Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick was salty after Sunday's 24-20 loss to the New York Jets, in which Pittsburgh failed to hold onto a double-digit fourth-quarter lead.
"It's very frustrating," Fitzpatrick said, via NJ Advance Media. "It's frustrating losing to people that you know that you're better than, more talented than. Especially when you have the team that we have. We're a great team with a lot of talent. A lot of great young players. I think we are way better than what we've been putting on display."
After a sluggish start, rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett guided the Steelers to a 20-10 lead early in the fourth quarter after two rushing touchdowns. But Zach Wilson led the Jets to a late comeback, punctuated by running back Breece Hall's go-ahead touchdown with 18 seconds left to stun the Pittsburgh crowd.
"Well, they made the necessary plays," Fitzpatrick said. "They won the third downs. We didn't win them. They're getting the ball to the guys they wanted to get it to. We didn't stop them. When they get the ball to where they want to get it to, it's tough to win."
The loss pushed the Steelers to 1-3. It's the first time Pittsburgh has started 1-3 in back-to-back seasons since 1934-1935 (as the Pittsburgh Pirates).
While Pickett jumpstarted the Steelers' offense, he also threw three interceptions, not an uncommon sight for rookie signal-callers. He joined the likes of Trevor Lawrence (2021), Andrew Luck (2012), Matthew Stafford (2009) and Peyton Manning (1998) to have three-plus INTs in their first career game.
Early in the season, the Jets have shown mettle, earning two comeback road wins. Sunday marked the first time Gang Green has won consecutive road matchups since 2015 (after going 50 straight road games without back-to-back wins). New York (2-2) earned their first road victory in Pittsburgh since 2019 and are .500 or better through four games for the first time since 2017.
The Jets are 2-2 this season despite entering Week 4 leading for only 22 seconds combined through three games, per NFL Research.
