Steelers defenders looked so defeated on big Josh Allen TD run

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen delivered a massive play in the second quarter of Monday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but the defense certainly did itself no favors.

Allen broke off a 52-yard touchdown run to increase Buffalo’s lead to 21-0 in the first half. The quarterback blew past multiple defenders, some of whom seemingly gave up on their pursuit of the quarterback at various points during the play.

This was particularly noticeable as Allen accelerated for the final portion of the run. Cornerback Patrick Peterson (No. 20) and safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (No. 39) were engaged with blockers, but were not fighting that hard to close down Allen. Both seemed to be assuming that either Allen was going to slide or one of their defensive teammates was going to make the tackle. Instead, Allen blew past both of them, and by the time they realized they needed to pursue at full effort, it was far too late to catch him.

.@JoshAllenQB turned on the BURNERS for the 52-yard rushing TD 🗣️

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— NFL (@NFL) January 15, 2024

Peterson and Fitzpatrick are both respected veterans, and it does not seem like this was an effort issue. Both seemed to wrongly interpret Allen’s hesitation move as the start of a slide.

This is nowhere near as egregious as one lack of effort earlier in the season. However, it is not a great look, especially in a playoff game.