ProfessorMJ
Market Sharp
- Joined
- Aug 19, 2019
- Messages
- 406
- Reaction score
- 19
- Points
- 18
1. Introduction
Can you believe the Steelers have not had a losing season in 16 years? That’s truly remarkable!
Under Mike Tomlin, the team has compiled a 133-74-1 record, a 64% win percentage.
Last year, Pittsburgh lost its starting quarterback in the 2nd game of the season. They got off to a bad 1-4 start, but still found a way to fight back by winning seven of their next eight meetings.
Sitting on an 8-5 record, the Steelers were right in the thick of the playoff race. Unfortunately, the offense completely sputtered down the stretch by scoring exactly 10 points in each of their remaining three regular season games. All of them were losses, which allowed the Titans to grab the final playoff spot.
2. Offensive Position-by-Position Breakdown
2.1 Quarterbacks (QBs)
Mason Rudolph and Devlin “Duck” Hodges rated as the 35th and 37th-best quarterbacks out of 37 qualifiers last year. I think it’s fair to say that neither delivered.
When the Steelers drafted Mason Rudolph out of Oklahoma State in the 3rd round of the 2018 draft, he seems destined to be the natural successor to Ben Roethlisberger. The organization is probably left scratching its head after what we saw last year. He completed just 62% of his passes, while throwing 13 TD passes and 9 interceptions in 10 games.
After Devlin Hodges started his career with a perfect 3-0 record, Duckmania was in full flight in Pittsburgh. The team held an 8-5 record at the time and had a good shot at making the playoffs. However, it all came crashing down as he threw one TD pass and got picked off on six occasions over the final three meetings.
Considering last year’s abject disaster on offense, 38-year old Ben Roethlisberger will enter training camp as the clear starter. Obviously, the million dollar question will be whether he can still play at a high level or not after missing 14 of the 16 games last season.
Big Ben has a lengthy injury history and his body has taken a toll over the years. He is a statue in the pocket, so he’s susceptible to taking big hits. To me, he has a high chance of getting hurt during the course of a 16-game schedule.
The year before, 2018, he did post a career-high in TD passes with 34, but he also threw 16 interceptions (second-highest of his career). He also had a better supporting cast at the time that included Antonio Brown at wide receiver.
In summary, Roethlisberger will clearly bring better play under center in comparison to what the Steelers had in 2019. I do believe he can still throw the ball pretty well, but he’s unlikely to stay healthy for a good portion of the season.
2.2 Running Backs (RBs)
After rushing for close to 1,000 yards, racking up close to 500 receiving yards and getting into the end zone a total of 13 times in 2018, James Conner disappointed a lot last year. He rushed for just 464 yards in 10 games, while his yards-per-rush average dipped from 4.5 to a meager 4.0.
Conner has trouble staying on the field. Since Le’Veon Bell left the team, Conner has missed nine games in two years. His star is quickly fading.
That being said, you could make a case for him being slowed with leg injuries. Also, poor quarterback play didn’t help. He could potentially rebound in 2020.
Jaylen Samuels also had a year to forget. He posted a horrific 2.7 yards-per-carry average; he simply couldn’t run between the tackles. He is pretty good as a pass catcher, though. Mike Tomlin tends to prefer using just one back, but Samuels could turn out to be valuable as a third-down back.
Benny Snell was the lone guy at the position that didn’t disappoint too much. The rookie fourth-rounder out of Kentucky had a few good outings when called upon to fill in for injured players. His role could expand in 2020.
2.3 Wide Receivers (WRs)
JuJu Smith-Schuster is probably the happiest guy in the locker room regarding the return of Ben Roethlisberger to the lineup.
He had by far his worst career season with 42 catches, 552 receiving yards and 3 TDs. He did miss four games due to injuries, but those are not good numbers at all for a rising star.
Smith-Schuster will be entering a contract year and he’s still very young at just 23 year old. Injuries and dismal QB play were certainly key factors to explain his down year.
James Washington took a big step forward in his development despite the struggles at quarterback. After a 16-217-1 receiving line in his rookie season, he posted a nice 44-735-3 line last year. He should be a nice contributor in 2020.
Diontae Johnson made a name for himself last year after averaging, over the final four meetings of the season, 5.8 catches for 64 yards. The 2019 third-rounder also led the team with 5 TD receptions.
In other words, the Steelers already had a nice trio of young promising wideouts, which is why they surprised many by selecting Chase Claypool in the middle of the second round last April. He has elite size and explosiveness, while also being tough to bring down. He caught 66 passes for 1,037 yards and 13 TDs as a senior with Notre Dame.
2.4 Tight Ends (TEs)
After five mediocre years, Vance McDonald had a breakout 2018 season with the Steelers. He caught 50 passes for 610 yards during that year. However, he regressed to just 38 receptions for 273 yards. That amounts to a pedestrian 7.2 yards-per-catch average, which was BY FAR his lowest of his career.
The team moved on from Nick Vannett, who was no more than a depth alternative and not much of a threat as a pass catcher. The new TE in town will be Eric Ebron, who has played four years with the Lions and a couple with the Colts.
Ebron was a #10 overall pick in the 2014 draft and he will be playing his age-27 campaign. He has a lot of talent, even though much has been made of his tendency to drop some passes. He can also make acrobatic catches, though.
Don’t sleep on Ebron. He had a career year a couple of seasons ago with 66 catches, 750 yards and 13 TDs. His numbers took a big dip last year, but he was repeatedly slowed with ankle problems. He underwent surgery during the offseason, hoping to be back at 100%.
2.5 Offensive Line (OL)
Maurkice Pouncey is one of the top paid centers in the league, but he’s not playing like a top center at all.
Last year, he obtained the lowest PFF grades of his nine-year career. He finished next-to-last among 37 centers with a putrid 51.5 mark. Can he make it among the top 10 players at the position next year? It seems unlikely given he will be playing his age-31 season. Still, it’s hard to believe he won’t do better in the upcoming season.
Matt Feiler and Alejandro Villanueva finished as the #20 and #24 tackles in the NFL (out of 81 qualifiers), according to PFF grades. Both went undrafted, but have done a fair job in the most recent seasons.
Ramon Foster retired after 11 seasons. He is likely to be replaced with Stefen Wisniewski, who started as a backup with the Chiefs, but was forced into the starting lineup during their Super Bowl run. He is a very decent player.
The last piece of the puzzle on the offensive line is David DeCastro. His best years seem past him, but he’s still a serviceable guy. From 2013 to 2017, his PFF grades lied between 77.9 and 89.0. His marks have taken a dip recently: 72.3 and 71.0 in the two most recent years.
Notice how four out of the five starters are 30 years or older.
2020 VS 2019 OFFENSE
On top of Ben Roethlisberger missing almost all of the 2019 season, the Steelers also saw James Conner and JuJu Smith-Schuster go down to injuries. Having them all on the field when the 2020 season begins will be a huge boost for an offense that struggled mightily last year.
Also, acquiring the very talented pass-catching tight end Eric Ebron will give Big Ben an additional weapon to work with.
The aging offensive line worries me, though. Pittsburgh QBs were among the most-pressured QBs in the league last year (adjusting for the number of dropbacks). No other team averaged fewer yards before contact per rush.
Still, overall I’ve got to go with a moderate upgrade. QB play was awful last year and it will improve dramatically if Roethlisberger stays healthy (a big “if”). I also like their young group of receivers. Pittsburgh’s offense finished 27th in points scored in 2019; a jump to the #13-#18 range is likely.
Final call (2020 vs 2019): Moderate upgrade
Can you believe the Steelers have not had a losing season in 16 years? That’s truly remarkable!
Under Mike Tomlin, the team has compiled a 133-74-1 record, a 64% win percentage.
Last year, Pittsburgh lost its starting quarterback in the 2nd game of the season. They got off to a bad 1-4 start, but still found a way to fight back by winning seven of their next eight meetings.
Sitting on an 8-5 record, the Steelers were right in the thick of the playoff race. Unfortunately, the offense completely sputtered down the stretch by scoring exactly 10 points in each of their remaining three regular season games. All of them were losses, which allowed the Titans to grab the final playoff spot.
2. Offensive Position-by-Position Breakdown
2.1 Quarterbacks (QBs)
Mason Rudolph and Devlin “Duck” Hodges rated as the 35th and 37th-best quarterbacks out of 37 qualifiers last year. I think it’s fair to say that neither delivered.
When the Steelers drafted Mason Rudolph out of Oklahoma State in the 3rd round of the 2018 draft, he seems destined to be the natural successor to Ben Roethlisberger. The organization is probably left scratching its head after what we saw last year. He completed just 62% of his passes, while throwing 13 TD passes and 9 interceptions in 10 games.
After Devlin Hodges started his career with a perfect 3-0 record, Duckmania was in full flight in Pittsburgh. The team held an 8-5 record at the time and had a good shot at making the playoffs. However, it all came crashing down as he threw one TD pass and got picked off on six occasions over the final three meetings.
Considering last year’s abject disaster on offense, 38-year old Ben Roethlisberger will enter training camp as the clear starter. Obviously, the million dollar question will be whether he can still play at a high level or not after missing 14 of the 16 games last season.
Big Ben has a lengthy injury history and his body has taken a toll over the years. He is a statue in the pocket, so he’s susceptible to taking big hits. To me, he has a high chance of getting hurt during the course of a 16-game schedule.
The year before, 2018, he did post a career-high in TD passes with 34, but he also threw 16 interceptions (second-highest of his career). He also had a better supporting cast at the time that included Antonio Brown at wide receiver.
In summary, Roethlisberger will clearly bring better play under center in comparison to what the Steelers had in 2019. I do believe he can still throw the ball pretty well, but he’s unlikely to stay healthy for a good portion of the season.
2.2 Running Backs (RBs)
After rushing for close to 1,000 yards, racking up close to 500 receiving yards and getting into the end zone a total of 13 times in 2018, James Conner disappointed a lot last year. He rushed for just 464 yards in 10 games, while his yards-per-rush average dipped from 4.5 to a meager 4.0.
Conner has trouble staying on the field. Since Le’Veon Bell left the team, Conner has missed nine games in two years. His star is quickly fading.
That being said, you could make a case for him being slowed with leg injuries. Also, poor quarterback play didn’t help. He could potentially rebound in 2020.
Jaylen Samuels also had a year to forget. He posted a horrific 2.7 yards-per-carry average; he simply couldn’t run between the tackles. He is pretty good as a pass catcher, though. Mike Tomlin tends to prefer using just one back, but Samuels could turn out to be valuable as a third-down back.
Benny Snell was the lone guy at the position that didn’t disappoint too much. The rookie fourth-rounder out of Kentucky had a few good outings when called upon to fill in for injured players. His role could expand in 2020.
2.3 Wide Receivers (WRs)
JuJu Smith-Schuster is probably the happiest guy in the locker room regarding the return of Ben Roethlisberger to the lineup.
He had by far his worst career season with 42 catches, 552 receiving yards and 3 TDs. He did miss four games due to injuries, but those are not good numbers at all for a rising star.
Smith-Schuster will be entering a contract year and he’s still very young at just 23 year old. Injuries and dismal QB play were certainly key factors to explain his down year.
James Washington took a big step forward in his development despite the struggles at quarterback. After a 16-217-1 receiving line in his rookie season, he posted a nice 44-735-3 line last year. He should be a nice contributor in 2020.
Diontae Johnson made a name for himself last year after averaging, over the final four meetings of the season, 5.8 catches for 64 yards. The 2019 third-rounder also led the team with 5 TD receptions.
In other words, the Steelers already had a nice trio of young promising wideouts, which is why they surprised many by selecting Chase Claypool in the middle of the second round last April. He has elite size and explosiveness, while also being tough to bring down. He caught 66 passes for 1,037 yards and 13 TDs as a senior with Notre Dame.
2.4 Tight Ends (TEs)
After five mediocre years, Vance McDonald had a breakout 2018 season with the Steelers. He caught 50 passes for 610 yards during that year. However, he regressed to just 38 receptions for 273 yards. That amounts to a pedestrian 7.2 yards-per-catch average, which was BY FAR his lowest of his career.
The team moved on from Nick Vannett, who was no more than a depth alternative and not much of a threat as a pass catcher. The new TE in town will be Eric Ebron, who has played four years with the Lions and a couple with the Colts.
Ebron was a #10 overall pick in the 2014 draft and he will be playing his age-27 campaign. He has a lot of talent, even though much has been made of his tendency to drop some passes. He can also make acrobatic catches, though.
Don’t sleep on Ebron. He had a career year a couple of seasons ago with 66 catches, 750 yards and 13 TDs. His numbers took a big dip last year, but he was repeatedly slowed with ankle problems. He underwent surgery during the offseason, hoping to be back at 100%.
2.5 Offensive Line (OL)
Maurkice Pouncey is one of the top paid centers in the league, but he’s not playing like a top center at all.
Last year, he obtained the lowest PFF grades of his nine-year career. He finished next-to-last among 37 centers with a putrid 51.5 mark. Can he make it among the top 10 players at the position next year? It seems unlikely given he will be playing his age-31 season. Still, it’s hard to believe he won’t do better in the upcoming season.
Matt Feiler and Alejandro Villanueva finished as the #20 and #24 tackles in the NFL (out of 81 qualifiers), according to PFF grades. Both went undrafted, but have done a fair job in the most recent seasons.
Ramon Foster retired after 11 seasons. He is likely to be replaced with Stefen Wisniewski, who started as a backup with the Chiefs, but was forced into the starting lineup during their Super Bowl run. He is a very decent player.
The last piece of the puzzle on the offensive line is David DeCastro. His best years seem past him, but he’s still a serviceable guy. From 2013 to 2017, his PFF grades lied between 77.9 and 89.0. His marks have taken a dip recently: 72.3 and 71.0 in the two most recent years.
Notice how four out of the five starters are 30 years or older.
2020 VS 2019 OFFENSE
On top of Ben Roethlisberger missing almost all of the 2019 season, the Steelers also saw James Conner and JuJu Smith-Schuster go down to injuries. Having them all on the field when the 2020 season begins will be a huge boost for an offense that struggled mightily last year.
Also, acquiring the very talented pass-catching tight end Eric Ebron will give Big Ben an additional weapon to work with.
The aging offensive line worries me, though. Pittsburgh QBs were among the most-pressured QBs in the league last year (adjusting for the number of dropbacks). No other team averaged fewer yards before contact per rush.
Still, overall I’ve got to go with a moderate upgrade. QB play was awful last year and it will improve dramatically if Roethlisberger stays healthy (a big “if”). I also like their young group of receivers. Pittsburgh’s offense finished 27th in points scored in 2019; a jump to the #13-#18 range is likely.
Final call (2020 vs 2019): Moderate upgrade
