After losing to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 13, the Pittsburgh Steelers had the perfect opportunity to bounce back in Week 14 against a dismal New England Patriots team.
The Patriots have been a dumpster fire for the entirety of the 2023 NFL season and looked like a team destined to be picking high up in the 2024 NFL Draft.
However, Pittsburgh found a way to lose to New England on Thursday Night Football to fall to 7-6 and are suddenly in danger of missing the playoffs.
It was a dispiriting effort from the Steelers, especially defensively as they let backup quarterback Bailey Zappe move the football against them far too easily in the first quarter.
Pittsburgh quickly found themselves down by double digits and although they managed to fight back in the second half, they fell short and suffered their most embarrassing loss.
Former Steelers defensive back Ryan Clark didn’t mince words when talking about the team via ESPN.
“You walk past those six Lombardi trophies every day, and you feel like you’re part of that heritage. But you aren’t,” Clark said.
“You walk past those six Lombardi trophies every day, and you feel like you’re part of that heritage. But you aren’t.”@Realrclark25 gives insight on the mindset of the Steelers’ players following the loss on Thursday Night Football 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/AfpxC3d2dd
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) December 8, 2023
Clark says that players will feel entitled to be part of the Pittsburgh organization which has a rich history of winning, but said that that’s not the case for this current group.
It’s a privilege to play for one of the best franchises in the league, but this current group hasn’t shown the same level of focus and intensity they did the previous few weeks.
Head coach Mike Tomlin will surely have a lot of things to say to his players following two bad losses and it’ll be interesting to see how they respond.
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Former Steelers Star Absolutely Roasts Team Following TNF Loss