“Arthur Smith’s offense has zero identity”: Mark Madden rips Steelers for wasting DK Metcalf in Aaron Rodgers-led offense

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ new-look offense has done little to impress many analysts.

One of the many who are unimpressed with the group so far is Pittsburgh sports personality Mark Madden, who believes there is plenty of talent being wasted on offense, and others on the team who just don’t fit.

“Not only is (Aaron) Rodgers miscast, the Steelers are wasting wideout DK Metcalf,” said Madden on Monday. “This offense has Rodgers at QB and Arthur Smith as coordinator, but doesn’t look much different than when Matt Canada was boss.”

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The Steelers are 2-1 to start the season, having defeated the New England Patriots on Sunday by a score of 21-14. That said, they only had 203 yards of offense, but Rodgers’ clutch performances have often rescued them early in the new season.

“Just more tight ends. Smith’s offense has zero identity beyond Rodgers being clutch,” Madden went on to say.

Metcalf in particular has appeared like a forgotten man, making just 10 catches on 17 tagrets for 135 yards and two touchdowns.

After three games the Steelers have the third-worst offense in the NFL regarding yards-per-game, averaging just 247 thus far. They are averaging 184 yards passing per game, which ranks them 24th in the league.

Meanwhile, the loss of Najae Harris hampered their smith-unleash-11-904-000-star-steelers-passing-game" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">running game early on. Pittsburgh have the second-fewest rushing yards per game in the league(63).

The offense looks very different from 2024, with the addition of veteran Aaron Rodgers as their quarterback, undrafted Jaylen Warren is their featured back, and two-time Pro Bowl receiver DK Metcalf, came over in a trade from the Seattle Seahawks. They also got tight end Jonnu Smith from the Miami Dolphins.

With so many new faces, it seems like Arthur Smith’s offensive unit is taking longer than many had anticipated to gel.

The Steelers are lacking that killer instinct

After three weeks, the Steelers’ offense has had its share of opportunities to put points on the board. Unfortunately, they’ve not been able to capitalize on many of those chances.

On Sunday, they created five turnovers against the Patriots and found themselves working with a short field. They could rarely get into a rhythm, especially in the second half, which began with an interception in their first offensive series and then three punts before scoring a touchdown.

Pass protection has been solid in their opening three games, but timing, predictability and a lack of cohesion appear to be holding them back.

At the same time, they have a winning record after three weeks for a third successive regular season and are tied for first in the AFC North.

Edited by Joel Lefevre