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: Why do national media outlets continue to leave Cameron Heyward out of the discussion of the best interior defenders in the NFL?
Cameron Heyward was already annoyed when he got left off of the 2010s All-Decade Team. Even though he has three Pro Bowls in as many years and two first-team All-Pro nods in that span, with 29 sacks over the past three seasons, however, he continues to be regarded as a notch below certain others.
Scattered throughout the offseason have been a number of lists, rankings, and commentaries that have put Heyward a tier below players like Chris Jones and Cameron Jordan, among others. Even when some outlets have paid him respect, they have dropped in comments indicating a lack of athleticism, or saying that he’s “not a sack guy”.
He has been keeping a mental running tab of all of these lists and remarks, and like many great athletes, uses these ‘snubs’ to fuel him to train harder and to make sure that he is at his best at all times. He is in the prime of his career right now, with no obvious signs of slowing down, so he will be looking to shut some people up in 2020, I’m sure.
