Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith believes that the 2024 NFL preseason should not cause panic or disorder among fans of the team despite the tough losses that the team has suffered in the first two games of the run. But should fans really take his word and trust in their team right now?

Smith is not overreacting to the poor performances that the Steelers have done in the first two games of the preseason. That 9-3 loss to the Buffalo Bills was a show of poor executions and lack of decisiveness on the coaching staff. A lot of it can be blamed on the players, but Smith also takes the heat of those poor performances as well. It just seems that things aren’t improving well under the new offensive coordinator to begin the 2024 run – at least in the preseason.

The preseason is a way to gauge a team’s progress in development. Sure, they are not playing against the full might of respective teams in the league, but it is a chance to prove that they have what it takes to battle against the best teams in the league. So far, Smith is using it to see which players will work best on his offensive unit in the Steelers squad.

Lessons to Learn

That 9-3 loss to the Bills was a tough pill to swallow. Pittsburgh only had 219 total yards gained on the offensive end and even punted on their first four possessions – and that has definitely caused some fans from Steel City to have a frown on their faces and grinning in disappointment as the final whistle blew in a loss.

"We need to evaluate (players), and so sometimes it can get distorted, good or bad," Smith said of the team’s loss to the Bills. "Preseason could distort reality, good or bad. We've all seen it.”

This preseason has set high expectations for the Steelers. They have seen a lot of changes with various trades and signings, which has set up an on-paper competition that hasn’t been seen in the summer so far. Still, Smith is right not to overreact to the losses so far, and the unpredictable environment of the preseason can be just another testing ground for them.

Asking for Patience

Smith has his calendar ready and knows that the regular season is coming in fast. The Steelers doesn’t really look ready right now, but he’s right to say that “it’s still just the preseason”, so fans can chill out and watch as the rest of the games unfold with a promise of development for the team now more than ever.

"You know that's not their standard, and that's not acceptable, but at the same time, you'd rather go through that now than have that happen Week 1," said Smith, whose offense has produced just 15 total points in the preseason. "There's a lot going on there. We've had a really good camp, but the reality is, when we've got in there in the lights, we found a way to — and this is taking nothing away from the other defense — but we got to get out of our own way.”

It is worth noting that not all teams that have succeeded well in the preseason have gone to win the Super Bowl by the end of the season. For instance, the 2017 Cleveland Browns went 4-0 in the preseason, only to become the second NFL team to finish with an 0-16 record. It is early to come up with predictions in a developing year for the Steelers, but Smith hopes to work it out before the season truly begins.