The Pittsburgh Steelers faced some harsh criticism following Thursday night’s 33-31 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Current Steelers defenders ripped their performance at Paycor Stadium, and a former player agrees. Ryan Clark, a Steelers safety from 2006 to 2013, eviscerated the unit after the AFC North letdown.
The ESPN analyst questioned defensive coordinator Teryl Austin’s preparedness on Friday’s “First Take.”
“We come into this game, you know what you’re gonna get,” Clark said of Cincinnati’s offense. “Go back to the Green Bay game, the second half. Every time Ja’Marr Chase has a one-on-one, they throw the fade ball. Teryl Austin, watch the film. You know what’s coming. And we don’t stop that?”
Joe Flacco kept feeding his new superstar wide receiver, who burned the Steelers with 16 catches for 161 yards and a touchdown. Clark would have felt better if the Bengals won with an innovative game plan rather than constantly targeting their best player.
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“They threw the ball to Ja’Marr Chase 23 times,” Clark noted. “They weren’t tricking us. I want to be tricked. I want to be fooled. You know how people say, ‘Well, I got into the marriage, and he just wasn’t who I thought he was gonna be.’ I want to be that guy! I want to be the person that got tricked. I don’t want Joe Flacco, at his age, to pass the ball 47 times.”
Meanwhile, Chase Brown registered 108 yards on 11 carries for the NFL’s bottom-ranked rushing offense. An exasperated Clark joked that Brown had previously run as much as his “First Take” co-panelist, Cam Newton, has since joining ESPN.
Clark placed the blame away from Aaron Rodgers, who “pulled a rabbit out of his hat” with a four-touchdown game. But the Bengals drove the field to kick a game-winning field goal in the final seconds.
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“You got to go get a stop,” Clark said. “The last I checked? Jalen Ramsey is going to be a Hall of Famer. The last I checked? T.J. Watt is going to be a Hall of Famer. We went out and paid money for Patrick Queen. Cam Heyward is going to be on that list as well. Joey Porter Jr. is an up-and-coming star. Somebody got to stand up and make a play.”
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