If you hold the title of Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator, chances are, you’re going to take some heat from time to time. That was the case for Arthur Smith after Week 11 versus the Baltimore Ravens.
Despite the integral win over the division rival, the Steelers offense failed to get into the end zone. The Pittsburgh passing attack led by quarterback Russell Wilson also struggled throughout the game (4 sacks allowed, 67.5 passer rating, QBR of 14.4 out of 100) — especially considering the fact that they were facing the league’s worst-ranked passing defense heading into the weekend.
With all that in mind, the total disappearance of wide receiver trade acquisition Mike Williams was a bit of a head-scratcher.
“Remember when Mike Williams scored the game-winning touchdown against the Washington Commanders? Apparently, Arthur Smith doesn’t,” Bleacher Report writer Alex Ballentine criticized at the start of Week 12.
“The Steelers’ newest receiver caught the game-winner last week but was a non-factor in this week’s game,” he explained. “The 6’5″ Williams is an ideal receiver to pair with Russell Wilson because of his ability to go up and get 50-50 balls. Yet, the Steelers played him just 25 snaps and didn’t target him once.”
To make matters worse, outside of George Pickens, there was virtually zero impact from Pittsburgh wide receivers against the Ravens. As Ballentine mentioned, Williams was not targeted, while Ben Skowronek caught his only target for 4 yards and Van Jefferson came up empty on his lone receiving opportunity.
Finally, fellow WR Calvin Austin III caught 1-of-2 targets for negative yardage.
To put it simply, the Steelers WR corps was Pickens or nothing in Week 11 once again. That has to change if Pittsburgh has serious Super Bowl aspirations.