Steelers Made a Fatal Error Against Washington

The Pittsburgh Steelers entered Monday's game against the Washington Football Team as the league's only remaining undefeated team, but a poor performance on both sides of the ball led to their first loss of the season. Pittsburgh's offense seemingly couldn't break through Washington's defense for the high scoring they've been accustomed to.

One reason for the offense's shortcomings is the lack of involvement for breakout rookie Chase Claypool.

Chase Claypool only played on 31-of-71 snaps last night and saw four targets. Splitting with James Washington, who played 38 snaps and saw four targets.
— Adam Levitan (@adamlevitan) December 8, 2020

The Steelers' offensive troubles can be tied to several factors, including the absence of starting running back James Conner, but not unleashing one of the league's best wideouts in Claypool is a mistake.

Claypool has had a standout rookie season, racking up 649 yards and 8 receiving touchdowns (tied for sixth in the NFL). The wideout was averaging 6.5 targets per game entering Monday, but he only saw 4 targets against Washington. Furthermore, he was limited to his third-fewest snaps played (31) in a game all season, well down from his average of 40 per game.

With the Steelers' offense struggling to score, they should've prioritized Claypool, who has shown his tendency to find the end zone. Instead, Pittsburgh was handed their first loss of the season.

They'll have a tough matchup against the Buffalo Bills in Week 14. and the Steelers are only 1-point favorites in that game, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

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