‘I feel like I let the guys down:’ Mitch Trubisky struggles in 1st start in a year for Steelers
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Some of his teammates were long gone. The vast majority of the others had showered and were getting ready to leave.
But Mitch Trubisky sat alone in his chair in front of his stall in the Pittsburgh Steelers locker room at Acrisure Stadium. He stared blankly forward with slumped posture.
“I’ve got to play better,” Trubisky said later from a podium while addressing media. “I feel like I let the guys down.”
Making his first start of 2023 in place of an injured Kenny Pickett, Trubisky completed 22 of 35 passes for 190 yards, a touchdown and an interception during the Steelers’ 21-18 loss to the New England Patriots on Thursday night.
Trubisky’s stats were buoyed by two completions for 45 yards in garbage time in the final two plays. Before those final 15 seconds, Trubisky averaged a meager 4.4 yards on his first 33 attempts.
“I’ve got to be better for the guys, for the team,” Trubisky said. “It’s disappointing. Missed opportunities, and I didn’t play good enough for us to win, and that’s how I am feeling right now.”
Trubisky fell to 2-4 as a starter for the Steelers and 1-1 since he was benched in favor of Pickett during Week 4 of last season. This was Trubisky’s sixth appearance in place of an injured Pickett since then, his only other start being a sharp one during a victory at the Carolina Panthers last Dec. 18.
But the 100.4 passer rating Trubisky earned that day dwarfed the 74.7 he had against the formerly 2-10 Patriots. Trubisky’s rating was a paltry 68.4 until the final two snaps when New England was giving up yardage in an effort to prevent a desperation touchdown.
Trubisky completed only six passes in the first half, during which he also had an interception.
“I thought he got better as the game went on,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said, “(but) obviously, wasn’t the type of start we needed.”
Tomlin said he never considered benching Trubisky in favor of Mason Rudolph, the veteran No. 3 quarterback who hasn’t played in a regular-season game since 2021. While the offense was enduring a stretch of three three-and-outs combined with Trubisky’s interception spanning the first and second quarters, some in the crowd chanted Rudolph’s name.
Five Steelers possessions did not gain a first down. The second quarter did feature a 25-yard touchdown pass to Diontae Johnson, but, aside from that, the game was a massive flop for the offense. It produced no points after taking over at the New England 16 after an interception and return by Mykal Walker in the third quarter.
Later, twice the Steelers took over with a chance for a tying field goal or winning touchdown but stalled after attaining just one first down.
Boos directed at the offense were heard frequently from the home fans.
“It’s understandable,” Trubisky said. “We played like crap in the first half. It is what it is. They are frustrated. We are all frustrated, but we did better in the second half to give us a chance, but I have to play better. That’s the bottom line.”
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