The Pittsburgh Steelers’ efforts to revamp their offensive line continued this offseason, with the team adding starter-quality talent in Isaac Seumalo and Broderick Jones, while picking up depth with the signing of Nate Herbig and drafting of Spencer Anderson. Last season, Pittsburgh had the same five starters across the offensive line for all 17 games, but offensive line coach Pat Meyer knows that won’t be the case again. Speaking to Trib Live’s Tim Benz on his Breakfast with Benz podcast, Meyer talked about the importance of adding to the line this offseason.
“Can’t have enough of these guys. We’re not playing with the same five. It’s just not gonna happen. That’s a freak thing that happened last year,” Meyer said. “I’ve only seen it, maybe one other time in my 12 years being in the NFL that I’ve seen that. So we’re going to have to have multiple guys.”
The Steelers set an NFL record for offensive line continuity last season, and the odds of them having the same five healthy starters across all 17 games is incredibly low. That’s why it was important to add someone like Herbig, who can play multiple positions and be a really good backup. Jones is gonna duke it out with Dan Moore Jr. for the starting left tackle spot, and while Moore would serve as the swing tackle if he loses out, Jones would still be viable as a backup at left tackle if Moore was to go down with an injury.
Anderson’s positional versatility makes him an intriguing guy who can move across the line, getting snaps everywhere from left tackle to center during training camp. The Steelers prepared for the inevitable, not banking on their health luck along the offensive line to continue. They also just got a lot better up front. Seumalo is one of the top guards in the NFL, while Jones has a lot of potential as Pittsburgh’s future left tackle. His presence helped push Moore, who got rave reviews throughout camp.
Depth is so important in the modern NFL, and the Steelers can’t rely on another record-setting season for health along the line. Omar Khan and Andy Weidl knew that and went out and targeted quality depth and good starters alike.
The offensive line is going to determine how far the offense can go, opening up holes in the run game and giving Kenny Pickett those precious extra seconds to throw. If one injury was going to doom the Steelers, they’d be in a rough spot in 2023.
But with the additions they’ve made, they ensured they’ll be just fine if injury strikes to a starter. Hopefully it doesn’t happen, but it’s rather inevitable. Meyer is aware of that, and the depth is going to be incredibly important in 2023.
