Mike McCarthy's Steelers Offense Is Already Facing a Major Identity Crisis

Sports admin September 22, 2026 0 Comments

Mike McCarthy’s Steelers Offense Is Already Facing a Major Identity Crisis

The Pittsburgh Steelers hired Mike McCarthy in late January to become just the fourth head coach since 1969. However, this time, the Steelers took a different route from the young, defensive-minded, first-time head coaches who had previously guided the franchise to six Super Bowl titles. Instead, McCarthy enters his third head coaching job with his specialty on the offensive side of the ball. It was an understandable move. Pittsburgh’s offense had been underwhelming for nearly a decade.

However, two weeks into the regular season, this team has failed to show any meaningful progress on offense. In fact, you could argue it has taken a major step backward. Even Kenny Pickett’s first two games in 2023 produced more points per game. So, where does the unit go from here? Sunday’s game plan was a massive failure, as the Steelers were dominated by the Patriots’ defense. It all began with the puzzling decision to try to establish themselves as a run-first team. Once that approach failed, all bets were off. This is a team without an offensive identity.

Forcing a Run Game?

What was McCarthy and his staff thinking when they decided to script the game plan around the run? It’s understandable that they want to establish a respectable rushing attack. However, that wasn’t going to happen overnight.

The Week 1 rushing attack improved during the four-minute drill, and it was evident why. It came a little more naturally and within the flow of the game. Week 2 saw the Steelers force the issue, leaving little room for innovation or backup plans. That isn’t good enough for a staff hired specifically to get this offense moving.

If the Steelers wanted to be a run-first team, they could have kept Arthur Smith and perhaps simply promoted him instead of cleaning house. They hired McCarthy to take a different approach. It’s understandable that the offense could take some time to gel. However, the approach in Week 2 was not good. At all. It was very poor.

That also leaves one major question unanswered: What exactly is this offense’s identity?

No Identity Through Two Weeks

McCarthy’s offense has failed to establish any kind of identity through two weeks. There isn’t anything the unit can consistently hang its hat on. At least Matt Canada could get an effective jet sweep or reverse into the game plan. Arthur Smith’s offenses could play small ball and utilize play-action. What is McCarthy’s team good at?

This isn’t a unit that simply can’t score, either. The Steelers ranked 15th in scoring in 2025, averaging just over 23 points per game. Is that great? No. But it is certainly better than the 11.5 points per game they are averaging through two weeks.

The good news is that there is still time to turn things around. However, the clock is ticking. Pittsburgh has back-to-back divisional matchups, hosting Cincinnati this Sunday before traveling to Cleveland for a Thursday night showdown.

We all know how Thursday night road games have gone for the Steelers.

If they are going to pull things together, it needs to start this week. What will that entail? At this point, your guess is as good as mine.

This story was originally published September 22, 2026 at 8:00 AM.