of its strongest games of NFL running backs over the past month. There is frustration with QB Kenny Pickett and Mike Tomlin’s habit of blaming the circumstances around them rather than Pickett himself, who should take more responsibility for the Steelers’ offense. He’s a quarterback, a first-round pick, and he won’t play a game.
Watkins was surprised by this. “This is what the Browns locker room usually looks like after a game,” he said. “Now it’s Pittsburgh.”
For years, Cleveland has been a chaotic team, shedding quarterbacks and coaches at a record pace. Pittsburgh isn’t that volatile, but the locker room can reach a boiling point. Beating Cincinnati would go a long way toward solving their problems, even if it’s more of a panacea than a cure for what ails the franchise.
