It is well known that the Pittsburgh Steelers have not had a losing season since Mike Tomlin took over as head coach in 2007. It even extends beyond that, with the last losing season coming in 2003, which led to the Steelers drafting Ben Roethlisberger. Former NFL OL Mark Schlereth thinks a flawed quarterback competition and either player taking too many sacks is what will ultimately doom the team to its first losing season in decades.
“The Steelers entangled in one of the worst QB competitions of all time,” Schlereth said via FS1’s Breakfast Ball on Wednesday morning. “We always talk about the fact that Mike Tomlin has never had a losing season. Well, guess what Mike Tomlin, get ready to have your first losing season. Because when you have two battling and two guys that are suspect with taking sacks and some of the other things they do on a day-to-day basis at the quarterback position, you don’t have a chance.”
By any reasonable standard, the Steelers upgraded their quarterback room over 2023. But the biggest concern is the high volume of sacks that both quarterbacks take. Over the last two seasons, Russell Wilson has taken 100 sacks in 30 games played. Justin Fields is right behind him with 99 sacks taken in 28 games played.
We already got a taste of what that can do to the offense during the preseason. The first two preseason games were miserable on offense, and largely because of sacks taken that kept the offense behind the chains and unable to get in rhythm.
This issue stems from the fact that Wilson and Fields hold onto the ball longer than any other quarterback in the league. In 2023, they had the two longest snap-to-throw times in the league.
So the young offensive line that has already shown signs of having issues in pass protection has to account for the extra quarter- or half-second before the ball comes out. And with both quarterbacks being good at extending plays, they don’t always stay within the pocket. That makes things even harder for the o-line.
Steelers quarterbacks took a combined 36 sacks last year, which is significantly less than either Fields or Wilson took last season.
“This is a one-and-done competition with the Steelers,” Schlereth said. “They’ll move on from these two guys next year.”
If the offense continues to struggle in Pittsburgh, the number of sacks taken will be a big reason why. Schlereth has been critical of Wilson all offseason, so it is no big surprise to hear him down on the team.
I personally would be surprised to see the Steelers have their first losing season under Tomlin, but the sacks are a legitimate concern.
