The Pittsburgh Steelers are now into the offseason, following a year in which they had high hopes for Super Bowl success, but ultimately fell short of even reaching the postseason at 8-8. It was a tumultuous season, both on the field and within the roster, and the months to follow figure to have some drama as well, especially in light of the team’s failure to improve upon the year before.
The team made some bold moves over the course of the past year, and some areas of the roster look quite a bit different than they did a year ago, or even at the start of the regular season. Whether due to injuries or otherwise, a lot has transpired, and we’re left to wonder how much more will change prior to September.
How will Ben Roethlisberger’s rehab progress as he winds toward recovery from an elbow injury that cost him almost the entire season? What about some of the key young players, some of whom have already impressed, others still needing quite a bit of growth? Will there be changes to the coaching staff? The front office? Who will they not retain in free agency, and whom might they bring in?
These are the sorts of questions among many others that we have been exploring on a daily basis and will continue to do so. Football has become a year-round pastime and there is always a question to be asked, though there is rarely a concrete answer, as I’ve learned in my years of doing this.
Question: Which position (other than nose tackle) is still the thinnest following the 2020 NFL Draft?
All NFL teams try to stock up and fill their depth charts with the necessary depth via free agency and the draft. Ideally, the task will be done one the draft is over, but often enough, there are still holes left to fill when the draft doesn’t break your way.
There is a small but vocal contingent of the fan base that will argue the quarterback position is the thinnest on the roster. We will be ignoring these people. The team also managed to address each of the skill positions in free agency and the draft.
Arguably, there is still a big hole in the starting lineup at nose tackle. I think this would easily be the most popular answer, so if this is your answer, please pick a second option for the sake of discussion. They’re certainly not lacking for defensive ends though.
Outside linebacker was addressed with Alex Highsmith, but both inside linebacker and to a certain extent safety are still lacking in depth, with only Antoine Brooks being added via free agency or the draft. The team has five cornerbacks, so I’m not including that here.
Offensive line is in the conversation. They have four tackles that they like, but especially if Matt Feiler stays at tackle, then depth there is still limited, basically with Kevin Dotson and J.C. Hassenauer. And if Feiler moves to guard, then you only have one backup tackle.
