Heyward: ‘We knew what they were going to do and they did it’
Jaguars rookie runs at will
Was that Tommy Maddox at quarterback?
Was that Rashean Mathis at cornerback for the Jacksonville Jaguars, returning another interception for touchdown?
It looked as if it were deja vu all over again at Heinz Field.
It was 12 years ago, almost to the day, when the Steelers lost at home to the Jaguars to drop to 3-2, losing in overtime when Maddox’s third interception of the game was returned 41 yards for a touchdown by Mathis.
Sunday, the names changed, but not a whole lot else. Ben Roethlisberger threw a career-high five interceptions, two were returned for touchdowns and the Jaguars handed another defeat to the Steelers, 30-9, at Heinz Field.
There was one big difference, of course. Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles had to throw only one time in the second half, despite trailing at halftime, 9-7. And that was because the Steelers couldn’t stop the Jaguars running game, even though they knew it was coming.
“It’s unacceptable,” said defensive end Cam Heyward. “We knew what they were going to do and they did it.”
It was just two short weeks ago when the Chicago Bears ran their outside zone attack at the Steelers and creased them for 220 yards rushing, ending the game in overtime with three consecutive runs of 26, 18 and 19 yards.
This time, the Jaguars lined up and basically ran straight ahead at the Steelers with rookie Leonard Fournette, who put an emphatic end to the performance with a 90-yard touchdown run.
“You never want to allow that many yards and have those types of runs and them just be able to run it down your throat,” said inside linebacker Ryan Shazier, who had another interception, his sixth in the past 10 games.
The Jaguars finished with 231 yards rushing, the most against the Steelers since the Cleveland Browns had the same amount in the 2016 regular-season finale.
When you get right down to it, the facts are these: The Steelers have allowed four teams to run for more than 200 yards in the past 16 games, including three in the past six, dating to last season.
What’s more, in their past three games, the Steelers have allowed nine runs of 18 yards or longer, including two of at least 50 yards.
Outside, inside, it doesn’t seem to matter.
“We know what they were going to do,” Heyward said. “There’s no reason to look elsewhere. You look at yourself in the mirror and get back to work.”
The most glaring example of the Steelers inability to stop the run, when they knew it was coming, came at the beginning of the fourth quarter when the Jaguars ran on all 12 plays for 67 yards to set up a field goal. Included on that drive were runs of 11, 12, 13 and 19 yards, all but one by Fournette.
The Steelers once went 24 games without allowing a 100yard rusher, a streak that began in the 2004 season. Fournette, who had 181 yards on 28 carries, is the sixth in the past 16 games.
“We got beat in every phase,” Heyward said.
“It’s definitely demoralizing because you’re trying to stop something and, at the end of the day, they’re constantly able to run the ball,” Shazier said. “It starts to wear on you.”