Mitch Trubisky will remain the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback despite a rough start to the season, head coach Mike Tomlin said following the team’s 29-17 loss to the Cleveland Browns Thursday night, adding that it was a “collective” breakdown that resulted in the Steelers poor performance in the second half.
In a brief press conference to reporters following the Steelers second straight loss of the season, Tomlin repeatedly said that Pittsburgh’s inability to stop three-time Pro Bowl running back Nick Chubb was their greatest mistake.
“If you can’t slow down Chubb, man, you can’t beat this group. And we kinda knew that and we didn’t get it done. So we’ve got to own the outcome, and we will. So there’s not a lot to really talk about,” Tomlin said.
NICK CHUBB RUNS THROUGH STEELERS’ DEFENSE AS BROWNS WIPE OUT DIVISIONAL RIVAL
“I thought they controlled the game. They possessed the ball. Nick Chubb controlled the game.”
Tomlin was asked specifically about potentially reevaluating Trubisky, who just last week was at the mercy of his own fans who chanted for rookie Kenny Pickett to be put in.
“I’m not in that mindset. I’m interested in reviewing his tape and looking at the totality of it and figuring out how we collectively get better. The answer to that question is definitively no,” Tomlin said.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM
“I thought he made some plays, but we all collectively came up short. So that’s how we measure performance. Winning is our business, and we didn’t handle business.”
Trubisky, 28, played solid in the first half of the game but the Steelers offense was not able to make much of an impact despite a one point lead to end the second quarter. Pittsburgh managed just 54 yards on its first three possessions in the second half.
“We’re getting there, just not where it needs to be,” Trubisky said after the game. “We didn’t hit on the plays we needed to in the second half. Scoring three points in the second half isn’t going to do it for us.”
Trubisky finished 20-of-32 for 207 passing yards and no touchdowns, but the Steelers’ biggest problem was converting on third down (1-9).
“We got to look at this tape and learn and get better – and get better very fast,” Tomlin said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
