The journey toward Super Bowl LII ended far too prematurely for the Pittsburgh Steelers, sending them into offseason mode before we were ready for it. But we are in it now, and are ready to move on, through the Combine, through free agency, through the draft, into OTAs, and beyond.
We have asked and answered a lot of questions over the years and will continue to do so, and at the moment, there seem to be a ton of questions that need answering. A surprise early exit in the postseason will do that to you though, especially when it happens in the way it did.
You can rest assured that we have the questions, and we will be monitoring developments all throughout the offseason process, all the way down to Latrobe. Pending free agents, possible veteran roster cuts, contract extensions, pre-draft visits, pro days, all of it will have its place when the time arises.
Question: Will you tune in to the Steelers-riddled Pro Bowl?
There was a brief period of time in history in which the NFL actually held the ultimate of consolation prizes, a third-place game between the losers of the conference championships. This year, the Steelers didn’t even make it that far, but the Pro Bowl has the feeling of a consolation prize of sorts.
The team has nine players there, plus the coaching staff, with the only absentee being Ryan Shazier, for reasons that do not need to be explained.
In spite of the fact that a lot of people tune out of the Pro Bowl, the game actually continues to get solid ratings, considering the hit that it has taken to its reputation. I even find myself watching it more times than not. And with the extremely heavy Steelers presence this year, I definitely will watch.
I will be especially excited to see Cameron Heyward in the Pro Bowl, a player who has long deserved it, yet was continually looked over. He was even looked over this year, and only made it in because Calais Campbell decided not to play in the game.
Given that all three of the Killer Bs are also in the game, who could you not watch? Considering how the defense plays in these games, we should see some fireworks between Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown, along with Le’Veon Bell, for as long as they actually participate.
Every since I was young, though, I always found a certain mystique in the game, with everybody wearing their team helmets and yet all with the same uniform on. It might not count for anything, but it is a unique experience, a gathering of (some of) the best in the league.
And this year in particular, it’s heavily populated by the players that we have been following all season—for all of their careers, in the cases of most who are likely reading this. I do hope that they put all the Steelers linemen together. And considering it’s the Steelers’ staff out there, I would imagine that they will.
