Pittsburgh may have blown it.
Why Steelers were wrong to punt on critical 4th down vs. Vikings instead of going for it originally appeared on The Sporting News
The Pittsburgh Steelers needed half a yard to win the football game.
They were up 24-21 on the Minnesota Vikings in Dublin, Ireland on Sunday in Week 4. And they had fourth down with less than three feet to gain.
The ball was on the 39-yard line, just outside field goal range, but a field goal didn't matter.
The Steelers just needed to get that half yard, and the clock would've run out on a couple kneel downs since the Vikings were out of timeouts.
But they punted, and the punt soared out of the end zone. It was a net move of 19 yards once the touchback was accounted for (and not accounting for the delay of game taken by the Steelers before punting).
MORE: Buccaneers make a surprising Desmond Watson decision
Why did the Steelers punt and not go for it?
The Steelers were trying to play it safe.
A conservative approach in football classically punts and forces the opposing offense to go a longer field.
That's what Mike Tomlin opted for, afraid of getting stuffed on the fourth down and giving up better field position.
Why the Steelers should've gone for it
In the end, the yardage that the Steelers pushed the Vikings back enough simply wasn't valuable enough. It amounts to one catch for Justin Jefferson or Jordan Addison.
If you get half a yard, the win is secured and the Vikings never touch the ball again.
That's why teams go for it in that spot. It's literally one play to win the game (and even if you fail, your defense can still take care of business).
But the Steelers played it safe, and it left the door open for the Vikings.
Category: Football
