There were plenty of fingers to be pointed in the Pittsburgh Steelers locker room following the 29-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day.
Safety DeShon Elliott sounded off on fellow teammates in the Steelers secondary by questioning their efforts.
"First off, guys can't be f****** wide open," Elliott said when asked what the Steelers could change to end the losing streak. "That's the first thing. Just do your job, you know?
"I thought we communicated. Guys just weren't doing their freaking job. So, get back to the drawing board. It's Week 18. Shouldn't be having these problems in Week 18. This is a Week 1, Week 2 problem. So, I don't know where we went down the line, started becoming a whole different defense than what we were, but we've got to get back to who we are."
Pittsburgh's offense wasn't playing its sharpest game, either. It may have been only 25 total yards short of the Chiefs, but it was severely outmatched through the air: it scored no passing touchdowns to Patrick Mahomes' three as he out-tossed Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson by 115 yards.
With this loss, the Steelers no longer can control their own playoff fate.
The Steelers had an opportunity to clinch the AFC North in their meeting with the Baltimore Ravens in Week 16, but after dropping that game 34-17 and subsequently allowing Mahomes to trounce them for 320 yards, they are amidst a three-game skid heading into the final week of the regular season.
This span has included yielding an average of 30 points per game.
Now, the only scenario in which the 10-6 Steelers can win the division is if they defeat the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Browns beat the Ravens.
"It's got to be a want-to," Steelers linebacker Alex Highsmith said of how to right the ship. "There's not enough of that right now. There's got to be a want-to. It's that time of the year where we got two guaranteed games left. We're going to find out ... who wants this. Everybody in this room got to want it. That's the only way we're going to move on and get better."
Turnovers have been a paramount issue during the losses. The Steelers, who have been one of the league's best in turnover rates through 2024, coughed up two of them on Wednesday to round out the total to five in three straight games.
"We regressed in terms of our turnover culture, in terms of maintaining possession of the ball and getting the ball," head coach Mike Tomlin said.
More news: Steelers Star Cam Heyward on Christmas Chiefs Loss: "I Own That"
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