The Pittsburgh Steelers have a major set challenges facing them for the offseason of 2019 after they managed to miss the postseason for the first time in five years. The failure has been taken especially grievously because of the fact that the team was in position to control their own fate even for homefield advantage with six games remaining before dropping four games.
And so they find themselves getting the exit meeting process underway at least two weeks earlier than they have had to in years, since they have made it to at least the Divisional Round since 2015. Hopefully they used those extra two weeks with purpose.
While we might not know all the details about what goes on between Head Coach Mike Tomlin and his players during these exit meetings, we do know how we would conduct those meetings if they were let up to us. So here are the Depot’s exit meetings for the Steelers’ roster following the 2018 season.
Player: Sean Davis
Position: Free Safety
Experience: 3 Years
Another year, another relocation for Sean Davis, who opened his rookie season as the starting nickel back, then as the starting strong safety a year later, and finally as the starting free safety this past season.
The 2016 second-round draft pick may (or may not) finally be in his long-term spot after the Steelers chose to move him there this offseason with the team parting ways with Mike Mitchell, who was their starter in that role for four years.
The team brought in Morgan Burnett in free agency with the idea that he would be a starter, possibly even at free safety, but once they started practicing in training camp, it was clear who they really wanted in that spot.
There were some growing pains for Davis to be sure, something that he frequently acknowledged throughout the season given that he was new to the position. He even said that he was going to draw from his past playing centerfield in baseball.
But he actually had a solid first game under his belt against the Cleveland Browns and the largely inept Tyrod Taylor. Things got hairier as the season progressed toward the bye week, but he seemed to get a better and better feel for it toward the end of the year.
One thing that it helped significantly was in the number of situations in which he would have to make difficult tackle attempts, playing less in the box, so that cut down on his missed tackles. Given that he was one of the worst offenders in that department, that’s a big deal.
But he managed just one interception and seven passes defensed all year, lower numbers than he had the previous seasons at strong safety. The Steelers are starving for playmaking at free safety and they need him to develop into that in his second year there.
