‘It was definitely my fault’: Steven Sims responsible for first interception

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It’s usually rare for quarterbacks to not take responsibility for something happening on the field, and it’s hardly ever a good look when they don’t. Part of a leader’s job is to take ultimate responsibility for all successes and failures, and that includes accepting blame that might not rightly be yours.

While Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mitch Trubisky was certainly responsible for three interceptions in Sunday’s game, it takes more nuance than that to explain how each of the three occurred. And the first one in particular had a lot of things he couldn’t control.

While asked after the game if wide receiver Steven Sims had gone the wrong way and he suggested he didn’t think so at the time, it was clear upon review that he had. And he admitted it Monday, speaking to Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

I should have just gone under, in front of him, rather than behind him, he told reporters when asked how he played against Baltimore Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith, who intercepted the pass , In front page. I kind of caught up with getting my initial depth coming off the ball.

He added that he appreciated Trubisky taking the blame for the interception, but it was definitely my fault.

Sims was not the play’s target, but was responsible for executing a clearance route under the intended target, which was tight end Pat Freiermuth. As you can see from the view of the end zone below, the Ravens managed to pin him down at the line of scrimmage with cornerback Marlon Humphrey, stalling the progress of his run.

By the time he was where he was supposed to be, Sims had already reached the same point. Smith headed George Pickens up and hampered Sims’ progress, with the receiver deciding to split the defenders, running behind the linebacker, which encouraged Smith to drift into the target zone at the correct depth.

Still, the ball eventually rolled out of Trubisky’s hands and his head and eyes were telegraphing where the ball was going to go. Smith read it clearly and made it an easy game, without needing to know where the Sims were behind him at the time.

So Sims can take all the blame they want, but in the end it’s at least shared blame. There’s no guarantee Smith wasn’t going to make the same play even if Sims cut under and in front of him instead of drifting behind. Trubisky has to see this and adapt, especially after watching Freiermuth get stuck.

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