Red zone blues: Winning without scoring a TD a feat the Steelers would rather not repeat

That the Pittsburgh Steelers won for the second time this season without scoring a touchdown is not something their offense is celebrating.

Instead, it’s a feat they would rather not repeat.

The Steelers were 0 for 4 inside the Baltimore 20-yard line in their 18-16 win over the rival Ravens on Sunday. They went 0 for 2 in the season-opening 18-10 win at Atlanta on Sept. 8. In both games, kicker Chris Boswell provided all of the points by converting six field goals when the offense stalled in the red zone.

Where the Steelers lead the NFL with 29 red-zone field goals, they rank 30th (out of 32 teams) in red-zone touchdown scoring percentage (44.4%) this season. It’s a source of frustration for offensive coordinator Arthur Smith going into Thursday night’s AFC North game at the Cleveland Browns.

“Every time you get down there, you want to come away with a touchdown,” Smith said. “We all got to do a better job there.”

Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson attempted to put a more positive spin on their execution inside the 20, focusing on being more consistent and crisper in such situations. Wilson offered a reminder the Steelers were three of four in the red zone in the 28-27 win at Washington a week earlier, saying every game has a history of its own.

“You just stay focused on the next moment,” Wilson said. “I think that’s the best thing about the red zone is the next moment is the most important one.”

Steelers QB Russell Wilson on the struggles in the red zone, where they went 0 for 4 against Baltimore. pic.twitter.com/pMjqiVFKzE

— Kevin Gorman (@KevinGormanPGH) November 19, 2024

Smith isn’t about to panic. He was offensive coordinator of the Tennessee Titans in 2019 when they had an incredible turnaround in the red zone. After switching to Ryan Tannehill at quarterback in Week 7, the Titans scored on 34.6% of their drives and had 31 touchdowns compared to one field goal in the red zone. They went 11 for 11 in one late-season four-game stretch.

It proved to Smith that fortunes can change as quickly as technology.

“That’s why you keep working,” Smith said. “You see it, and you try not to get caught up in it, whatever it is. Storylines change every five seconds. I guess it used to be 24 hours. Now it’s maybe 24 seconds with the attention spans. I think our attention spans are all shrinking, thanks to Apple. But, in all seriousness, you keep working, and sometimes it is momentum and confidence.”

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Switching quarterbacks in Week 7 sparked Tennessee in the red zone, but it has had the opposite effect on the Steelers.

Justin Fields started the first six games and went 9 for 17 (52.9%) in the red zone as he completed 68.4% of his passes (13 of 19) for four touchdowns and rushed for five scores inside the 20. Inside the 10, Fields is 5 for 9 with three touchdowns.

The Steelers are 7 of 18 (38.9%) in the red zone with Wilson, who has a 29.2% completion rate (7 of 24) with four touchdowns and an interception and ran for one score in the red zone. Inside the 10, Wilson is 2 for 14 with two touchdowns.

The Steelers can’t ignore the red-zone moments that resulted in turnovers. Against the Commanders, running back Jaylen Warren lost a fumble at the 1-yard line with the Steelers trailing 27-21 midway through the fourth quarter. On a third-and-goal at the 5 against the Ravens, Wilson attempted to lob a pass to Darnell Washington, but it sailed over the 6-foot-7 tight end and was intercepted in the end zone early in the fourth quarter.

“I got a lot of faith,” Smith said. “And there’s some other things we could do. We need to be cleaner. The biggest thing that concerns me overall is we haven’t turned the ball over a lot, but that’s two weeks in a row — and in close games — we turned the ball over in the red zone and come away with no points. That’s a stuff you’ve got to fix because that can cost you.”

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin credited the Ravens’ defense for stopping them in the red zone, but he was more direct about the turnover by saying, “I just wish Russ hadn’t thrown it.”

Wilson acknowledged he should have thrown it away and allowed Boswell to kick another field goal, which would have given the Steelers an eight-point lead. He got bailed out by the defense when rookie inside linebacker Payton Wilson intercepted a pass at the Steelers 36. That set up a scoring drive during which Russell Wilson connected with Washington for a 17-yard pass to set up Boswell’s 50-yard field goal.

“You never want to turn the ball over at any point,” Russell Wilson said. “Obviously, I think the best thing that we can do, though, is focus on just trying to be great in the fundamentals, great in the little details. Every time you step in the red zone, we’re looking forward to scoring touchdowns. I think that’s a mentality thing.”