The Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2021 season is over, already eliminated from the postseason after suffering a 42-21 loss at the hands of Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. They just barely made the postseason with a 9-7-1 record and a little help from their friends.
This is an offseason of major change, with the retirement of Ben Roethlisberger, the possible retirement of general manager Kevin Colbert, and the decisions about the futures of many important players to be made, such as Joe Haden, Stephon Tuitt, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and others.
Aside from exploring their options at the quarterback position, the top global priority, once again, figures to be addressing the offensive line, which they did not do quite adequately enough a year ago. Dan Moore Jr. looks like he may have a future as a full-time starter, but Kendrick Green was clearly not ready. Chukwuma Okorafor is heading into free agency, as is Trai Turner.
These are the sorts of topics 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. There is rarely a concrete answer, but this is your venue for exploring the topics we present through all their uncertainty.
Question: How does Kendrick Green feel about potentially moving to guard?
The Steelers’ offensive line is going to look different (perhaps significantly different) for the second year in a row. There will probably be at least two new starters, and by the time all is said and done, perhaps even three, depending upon how the draft goes.
The team signed two veteran free agents who are both capable of playing center, with Mason Cole being pretty clear in stating that it is his preferred position. I would imagine that he is the betting favorite to be the opening day starter.
That means, one way or another, Green is going to have to work on his game at guard, whether that’s potentially as a starter or as a reserve. Both coaches and teammates have talked about this possibility. We haven’t heard from Green yet about the possibility, though.
Of course, Green was a guard in college, only making four starts at center. Theoretically, there shouldn’t be any reason that he would be actively resistant to moving back to his old spot. And his new teammates could certainly teach him about being position-versatile, as both Cole and James Daniels have made numerous starts across the offensive interior.
Reportedly, though, Green has spent some time with Maurkice Pouncey this offseason, an apparent indication of his expectation to keep his starting job at center, at least for the time being. We won’t begin getting greater clarity until the offseason program starts.
