Larry Foote was brutally honest in his assessment of his Pittsburgh Steelers after they were upset 26-23 by the Tennessee Titans on Thursday night.
"We're not strong mentally," the veteran linebacker told KDKA-FM, via CBS Pittsburgh. "We don't look like a championship team right now.
"Everybody's been knocked down, everybody's had doors shut in their face, everybody's gotten beat."
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Those aren't the types of things we're used to from the Steelers (2-3). That might be the first time coach Mike Tomlin's team has been accused of being soft. But we're not used to the Steelers being ranked No. 19 in scoring defense (23 points per game) either.
Defense normally is the calling card in the Steel City, but it wasn't Thursday. The Titans (2-4) scored 10 points in the final 4:19. Running back Chris Johnson, who has been shut down in 2012, had his second-best game of the year with 91 yards on 19 carries. Johnson could've had more if he stopped hesitating at the line of scrimmage. Elder quarterback Matt Hasselbeck connected on throws when absolutely needed.
The Steelers clearly miss Troy Polamalu. Linebacker James Harrison (knee) played for a second consecutive week, but LaMarr Woodley was out with a hamstring injury.
It's not over in Pittsburgh, but a loss against the struggling Titans hurts. Two games against the Baltimore Ravens loom, and there's the Week 9 trip to face the New York Giants.
Foote said he's excited to see how the Steelers respond. If that's going to happen, it needs to happen soon.
Follow Kareem Copeland on Twitter @kareemcopeland.
