Our 2022 NFL Preview stays in the state of Pennsylvania, where the Steelers are set to embark on a brand-new era of football following the retirement of longtime Quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger. After nearly two decades, a number of division titles and a pair of Lombardi Trophies, Big Ben finally called it a career in Pittsburgh, leaving (Head Coach) Mike Tomlin to find his successor. Needless to say, this is certainly an interesting situation for what has long been the most stable franchise in the NFL, with an open competition for the starting job dominating the headlines throughout the offseason. So, who will take the torch and how long will they bear it? Let’s pull back that steel curtain and find out, shall we?
Succession
With his play in decline over the last few seasons, it’s a bit bewildering that the Steelers never seemed to have a proper succession plan in place once the aforementioned Roethlisberger decided to retire after eighteen years with the franchise that drafted him back in 2004. We’ve seen examples of teams looking ahead and drafting their Quarterback’s successors, what with the Packers (Favre/Rodgers), Niners (Garoppolo), and Ravens (Flacco/Jackson) to name a few. However, at no point did Tomlin or (former General Manager) Kevin Colbert seem all that interested in trying to find Big Ben’s replacement, no matter how often he openly pondered retirement. And thus, Pittsburgh finds themselves in their current predicament, waiting for a lengthy competition to play itself out. Among the candidates for the role of QB1 is quite the motley crew of Mitchell Trubisky, Mason Rudolph, and Kenny Pickett (all pictured), with each bringing something different to the table. The frontrunner at the moment appears to be Trubisky, the former second overall pick of the 2017 NFL Draft, who fell victim to the dysfunctional mess that has been the Bears. Behind him is Mason Rudolph, the only member of this group to play for the Steelers prior to Training Camp, having backed up Roethlisberger for the past three seasons, earning a 5-4-1 record in spot duty as a starter. And then there is Kenny Pickett, the team’s first-round pick in last spring’s NFL Draft, who ironically played his collegiate games at the same venue that he’ll be calling home as a rookie, the newly christened Acrisure Stadium. With the preseason now in full swing, the feeling is that Trubisky will indeed get the nod to open the regular season, with his skillset and experience appearing to be a much better fit for (Offensive Coordinator) Matt Canada’s system. In his first season calling plays, Canada was hamstrung by Roethlisberger’s lack of mobility and waning arm strength, which shouldn’t be an issue with the 28-year-old Trubisky, who back in 2018 rushed for 421 yards and three touchdowns en route to a Pro-Bowl selection in Chicago. There are plenty of weapons to be found on this side of the football, and Canada has proven to come up with creative ways to put them to use, but all the Steelers need is someone who can get them the football on schedule. Of course, we all know that is easier said than done…
Protection Plan
Another reason why Trubisky is the frontrunner to win the starting job in Pittsburgh is because of his mobility and the fact that he has taken more hits than either of the other two individuals that he is competing with. Over the course of his career, he has rushed for 1,081 yards and nine touchdowns, parlaying to an average of 5.3 yads per carry. He’s also suffered 111 sacks in fifty-seven appearances, which equates to 6.5% of his drop-backs. Roethlisberger was in turn sacked thirty-eight times last season (5.9%), though attempted a whopping 605 passes along the way, while Trubisky has thrown over 500 passes just once in his career. Why is this relevant, you ask? Well, the Offensive Line has been a point of weakness in Pittsburgh for quite a while now, which is part of the reason that Tomlin hired Canada in the first place, with the 50-year-old instituting a short-drop, quick-throw approach to compensate for that group’s shortcomings. In the 2021 NFL Draft, the Steelers selected Linemen with selections in the third and fourth rounds, tabbing Kendrick Green (pictured) and Dan Moore to bolster their ranks. While Moore quickly cemented himself as the starter at Left Tackle, it was another story for Green, who despite making fifteen starts at Center, struggled against bigger interior defenders. Roethlisberger advocated for the sophomore to move back to his natural position at Guard, creating a competition between he and the incumbent Kevin Dotson, who was relegated to just nine contests due to a series of injuries. Of course, this also creates a hole at Center, where newcomer, Mason Cole arrives from Minnesota. Simply put, this group MUST build some kind of chemistry in Training Camp for their collective performance will go a long way towards shepherding whomever is starting at Quarterback, not to mention helping revive a long-dormant ground game. For a team that used to be synonymous with running the football, Pittsburgh has strayed from that approach mightily, ranking twenty-eighth in attempts (24.2) and twenty-ninth in both yards (93.1) and yards per carry (3.9) in 2021. With the much more mobile Trubisky under center and (Sophomore Tailback) Najee Harris looking to build upon a stellar rookie campaign, this could be the year that the Steelers reestablish their identity on this side of the football.
Getting Ran
Speaking of identities, the only thing more synonymous with the Steelers’ other than running the football was their talent for shutting it down. In his fifteen years in Pittsburgh, Tomlin presided over a defense that ranked no fewer than sixth against the run on eight occasions, and no worse than fourteenth just twice. However, the most recent instance was last year, in which the defense utterly collapsed in that regard, finishing dead-last against the run in yielding a staggering 146.1 yards (32nd Overall) on 5.0 yards per carry (32nd Overall). So, what in the name of Mean Joe Greene happened, you ask? Well, after missing all of the 2021 campaign due to a lingering knee injury and the death of his brother, (Defensive Tackle) Stephon Tuitt abruptly retired at the age of twenty-nine, while (fellow Lineman) Tyson Alualu also missed most of last season with a broken ankle. Furthermore, (third-year Linebacker) Devin Bush looked like a shell of himself after tearing his ACL early in 2020. Add it all up and that’s quite a bit of personnel to be without, particularly during a period of time when players were missing time in droves due to COVID-19. Coming into this fall, Tomlin appears hellbent against repeating that performance, teaming with (new General Manager) Omar Khan to acquire the necessary reinforcements to make this unit fearsome once again. The Steelers added (AFC North veteran) Larry Ogunjobi in free agency, with the hopes that alongside a healthy Alualu and (Pro-Bowler) Cameron Heyward, and not to mention (third-round pick) DeMarvin Leal, there will be less space in the trenches to exploit. Furthermore, (veteran Linebacker) Myles Jack was added as insurance alongside Bush, who is very much in a prove-it year after the club declined to pick up his fifth-year option. Oh, and have we failed to mention the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, T.J. Watt (pictured)? The four-time Pro-Bowler was one of their few bright spots, leading the league in sacks (22.5) and tackles for loss (21) for the second consecutive season, tying Michael Strahan’s record for the former. If this unit remains healthy, we expect a return to form from the Steel Curtain, which could very well keep them in contention for a Wild Card.
Projected Finish: 8-9
Losing seasons are something of a rare commodity in Pittsburgh, though the common belief is that that will indeed be their fate as they embark on this new era of football post Ben Roethlisberger. However, this is still a very talented team on both sides of the football, and if they can figure out how to make things work on offense with Trubisky (or either of the other two candidates), then Pittsburgh could very well exceed expectations and return to the postseason. With that said, life will be anything but easy in a loaded AFC, which means that this will in all likelihood be something of a transition year in Steel City.
