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—some already decided, some not.
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 was re-signed, but Trai Turner was not. James Daniels and Mason Cole were added in free agency.
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: Which position do the Steelers most need to address following the draft before the start of the regular season?
You can’t build a roster through one draft cycle. You can’t even rebuild one if it’s really a roster in need of a rebuild—or a significant ‘reload’, to use the Steelers’ parlance. Pittsburgh had seven draft picks and addressed only five positions, however.
While they significantly strengthened a couple of position groups, there were other areas that went untouched, particularly the offensive line, the outside linebackers, and the defensive backfield. They did add veteran safety Damontae Kazee shortly after the draft, which takes care of safety.
If the Steelers add one veteran player of note (which doesn’t mean a significant contract) between now and the start of the regular season, what position should that address? A true number two running back behind Najee Harris? A number three edge rusher?
My vote would go to the offensive line, and specifically to bringing in somebody at tackle. Ideally, somebody who could compete with Joe Haeg as the swing tackle, or at the very least provide an upgrade to Chaz Green and John Leglue in that role.
It’s typical for the Steelers, and most teams, to still find another player or two of note to finish off their roster at some point after the draft. For Pittsburgh, that often comes via trades during training camp, which saw them add Joe Schobert and Ahkello Witherspoon just last year. They’ve already added Kazee. Who else—by position—must they add before September?
