The Pittsburgh Steelers are back in the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex earlier than they had anticipated, having been ousted before they even reached the postseason, which unfortunately marks the sixth consecutive season in which they failed to win a postseason game—tying their longest drought of the Super Bowl era. Yet again, they find themselves undergoing the exit meeting process earlier than anticipated, which means so are we.
The Steelers did arguably perform at or above expectations this year by going 9-8 and nearly making the postseason at all, a reflection of just how much talent they lost during the offseason, from Ben Roethlisberger and Joe Haden to most of their wide receiver room, not to mention Stephon Tuitt’s decision to retire.
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 2022 season.
Player: Dan Moore Jr.
Position: T
Experience: 2 Years
A 17-game starter in 2022 having played every single Steelers offensive snap, former fourth-round draft pick Dan Moore Jr. gave some indications that he could be the team’s left tackle of the future. At least of the immediate future, and perhaps not a glowingly bright one.
That might sound like damning with faint praise; perhaps it is. But considering the questions that he faced going into his second season, after a very shaky rookie year and a borderline awful preseason adjusting to new offensive line coach Pat Meyer’s teachings, the progress he made over the course of the regular season is commendable.
He will still have those ugly reps that can get blown out of proportion for any offensive lineman as some sort of symbol of their overall play, but on the whole, Moore usually gets the job done. Granted, the Steelers also give their tackles more help than most teams, so that’s a meaningful part of that equation as well.
He does still have room to grow. He’s a young player, even if he has a lot of playing experience already, and he’ll be entering a new season for the first time working in the same offensive system, the same blocking scheme, the same quarterback.
Willingly aggressive when it comes to run blocking, there are things that you can work with in Moore. He can be in your lineup without your offense falling apart. At the same time, you should also take the opportunity to upgrade his position if you come across it.
By no means should his presence on the roster dissuade the Steelers, for example, from drafting a left tackle in the first round if he represents the best value. We’re talking about protecting the future of the franchise, after all.
