5 early Pittsburgh Steelers offensive training camp positional battles in 2020
By Tommy Jaggi
RB2: Benny Snell vs. Anthony McFarland
If Jaylen Samuels sticks around, there is a chance he could be in the mix for this as well, but the Steelers are more likely to use him as just a chance of pace back in the passing game if he makes the roster. We all know James Conner’s injury history, and there is a chance one of these backs will end up seeing a lot of work this year.
Benny Snell is entering his second NFL season and he impressed at times last year for Pittsburgh. As a rookie, Snell carried the workload when called upon and he has the frame to take on mass amounts of carries. Unfortunately, he averaged just 3.9 yards per carry last season, and his lack of speed and explosiveness could have played a factor in that.
On the contrary, Anthony McFarland is smaller back with a sizable injury history who won’t be able to take as many snaps. When he does, however, we can expect a much quicker and faster running back with true homerun threat ability. It will be interesting to see how this plays out with two very different backs.