According to Rooney, the most significant defeat for Pittsburgh did not come from one of the humiliating games played at Acrisure Stadium against two teams who had only won two games together. The first of the team’s three games on a losing streak ended in a crushing defeat in the second quarter. In their first game back in Pittsburgh without Offensive Coordinator Matt Canada, the Steelers were hoping to advance their season and establish themselves as legitimate AFC contenders as they hosted the Arizona Cardinals (2-10).

When quarterback Kenny Pickett attempted to rush for a touchdown, he suffered a serious ankle injury. With his own strength, he managed to leave the field, but he refused to come back. This would mark the beginning of the three-game losing skid, as backup quarterback Mitch Trubisky led the way. Pickett would not return for the rest of the season, missing the last five regular season games and their Wild Card match up against the Buffalo Bills after Mason Rudolph earned the starting job.

“It was too bad Kenny got hurt and could not finish the season. Would have liked to have seen what he did down the stretch. Obviously, the season before he got stronger down the stretch, so it would’ve been nice to see that,” Rooney said.

Pickett and the Steelers’ offense as a whole had been having trouble all season under Canada, but once they parted ways with Canada following their Week 11 encounter with the Cleveland Browns, the offensive began to perform better. The offense amassed over 400 yards in Pickett and company’s first game without Canada, marking the first time in 59 games that they had done so.