Buy Or Sell: The Steelers are just a quarterback away from Super Bowl contention.
Explanation: I think it’s most sensible to set reasonable parameters. We should only consider quarterbacks who have a remote chance of joining the Steelers. Any team could potentially be Patrick Mahomes away from contention. But only one team has a Patrick Mahomes. If you put Kirk Cousins on this roster, can the Steelers win the Super Bowl in 2024?
Buy:
The Steelers have a talented roster right now that will have no significant losses this offseason. Their most significant free agent is QB Mason Rudolph, and he does not apply to the scenario we are discussing. Unless, of course, you really want him to.
With no major free agents and no significant cap casualties among retained starters, we already know what we’re working with. A good running game should become a great one under new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. If they add a legitimate quarterback, they have weapons in the passing game that are going underutilized. Imagine how happy George Pickens would be with a quarterback and offensive coordinator who can regularly feed him the ball.
Defensively, they still have T.J. Watt and Minkah Fitzpatrick. We can reasonably assume they will sufficiently address holes in the secondary. They will figure out what they need to do at inside linebacker. The defense ranked sixth in scoring while playing with an offense that kept them on the field. And they have an elite kicker in Chris Boswell.
Sell:
The Steelers are not just a quarterback away from Super Bowl contention. If they could somehow land a top-five quarterback and put him on this team, then yes, perhaps. But they won’t have access to such a talent. Kirk Cousins is the best name they could get, and he’s arguably had equally talented teams. He has no Super Bowl rings.
The offensive line remains an issue. They need to replace at least two starters, and we still don’t know who Broderick Jones will be. We don’t even know where he will be, for that matter. Najee Harris is still a plodder, and the running backs broke a lot of tackles they are unlikely to replicate.
The Steelers’ best inside linebackers are coming off season-ending injuries, one of whom isn’t under contract. They are missing at least one member of the starting secondary, if not two. Cameron Heyward is likely no longer a Pro Bowl-level performer. There is too much they need to replenish in one offseason to have a contending roster, even if the best-case scenario unfolds at quarterback in the next month or so.
With the Steelers’ 2023 season in the rearview mirror following a disappointing year that came up short in the playoffs once again, it’s time to start asking more questions. Questions about the team’s future in 2024 and beyond. Questions about The Standard.
The rookie class of a year ago was, on the whole, impressive, but they need to step up into staple starters in 2024. And they likely need a strong influx of talent in both free agency and in the 2024 NFL draft yet again. In addition to a revisitation of the coaching staff.
These sorts of uncertainties are what I will look to address in our Buy or Sell series. In each installment, I will introduce a topic statement and weigh some of the arguments for either buying it (meaning that you agree with it or expect it to be true) or selling it (meaning you disagree with it or expect it to be false).
