Written By: Danny O’BrienThe Pittsburgh Steelers and the Winning Record Obsession
Right I’ve been putting off this preview of the Steelers, for obvious reasons. Now it’s time to
dive in and see where they stand now.
Last season: Second in the AFC North & defeated by the Ravens in Wildcard
Weekend
Highlight: The win against the Commanders on the road
Lowlight: Take your pick from all of December
Don’t mention: Quarterbacks
Going into last season there was a lot of talk around the Steelers, both Fields and Wilson
had joined when most thought they might get one of them and there was a lot of enthusiasm
that they would have a better year with this new tandem. They ended up with the exact same
record as the previous year and exited at the exact same point…….
What’s worse they did so at the hands of the Ravens who barely had to break a sweat. This
was on the back of a December where the Steelers form utterly collapsed. While there was
frustration at how the QB situation went what was as big a concern was how the most
expensive defense in the league got bulldozed by numerous sides in the business end of the
season.
Overall, very very frustrating.
Big Off-Season Addition – Aaron Rodgers. Being honest this was the move that had me
stalled about writing about them. The Steelers missed out on their first two choices and so
began the tedious merry go round of will he won’t he with the worst quarterback for this kind
of situation. He EVENTUALLY signed for the Steelers and the general reaction has been,
meh. Rodgers will go down as one of the all-time greats, but it hasn’t been a vintage couple
of years for him. The Jets experiment imploded horrendously with that franchises going
scorched earth on an era whose only highlight was the very start against the Bills.
The Steelers have made some other noticeable moves and it’s taking time to get used to this
version of the Steelers going out into free agency (DK Metcalf) and also trading (Jalen
Ramsey & Jonnu Smith). That trade in particular has me still scratching my head. As a friend
who’s a Jets fan put perfectly “Steelers have a great team, for 2019”. To steal the quote of
Jerry Jones the Steelers are “all in!!”……..
Big Off-Season Subtraction – The offense.
I mean take your pick, both QBs gone, Najee Harris gone and George Pickens also traded. That’s a hell of a turnover for the average NFL franchise and even more so for a franchise that many see as the benchmark for stability.There is also the current talk around TJ Watt and the contract negotiations which arecurrently ongoing.
The Steelers have a history of signing big players to last minute deals (see my all-time
favourite Troy Polamalu) and with cap space of $18 million this is a deal that should be done
for this season, next year might be a different story.
The Steelers Slate
The front end of the schedule isn’t the worst, that four-week slate against the Vikings,
Browns, Bengals and Packers could make or break their chances. It’s the back slate where
things could fall apart (again). The Bills, Lions and Ravens (x2) is where we’ll find out what
this side is made of, which I’m not too confident about.
What can we expect from the Steelers?
Ummmmmmm, that’s the million dollar question. The offense is completely new and one or
two additions to the defense will make things intriguing. The two areas I have the biggest
concerns are:
The offensive line – Ranked 21 st in the league where you have this young group
trying to guard the oldest QB in the league, not good.
The age profile of the Steelers – Outside of Rodgers the Steelers have gotten old,
numerous key players are in their early to mid-thirties and this is a league and a sport
that doesn’t show much mercy to those entering this period of their careers.
For years the Steelers have played the following way, offense gets bailed out by the
defense. Should this happen again this year then this “all in” year will have been a waste.
Steelers Prospects for Next Season?
Winning record and a Wildcard exit is the best they can hope for. This is a team that has
gotten older but have they improved on where they were last year? I don’t think so.
The Steelers should also heed the warnings of a team from another sport they are starting to
look more and more like, the Detroit Red Wings of the NHL. The Red Wings for years had
been contenders but in the 2010s they started to become obsessed with making the playoffs
at all costs, regardless of whether they were competitive. They signed veterans numerous
seasons that got them to the playoffs but then resulted in a first-round exit. In 2017 they
didn’t make the big dance, ending a 25 year playoff streak, they haven’t made the playoffs
since. The Steelers have all the hallmarks of winning record obsession but not being able to
compete at the elite end of the league.
Still, at least there’s the game in Dublin.