Even after a good offseason, the Steelers still find themselves regretting not adding more to a roster set to compete in 2020.
For all intents and purposes, the Steelers had a really successful offseason. They made some intriguing offensive additions in Eric Ebron and Chase Claypool while also securing defensive depth in Alex Highsmith. The Steelers roster isn’t riddled with holes, and considering the state of the offseason, having such a veteran-heavy team will likely aid in their success in 2020.
That said, there were still some shortcomings in terms of positions that the Steelers ignored this offseason. A team can’t fill every hole every offseason, as salary cap and lack of draft picks naturally make it impossible to fill every void. While the Steelers holes may not be catastrophic, the last thing the team would want is for one of these issues to rear their head.
In a year that will likely be dictated by unexpected missed games due to illness and lack of preparation, the lack of depth or overall talent at a position could result in more lost games this season. As well, ignoring depth at positions can lead to roster holes down the road. Ignoring a position this year can have minor consequences this year and even bigger ones next year. With so many questions about the 2021 roster, ignoring certain positions this year could prove to be a costly mistake next year.
With all that said, here are the biggest offseason regrets from the Steelers. While these regrets may not amount to much, the Steelers will be one injury away from having to face these regrets. Ideally, they won’t become an issue, but they are still the biggest regrets that the Steelers will have from this offseason.
Not adding an ILB
The Steelers have struggled to find consistency at ILB ever since Ryan Shazier’s unfortunate injury. While the Steelers seemed to have struck gold with Devin Bush, there are questions about who will start next to him. Even worse, the Steelers have major questions behind their starters.
While Ulysees Gilbert III looked like an early sleeper last year, his injury mid-year coupled with the lack of a preseason this year will likely mean he can’t show that he is ready for an expanded role. That means if an injury occurs, the Steelers will likely be facing some serious questions as to who will step up and fill that void.
Using a mid-round draft pick on a player wouldn’t have fixed much of this, unfortunately. Instead, the Steelers could have opted to sign a low-level veteran who could have filled in as a capable third option. Players like Jatavis Brown, Jake Ryan, and Reggie Ragland were all signed for deals around or under 1 million dollars per year. Any of those three would present safer options than Gilbert III. Unless the Steelers feel absolutely confident in him, they should have added a viable backup.
Not finding a replacement for Hargrave
Daniel McCullers is one of Steelers’ nation’s biggest enemies due to his lack of on-field talent mixed in with his consistent roster spot that he has held over the past few years. While the Steelers retaining Javon Hargrave this offseason wasn’t likely, the Steelers needed to add another option besides McCullers to compete for the starting spot. Even with the Steelers opting to try Tyson Alualu at NT, he has never played that position which may result in him struggling.
There were a few free-agent options that made sense for the Steelers at NT. Andrew Billings signed for 3.5 million per year. Considering his run-stuffing ability and decent talent at getting after the QB, he would have been an easy player to help transition from Hargrave. On a lesser scale, Austin Johnson signed for only 1.5 million per year, and he to would have presented a more talented option than Hargrave.
Even more frustrating, plenty of talented NT options fell in the draft. Pass rushing NT’s like Justin Madubuike and Neville Gallimore fell to the third-round while more traditional run stuffers like Leki Fotu and Rashard Lawrence were both available in the fourth. Any of the above options could have been able to compete for the starting role, and at the bare minimum, they likely would have been able to beat McCullers for a roster spot. While NT is a disappearing position, it is still vital in maintaining an elite defensive line.
Not finding a long term starter at TE
Going into the offseason, the Steelers had a massive hole at TE. With Vance McDonald struggling to remain healthy, the Steelers had little in terms of starting talent. While they did add Ebron on a two-year deal, he doesn’t seem like a long-term fixture at the position and could be cut next year if he doesn’t work out.
Since the retirement of Heath Miller, the Steelers have essentially been without a true starting TE. They have used a myriad of different options to fill those shoes, but they have yet to invest in truly trying to find that true starter. While the options they’ve added have been good pieces, they lack the talent to be an every-down player and dependable target like Miller was.
While the TE draft class was on the weaker side this year, there were still a handful of targets in the third that had long-term starting potential. Adam Trautman, Harrison Bryant, and Albert Okwuegbunam all look the part of a potential starting TE. The Steelers really need to invest in this position soon in order to find their next starter. Constantly throwing a band-aid on the position in free agency won’t work in the long term.
Not adding a SS option outside of Edmunds
The Steelers have turned their secondary around in recent years, although most of that investment has been via trades and free agents. The only Steelers draft pick to be starting is Terrell Edmunds, a former first-round pick from 2018. While Edmunds hasn’t been a bust, he has been a disappointment as a first-round pick. His struggles in coverage have made him an intriguing LB type, but the further from the line of scrimmage he plays, the worse he does for the defense.
Unfortunately, the Steelers have no option on the defense to push him. Even with the recent addition of Curtis Riley, Edmunds has no one pushing him for playing time. The goal this offseason wasn’t to replace Edmunds, but to at least give him someone to push him in base defense and perhaps allow Edmunds to play closer to the line of scrimmage in sub-packages.
This was the job of a veteran, and there were a lot of budget options that would have made sense for the Steelers. Karl Joseph, Jayron Kearse, and Damarious Randall all signed contracts below 2.5 million per season. Any of the three would be potential starters at SS and could provide depth to both safety spots. Edmunds would both be pushed and have the luxury of moving down closer to the line of scrimmage. Making a move like this could have really locked down the secondary for this season.
Ignoring the future at OT
The biggest regret that the Steelers have from this offseason is not addressing the OT position. While the starters are set for this season, Alejandro Villanueva, Zach Banner, and Matt Feiler are all set to be free agents next offseason. Considering Banner is in the mix for starting RT, that means their potential starting OTs and former starting RT could all be gone.
That level of turnover on the offensive line isn’t ideal, especially with an aging QB and a team in win-now mode. While the Steelers did address the line in the draft with Kevin Dotson, he is OG specific, meaning he won’t be able to fill in at OT next year if there is an exodus there. Had the Steelers added a youthful OT in the draft, this issue would be far less concerning. Ezra Cleveland, Josh Jones, and Ben Bartch were all available to the Steelers at some point in the draft, and all three have LT/RT versatility.
While the Steelers could see an improvement from Chukwuma Okorafor, that would only sure up one of those OT spots. If he continues to disappoint though, that leaves two large holes at OT. No matter what though, adding an OT in the draft this year would have secured this offensive line for both this year and next year. This may not affect the Steelers horribly this year, but the OT question will be even more important next year.
While the Steelers had a good offseason, they are still left with some regrets. Again, none of these are huge issues as of now, but if one thing goes wrong, the Steelers may find themselves regretting not adding more to a position. The Steelers should be contenders this year, but some of these regrets could lead to disappointment in 2020.