INGLEWOOD, Calif. —The Pittsburgh Steelers ' offense was an abysmal 2 of 11 on third down in Sunday night's loss to the Los Angeles Chargers . The two third down conversions came in garbage time, also.
"Plastering our guys," Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said when asked what the Chargers did to stymie the Steelers' offense on third down.
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin also pointed to the third down miscues as being a big reason for the loss.
"It was probably midway through the fourth quarter before we converted a third down," Tomlin said. "You're not going to win football games not converting third down and losing the turnover battle. We certainly were loose with the ball in several instances and didn't convert enough third downs, and so that's the end result."
The Steelers were -3 in the turnover department after being +6 in their win over the Indianapolis Colts last week. To say the least, it was a lackluster performance by the Black and Gold in Southern California.
Over the last three games , the Steelers are 5 of 33 on third down (15%). The league average is 39%.
"We as an offensive collective were off and certainly, he's a component of that," Tomlin said of Rodgers and the offensive performance. "I'll let him speak for himself, but we certainly got to be better. Didn't feel like they did anything unanticipated, but certainly they outperformed us particularly in possession-down play."
Tomlin gave a simple answer when asked what needs to be worked on from an offensive consistency standpoint.
"Third down," Tomlin replied.
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin during a game against the New England Patriots on Sep. 21, 2025 — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Jaylen Warren averaged a sturdy 5.0 yards on 14 carries for 70 yards. The inability to stay on the field decreased Warren's workload, however.
"(When) you're 0-for-nine-or-10 on third down, you're not going to have enough snaps," Tomlin said. "We've been over that discussion a lot."
It was by far Rodgers' worst game of the season, completing 16 of 31 passes (51.6%) for 161 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 50.6.
Rodgers' 51.6 completion percentage was his worst since 2020 and his 50.6 passer rating was the fifth-worst in a full game in his career. He also got sacked three times, including one for a safety in the first quarter after holding onto the ball for too long.
"A lot of stuff wasn't working. We were bad on third down. I was just a little bit off," Rodgers said. "I missed DK early, could have been a big play. A little high to Jonnu. Didn't run the ball super effectively the first half. I missed, obviously, some throws for sure. The times the guys were open, I missed the throws."
Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth explained that receivers need to get open more on third down.
"Just being able to get open. Probably the biggest thing," Freiermuth said. "We know what they're gonna do and we've just got to be able to execute better. That's the biggest thing. We have to look at ourselves going forward as being able to execute and get open for Aaron, to be able to put the ball where it needs to be and get open on time."
Alan Saunders provided reporting from Inglewood, Calif.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now : Steelers Explain What Went Wrong on Third Down vs. Chargers
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