Pittsburgh's offense wasn't playing its sharpest game, either. It may have been only 25 total yards short of the Chiefs, but it was severely outmatched through the air: it scored no passing touchdowns to Patrick Mahomes' three as he out-tossed Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson by 115 yards.

On Wednesday, the Kansas City Chiefs proved to be the third straight team to expose the Pittsburgh Steelers defense. In particular the secondary. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes threw for an easy 320 yards as Chiefs receivers and tight ends ran free

On Wednesday, the Steelers fell 29–10 to the Kansas City Chiefs to drop to 10-6 on the season. The loss followed back-to-back losses to the Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens, and put Pittsburgh in danger of ceding the AFC North lead to the Ravens.

The Pittsburgh Steelers suffered their third straight loss on Wednesday by the score of 29-10 against the Kansas City Chiefs, and frustrations boiled over, especially on the defensive side, as safety DeShon Elliott made it clear what has been going wrong on that side of the ball.

And though Elliott is known for setting the tone in run defense, the difference with him on and off the field in passing situations is even more stark. The Steelers are second in allowing 6.4 passing yards per attempt with Elliott on the field and last with 9.1 yards playing without him.

The Pittsburgh Steelers knew they had a difficult matchup on Christmas Day against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs continue to be one of the best teams in the league, a juggernaut, in many respects.

The Steelers will be without top run defender DeShon Elliott for the second game in a row, while wide receiver George Pickens also will not play against the Ravens.