The offseason is the best time to give your takes because you have time for people to forget you were wrong, and the Pittsburgh Steelers have certainly garnered their fair share of takes. The majority have actually been rather positive, but largely quite similar. Basically, the quarterback position remains a big question mark, but they may have enough around the position to win.
The latest to opine on the Steelers’ offseason is former NFL scout Matt Manocherian. Having previously worked in the Browns and Saints organizations, he has worked at Sports Info Solutions since 2016. He appeared recently on The Lombardi Line and shared his thoughts on Pittsburgh’s prospects for this year.
“Certainly, they’re a team that can compete. All they’ve done for years and years is compete”, he said. “I do worry in some ways about exactly how the quarterback situation’s gonna shake out for them. But when I look at them, what I like is a bit of a return to Steelers football. Really trying to beat you up on the offensive line and realizing that you don’t have to bring in all these receivers and bells and whistles to build an offense if you can shove it down a team’s throat”.
The Steelers have increasingly focused on the ground game offensively, never more so than this offseason. Although they declined RB Najee Harris’ fifth-year option, they invested heavily in the offensive line. They used their first two draft picks on a tackle and center, who should both start immediately.
Beyond that, the Steelers swapped in Arthur Smith at offensive coordinator, and he has a successful track record on the ground. After three years of Matt Canada Matt Canading, most have welcomed the change with open arms. That includes both the local and national media, who see the Steelers’ arrow clearly pointing up.
Though the quarterback position with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields remains unsettled, they’re establishing a nucleus and identity outside of that. That identity is physical, smash-mouth football, on both sides of the ball, and particularly on offense.
“I like that because I think it makes the quarterback’s job easier as opposed to trying to give the quarterback weapons”, Manocherian said. “You can kind of make any quarterback better if you put him behind a good offensive line”.
In addition to the two top picks this year, the Steelers used their top pick in last year’s draft on a tackle. They also signed two veteran starting guards in 2022 and 2023 for their highest-pedigreed line perhaps ever. In total, the projected starting lineup features two first-rounders, two second-rounders, and a third-rounder.
And most of those linemen have a physical disposition that favors the running game. Some of the new guys even have wrestling backgrounds for that in-booth hand-fighting. Of course, while the Steelers have made the investments, they need to put it all together. And they still need results from the quarterback position no matter how good the rest may look, currently on paper.
