Some messages come in softly, but chants to fire someone are heard loud and clear. On a night when the boos from the fans and chants of “Fire Tomlin” echoed through Acrisure Stadium, one voice in the locker room broke through all that noise. Cam Heyward, one of the longest-serving leaders on the team, laid out the only solution he believes can turn around Pittsburgh’s struggling season.

“We have to practice pissed off, watch film pissed off, do everything pissed off,” Heyward said. “We aren’t going to go gently in the night. We have to get our s**t together.”

Heyward reacted differently. He delivered what sounded like an internal directive. His words echoed a growing urgency within the locker room as players admitted they lacked consistency week to week.

The anger in the stadium matched the collapse on the field. Pittsburgh fell 26-7 to Buffalo, a fifth loss in seven games after a 4-1 start. Fans booed the team. They booed the iconic stadium anthem, and they chanted for Mike Tomlin’s firing, a moment broadcast to the entire country. Tomlin didn’t react emotionally, but he acknowledged the sentiment.

“I share their frustration tonight,” Tomlin later said to the reporters. “We didn’t do enough.”

Tomlin took heat for his calm tone. His answers were short, as there wasn’t much to be said. Pittsburgh hasn’t won a playoff game since 2016. They haven’t returned to the Super Bowl since 2010. Now, they’ve tumbled from fourth to ninth in the AFC race, staring at another late-season collapse.

Yet, the disconnect between coach and fan base doesn’t change Heyward’s point. The Steelers have no margin for error. The fixes won’t come from the podium. They must come from the field, and the captain made clear what the next month requires. Pissed-off football. Or no football in January.

But the frustration wasn’t limited to the crowd. On the field, Cam Heyward’s conflict with Josh Allen lit a new spark of controversy.

Cam Heyward accuses Josh Allen of dirty play

During the first half, Heyward tackled Bills QB Josh Allen and claimed Allen kneed him in the stomach. The exchange sparked a heated jawing session between the two on the field. Heyward walked off the field still seething. The Steelers’ defensive captain said that Allen crossed a line during Pittsburgh’s loss.

 “As a quarterback, they’re protected, but I’m not,” Heyward said. “It just pisses me off….He even said after, ‘I had to do something to get you off me.’”

The veteran defensive tackle insisted Allen’s actions weren’t accidental. That comment fueled their jawing the rest of the afternoon. While Allen didn’t address the knee incident afterward, he did admit that the back-and-forth added some extra fire to the game.

“Maybe a little bit,” he said. “He’s such a great player. Sometimes you need fire like that to get you going.”

Next up, the Steelers hit the road to Baltimore, facing a Ravens team that’s lost some steam after a strong run earlier this season. With playoff positioning on the line, both squads will be desperate to shake off slumps and prove they still belong in the hunt.