The Steelers are now back at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, facing down a long regular season that looks a lot more promising given how things have gone leading up to it. Finishing just above .500 last year, they anticipate being able to compete with any team in the league this season with second-year QB Kenny Pickett leading the way.
They’ve done a great deal to address what they identified as their shortcomings during the offseason, which included addressing the offensive and defensive lines as well as the secondary and the inside linebacker room, which is nearly entirely different from last year. The results have been positive so far.
Even well into the regular season and beyond, there are going to be plenty of questions that need answered. When will the core rookies get to play, or even start? Is the depth sufficient where they upgraded? Can they stand toe-to-toe with the Bengals and the other top teams in the league? We’ll try to frame the conversation in relevant ways as long as you stick with us throughout the season, as we have for many years.
Question: How long a leash will Dan Moore Jr. have as he returns to the starting lineup?
Even though nothing has been made official as of yet, I think we can reasonably assume that the Steelers intend for Dan Moore Jr. to return to the starting lineup at left tackle. The third-year veteran missed one game on the other side of the bye week due to a knee injury, during which rookie Broderick Jones filled in.
The 14th-overall pick, Jones is destined for the starting lineup eventually, but evidently not quite now. He did an admirable job in his first start, but it seems the coaches feels more strongly about Moore than the fans do.
It does beg the question, however: how long is the leash? Jones is the starter in waiting. We’ve all known this from the moment he was drafted. It’s just a matter of when, and now he has solid game tape out there.
Moore has started every game in which he has played thus far in his career, but has not been a runaway success. He did not have to compete for this starting role in his first two seasons. As a rookie, he only started due to injury, though he did technically beat out Jones this summer.
Jones isn’t a rookie anymore, however, or at least not one absent experience. He’s got his first 100-plus snaps under his belt already. The coaches may even feel that he is ready to start now, but they just don’t want to push Moore to the curb.
That’s why the question is such a pertinent one. At what level of play does Moore have to perform consistently before the Steelers decide to pull him? They must think that playing him right now gives them the best chance to win their next game. What would convince them otherwise?
