Steelers ‘improved’ special teams still needs an answer
As Steelers kicker Chris Boswell returned to his top form, another area of Pittsburgh’s special teams received a major boost, but maybe only for a moment.
Once again, the kicker has fell victim to the abyss of inconsideration when recapping the positives from the previous season. Guilty of that, much coverage did not extend to the success of Steelers kicker Chris Boswell. Tommy Jaggi gave his flowers however, 2019 was a sweep under the rug for Boswell.
"“Lost in all of this discussion is Chris Boswell. The 2017 Pro Bowl kicker may have had a down season last year, but he was brilliant in 2019. Boswell knocked home 29 of 31 field goals this season and was a perfect 28 of 28 on extra-point attempts. His 93.5 field goal percentage was third in the league among all kickers will at least ten attempts – falling just short of Jacksonville’s Josh Lambo band Baltimore’s Justin Tucker”"
Although much can be said on Boswell’s improvements, the Steelers’ special teams took a “major leap.” According to footballoutsiders.com special teams DVOA metric, Pittsburgh jumped from 27 in 2018 to 8 last season. So, as Boswell returned to his top form nailing at least 90% of his FGs for the third time in his five-year career, the impact of a certain rookie begs for this coaching staff attention.
Steelers WR Diontae Johnson Potential Is A Blessing & Curse
What can you do for me? Specifically, when asked by a coach, their means to the end is to receive an answer that embodies versatility. Yes, so & so can play WR, but I have two or three better or with more experience. Now, given Steelers WR Diontae Johnson’s talent, for example, he may not need to say much, but his impact elsewhere is why he is even more beloved.
An injury to WR Ryan Switzer may have propelled Johnson into being the team’s punt returner as the next best option. However, numbers do not lie. Sometimes twisted to fit a narrative, but Diontae averaging 7.8 more yards per return and longest PR being 85 yards (+72 over Switzer) plus a touchdown, how much of an argument does Switzer have over Johnson?
2019 did fall short for Switz due to injury, so in comparison to when he was the full-time PR in 2018, he still only managed to total 252 yards on 30 returns (8.4 yards per return) to Johnson’s 248 on 20 (12.4 Y/R) Although, Ryan did succeed in beating his own 2019 longest return in 2018, with 23 yards.
It’s not to bash but to bring clarity and hopes that the coaches realize this as well. They’re not ignorant, and Johnson will remain in talks, but the downfall to the situation is that he has star potential as a WR. The added risk of injury is always the known reason you never see teams trot out their best athletes for any return team period.
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Jumping from 16 to the NFL’s third-best team in regards to footballoutsiders.com punt return ratings, the impact will be sorely missed if projections remain true. Switzer has not shaped into the player thought he would be, and the Steelers have an area of need to address for a facet of the game that is underrated in terms of importance.