After a brutal performance against the Indianapolis Colts that saw basically the entire unit struggle, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive line bounced back with a good performance against the Cincinnati Bengals. The group moved up from No. 19 to No. 18 in Pro Football Focus’s weekly offensive line rankings.
OG Isaac Seumalo in particular had a good day against Cincinnati, as his 82.6 overall grade was the fourth-highest mark among all guards in Week 16. Pittsburgh’s pass blocking was much better against Cincinnati than it was against the Colts, as the Steelers had the fourth-highest pass-blocking efficiency in Week 16. They allowed just six pressures and zero sacks on 29 drop backs.
There are still some struggles with Pittsburgh’s offensive line as OT Broderick Jones has been a mess in pass protection lately, allowing 11 pressures over the last three games. In addition, C Mason Cole still struggles with consistency on some of his snaps, which is an issue that needs to be cleaned up if he wants to retain the job going forward.
Jones had just a 50.7 pass-blocking grade against the Bengals, and while it was a major improvement from his lowly 19.3 pass-blocking grade against Indianapolis, it’s still something that needs to be better and needs to be cleaned up. Cole actually graded out pretty well against the Bengals with a 71.7 overall grade, but there’s no doubt Pittsburgh would feel more comfortable with him if he could snap the ball better.
The Steelers’ Week 17 opponent, the Seattle Seahawks, have one of the worst offensive lines in football. It’s a group that ranks No. 27 in the league, per PFF, with second-year OT Charles Cross the standout of the unit. Cross was a first-round pick by Seattle in the 2022 NFL Draft, and he has a 71.1 overall grade this year. One name that you might see get some work on Seattle’s offensive line is Jason Peters as the former Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles standout saw 14 snaps at right guard in the second quarter last Sunday. At 41 years old, Peters is the oldest active offensive lineman in the NFL.
Seattle is dealing with an injury to its offensive line, as left guard Damien Lewis suffered an injury in Seattle’s Week 16 win over the Tennessee Titans. His status for Sunday is currently unknown. If he can’t go, he would likely be replaced by McClendon Curtis, whom Seattle signed off the Las Vegas Raiders’ practice squad earlier this year.
It’s a must-win game for the Steelers, and hopefully their stout defensive front can generate some pressure against the Seahawks’ shaky line. It would certainly improve Pittsburgh’s chances to win if the Steelers can get after the quarterback the way they did in Week 16 against the Bengals.
