If you’ve followed the Pittsburgh Steelers, it is no secret what kind of football the team wants to play going forward. After the bye week in the 2022 season the Steelers committed to running the ball and have stayed true to that heir moves this offseason, such as signing multiple offensive linemen and drafting tackle Broderick Jones and tight end Darnell Washington. Simply put the Steelers will try and bully teams this season.
It isn’t just us who think this as assistant general manager Andy Weidl said as much today during a press conference. In a tweet from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review‘s Chris Adamski, Weidl said Pittsburgh will try and “break the will” of their opponents.
Courtesy of a team transcript, here is Weidl’s full quote.
“We want to be big, we want to be physical, we want to be tough. We want to be able to impose our will on teams. That’s the Pittsburgh Steelers, right? You go break the other team’s sword in the second half of a game. Go be able to win on the road. That’s what we’re building. That’s what we have here. That’s what they’ve been in the past, and we want to continue that identity.”
Pittsburgh committed to running the ball in the middle of last season and went 7-2 in its final nine games behind a rushing attack that surpassed the 100-yard mark in eight of those games.
The moves this offseason confirmed the plan of trying to “break the will” of other teams as the Steelers rebuilt the offensive line and drafted Washington, the best blocking tight end in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Historically, Pittsburgh is successful when it leans on the run. The ’70s Steelers were led by their defense and Franco Harris was the engine on offense. In the 2000s the Steelers were a run-first team despite having a generational quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger.
With Najee Harris, it would be a mistake not to lean on the 2021 first-round pick. After getting healthy last season he played really well and showed he can carry a team. Quarterback Kenny Pickett showed that he can lead game-winning drives, and the combination of both leads to success.
In a passing league the Steelers are going old school and want to pound team into submission. It may be old school, but it is a formula that has led to the Steelers being one of the most successful franchises in professional sports.
