As the NFL offseason
is in full swing, it’s a perfect opportunity to evaluate where each team was in
2017, and where they plan to go in the New Year. Let’s begin the review of
the Pittsburgh Steelers.
2017 Season Recap:
When entering the 2017 season, the biggest issues surrounding the
Steelers was the potential holdout of their star running back LeVeon Bell. When
Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert placed the franchise tag on one of the
most productive, elusive, patient runners in the game, he had to have thought
it would’ve caused a stir in the Bell camp. While most NFL players feel much
the same about the franchise tag (negative), LeVeon took great exception to not
receiving a contract that placed the correct dollar amount of the volume of
production he’s given the Steelers these many years. Many reasons forced the
hand of the Steelers brain trust to set the tag on the generational talent. The
season previous (2016) Bell had broken league policy and was suspended for the
first three games of the season. The season prior to that (2015), Bell tore his
MCL and was lost for the season during their week 6 contest. While the
production LeVeon puts out on the football field hasn’t equated to long term
trust from the management to provide a sound deal that would be acceptable to
the all-star runner, he chose to take matters into his own hands and sit out
then entire training camp and preseason.
Returning just prior to week one, Bell announced via social media that
“he was back”. Happy to have the third member of the killer-B’s back in the
mix, the Steelers looked to be a powerhouse again in the AFC. Starting the
season off with two straight wins, The Steelers struggled verses the Browns and
made easy work of the Vikings. Dropping their next contest to the Chicago
Bears, the mantra again claimed that Pittsburgh always plays down to the level
of their opponents. Getting back on track in week four, LeVeon Bell carried the
Steelers to victory behind 144 yards on the ground and two touchdowns. As they
entered week five in a matchup with the up and coming Jacksonville Jaguars,
this contest seemingly defined what the Pittsburgh Steelers would eventually
become for the remainder of the season. Behind the great running of rookie
Leonard Fournette and the undisciplined and uncharacteristic play of Ben
Roethlisberger (throwing five interceptions), Jacksonville steamrolled the
Steelers by a count of 30-09 making most question what was wrong with the black
and yellow. Putting the critics to rest by rebounding and defeating one of the
better AFC teams in the Chiefs, they followed that up with another victory the
following week taking down the Bengals to improve their record to 5-2 on the
season.
Entering week eight of the season, Pittsburgh traveled to Detroit to face
off against a difficult Lions team. It seemed clear there was still something
missing from this offense that could take them over the top to be a
multi-dimensional force adding to the killer-B’s. Playing on the primetime
stage of Sunday Night Football, Pittsburgh found a piece to the puzzle that
would make the 2017 Steelers noticeably better for the remainder of the
campaign. Enter rookie spark plug JuJu Smith-Schuster to show the world he has
game. Being a secondary piece to the game plan up to this point, offensive
coordinator Todd Haley finally took the Ferrier out of second gear and opened
up the turbo charged engine. JuJu exploded on the scene ripping the Lions
defense for 7 receptions, 193 yards, and one touchdown that went for 97 yards,
what a night indeed. Excited about the possibilities of what another weapon
would do for this offense, JuJu claimed a starting role after that game. With
already a great start to the season for LeVeon Bell and Antonio Brown, JuJu’s
added dimension would cause defenses to have migraines. Having their bye in
week 10 after the win against the Lions, Pittsburgh went on an absolute tear
winning seven of their last eight contests to finish the year with a record of
13-3 clinching the division title and enjoying a first round bye.
As divisional round weekend approached, the Steelers again were set to
face off against a team that embarrassed them in supreme fashion earlier in the
year – in the Jacksonville Jaguars. Absolutely shocking the viewing public,
Jacksonville jumped out to an early 21-0 lead again dominating play leaving the
Steelers with no answers. While it seemed the Steelers would gain momentum on
every touchdown scored, the defense was unable to stop the fabulous running of
rookie Leonard Fournette and his tremendous 3 touchdown performance. As the
Steelers found a way to claw back into this contest being down by one touchdown
with just over two minutes left in the game, the Jaguars again managed to run the
ball enough after receiving great field position from a failed onside kick to
eventually make the field goal to put the Jags up by ten with 1:50 remaining on
the clock. Having to drive virtually the entire field, the Steelers were able
to make this game closer with a last second touchdown eventually running out of
time and ending their season with lost hope and a wasted talent base to matchup
against the Patriots in the AFC championship.
2018 Offseason
Workbook:
Offseason Review:
As the season left
many disappointed with what could’ve been, the 2018 offseason brings more
challenges which were similar to the previous one. First, coach Mike Tomlin
felt the need to shake things up relieving offensive coordinator and offensive
specialist Todd Haley from his duties and watching him travel across the
division to the Cleveland Browns. Replacing Haley with long time Steelers
quarterbacks coach Randy Fichtner, proves they continue to promote within the
organization to try and keep stability in a system as long as Ben
Roethlisberger remains the starting pivot of the franchise. With that said,
Big-Ben voiced his concern for playing football in the 2017 season claiming
retirement was a definite possibility. Ultimately, Ben chose in favor to play
only to see the same result (no Super Bowl title), and another year pass him
bye. At the ripe age of 36, Ben should again be questioning his internal self
to if he would like to endure another year of pain, hits, and tackles on his
15-year career body. All signs indicate Roethlisberger will return for another
campaign with the Steelers in hopes to capitalize on this fantastic roster of
star-studded talent. Adding to the pressure of retaining talent, the same exact
script played itself out in terms of how to handle LeVeon Bell and a potential
long-term contract. With Bell touching the ball an astronomical 406 times in
2017 (321 rush, 85 receptions), for sure he would see a contract that would
make him the highest paid running back in the NFL. Alas, the Bell camp was
unable to come to terms on a deal that would satisfy both sides eventually
placing the franchise tag on Bell for another season.
As Mike Tomlin looks
to tinker and improve his roster, he will again be without his star running
back for all offseason camps and all preseason contests. Bell has already made
it clear he will skip all work much like last year and potentially return right
before the season begins (again). Offensively the Steelers are a well-oiled
machine when they feel like playing. For whatever reason, Pittsburgh has become
notorious for playing down to the level of their competition, which is odd with
the talent they possess. This team is of course led by Big-Ben Roethlisberger,
Antonio Brown, and LeVeon Bell which on most days can carry the entire unit.
With JuJu Smith-Schuster added to the fold, another dynamic of a potential star
looks to make this offense that much more dangerous. Pittsburgh was very good
in the 2017 season ranking third in total yards and passing yards with 377.9
YPG and 273.8 YPG respectively. Being the 8th best in points scored
proves this unit could score at will when the appetite was present. While
slight tinkering would be on the agenda for this unit, adding offensive line
depth would increase the chances Big-Ben remains on the field for majority of
the season. Tight end has been an issue for this club since the retirement of
fan favorite Heath Miller. Trying multiple avenues to correct this issue, not
much has panned out in terms of finding a dominating force like they once had.
Jesse James has assumed the role with some decent production but is far from a
great talent this offense could use. Backup Vance McDonald might have the
inside track coming into training camp as he does possess greater athletic
ability then his teammate Jesse James. Should be interesting to see that roster
battle play out. While majority of the offense should look the same for 2018,
the biggest question will be in the play calling for the Steelers. Todd Haley
was a master at his craft and enjoyed the consistency of working with the same
group for many years. This could be a big question mark and one to keep an eye
on.
Defensively, the
Steelers were a much-improved bunch which was a far cry from a season ago.
Adding talent to the roster with players like rookie TJ Watt and former
Cleveland Brown Joe Haden, allowed this unit to become quite a force at times.
This defense was responsible for a whopping 56 sacks of opposing quarterbacks
with their relentless pass rush and blitz schemes. The issues became clear that
the reliance on the front seven to generate sacks left the back-end vulnerable
to giving up big plays and only creating 16 interceptions and 12 fumbles for a
turnover differential of +2 for the year. With this unit concluding the season
with statistics in the top ten in every category, its easy to suggest this was
a great success from where they were from a season ago. The most notable
situation that occurred for the defense was the horrific injury to star line
backer Ryan Shazier. On what seemed to be a routine tackle, Shazier awkwardly
dove into the runner with the crown of his helmet and fell to the ground
grasping his back eventually being immobilized for safety reasons. It was clear
football wasn’t the concern but rather the health of the standout line backer
as the potential for paralysation existed after he went down. With much joy and
relief, word came out that Ryan had regained all feeling in his extremities but
would be lost for the 2018 season. Filling the hole left by Shazier will be a
giant task as he was a clear difference maker on the field. While adding key
pieces to the defense should be a priority, the secondary should see some added
depth either in free agency, but most likely the draft. With a pass rush that
can dominate the line of scrimmage as the Steelers have, rounding out the
remaining holes could make this unit a very difficult one to play against in
2018.
Rostered Free Agents:
As the league year
quickly approaches, the Steelers find themselves in quite a hole being under
the cap by only 1 million dollars after tagging LeVeon Bell. The fortunate
thing for Steelers general manager is that their listing of rostered free
agents is small, housing eight players in need of a new deal. Depth line backer
Aurtur Moats seems to be the most viable to being resigned this offseason to continue
wearing the black and yellow. Outside of that, the rest of this group should
find themselves calling their agents to find new teams to play for.
With literally no room
to buy fuel for the team bus, general manager Kevin Colbert will have to work magic
to sort out the financial problems. First, renegotiating with LeVeon Bell to
create a deal that would provide happiness to the runner, could also provide
relief in his 2018 cap figure which sees him taking home a large 14.5 million
in fully guaranteed dollars. In recent news, safety Mike Mitchell has been
active on social media suggesting his time in Pittsburgh could come to an end,
which would save the Steelers a nice 6.4 million in cap space, and the release
seems imminent. Another safety that could see the street is - J.J Wilcox and
his roughly 3.1 million is cap savings Pittsburgh would gain back on the books.
While the most insensitive release could garner horrible P.R. for the Steelers,
its something they are reviewing without question. I’m speaking directly of
line backer Ryan Shazier. With his health the ultimate concern, he counts
against the cap with a whopping 8.7 million with no dead money attached.
Obviously Shazier wouldn’t get shown the door without any compensation, but
perhaps an injury settlement could remove some money off the books. Out of
respect this move is highly unlikely but definitely warrants a review of their
options.
NFL Draft:
With limited funds and
certain holes to fill, the Steelers will have to make the most of their six
draft picks they house in the upcoming NFL draft. Having no 4th or 6th
round selections, Pittsburgh does have two picks in the 5th to round
out the board. Defensive back and line backer should be the priority for this
team as they look to replace Ryan Shazier and add to a secondary that could use
more help. Its not inconceivable that general manager Colbert could draft
another running back to cover his bases if he’s had enough of the LeVeon Bell
situation. With a running back class as deep as this, its very possible
Pittsburgh could find their next talent in the 3rd round to
potentially take over, allowing Bell to walk next season. Also, could we
potentially see a quarterback drafted again by the Steelers to replace Big-Ben?
Could very well happen. It will be tough for Pittsburgh to move around in this
draft unless they part ways with the 28th overall pick trading down
to add more capital. It should be interesting.
Overall for 2018:
This edition of the
Steelers should improve from last year, as adding depth in key areas should
allow them to be more dynamic. The concern as mentioned is the status of LeVeon
Bell and his contract situation which has become a major distraction to the
club. As I’m sure we all agree - Bell should get paid his worth of value, but
on this team, which has the potential to go to the Super Bowl with the current
pieces in place, a home town discount for winning has been the expectation from
management. As Big-Ben questions his desire to continue playing, the Steelers
could be in a heap of trouble and don’t want to commit to high priced talent
with a probable rebuild of the offense without their long-time quarterback.
Steelers fans may want to enjoy this ride as it could be the last we see like
this.
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