Steelers fan confidence levels as fans pin-point the reason for the team’s struggles

The Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off an offseason to remember, as well as a great start to the preseason. The key word to the previous statement was “start.” Following an undefeated preseason, the Steelers, and their fans, had split opinions of the team. Throughout the final two weeks of the exhibition season, several warts on the team’s roster were exposed. The offensive line struggled, the running game stalled and questions remained about the defensive’s ability to stop the run.

As you can imagine, Steelers fans weren’t brimming with confidence heading into their Week 1 game vs. the Cincinnati Bengals in Ohio. Nonetheless, the team found a way to upset the Bengals 23-20 in overtime and move their record to 1-0.

Such a crazy game, and victory, you’d think this would create a big bump in fan confidence, right?

Not so much.

The Week 2 loss to the New England Patriots, one where the offense essentially failed to show up, caused the Steelers fan base to lose faith, and in a hurry. Following the Steelers Week 3 loss to the Cleveland Browns on Thursday Night Football, confidence in the team remained low.

As a part of SB Nation’s Reacts poll, sponsored by DraftKings Sportsbook, every fan who takes the poll, which equates to a lot of fans, were asked a simple question:

Are you confident in the direction of the team?

How far did it drop after the Week 2 loss? Not as far as you’d think. In all actuality, it actually went up 1%. Take a look at where the confidence was, and where it is now, below:

Preseason Confidence: 91%
Pre-Regular Season Confidence: 81%
Week 1 Confidence: 80%
Week 2 Confidence: 20%
Week 3 Confidence: 21%

With confidence waning, it felt obvious to ask a follow-up question. This follow-up question pertained to Steelers overall team issues. The Steelers simply can’t get anything going on offense, but it isn’t as if the defense is perfect either. It felt right to ask what is the biggest issue facing the Steelers right now heading into Week 4.

As you can see, fans point to the play calling as the main culprit.

When looking at the results of the poll, it is worth noting the top three categories chosen were all on the offensive side of the ball. In other words, the rush defense is primarily viewed as struggling because the offense simply can’t sustain drives and the time of possession is tilted so far in the opponent’s direction.

A lot can change throughout the course of a regular season, and we’ll be sure to keep you up-to-speed on the fan base’s feelings of the team. But what say you? Do you have confidence in the direction of the team? Is it too early to tell?

Let us know what you think in the comment section below, and be sure to stay tuned to BTSC for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the New York Jets in Week 4 of the regular season.

Check out DraftKings Sportsbook, the official sportsbook partner of SB Nation.