Steelers will be playing musical chairs with one more injury to the offensive line

The Pittsburgh Steelers have already had three offensive linemen go down before Week 2. Here’s why they could be in big trouble if anyone else gets injured.

I’m willing to bet there aren’t a lot of fans out there who would have thought that both Chukwuma Okorafor and fourth-round rookie Kevin Dotson would be starting for the Pittsburgh Steelers by Week 2. Unfortunately, that’s the position we are in already.

While it’s clearly too early to criticize these young players without seeing them in any extended game action in 2020, it’s not an ideal situation for the Steelers to be in – especially with an aging Ben Roethlisberger returning to the field this year. Already, David DeCastro has will miss the first two games of the season, while Stefen Wisniewski was placed on IR following a pectoral injury he suffered against the Giants.

Losing starting right tackle, Zach Banner, for the season was an especially big blow. Though there may not be a big gap in talent level between him and Okorafor, the depth behind him gets scary.

Steelers OL depth is fading fast

Heading into the season, Pittsburgh had solid depth behind each position. After kicking Matt Feiler inside to left guard, Wisniewski became the primary backup to all three interior positions. Likewise, after falling short to Banner in training camp, Okorafor was set to be the Steelers swing tackle in 2020.

Those jobs have all since shifted. Now not only are players like Banner, DeCastro, and Wisniewski out, but a rookie day-three draft choice in Dotson will have a trial by fire as he is forced into a starting role in just is second ever NFL game.

Recently, the Steelers signed Jerald Hawkins off the Texans practice squad to fill the void at swing tackle. Hawkins was Pittsburgh’s former 4th-round draft choice back in 2016. However, injuries and an inability to stick on a roster saw him suiting up for just 6 games in his first four NFL seasons.

Pittsburgh also promoted offensive lineman, Derwin Gray, from their practice squad. Gray was the Steelers seventh-round draft choice from a season ago but failed to make the final roster cut for the Steelers in 2019. He will now look for the opportunity to prove himself as an active member of the roster.

One more injury could be the final blow to this OL

Here’s where it gets really dicey. If the Steelers suffer an injury to any player along the offensive line this week, they will be playing musical chairs to try to fill the void. An injury to Maurkice Pouncey likely means that J.C. Hassenaur will be stepping in to take his place.

Derwin Gray would likely be asked to fill in for an injury to either Kevin Dotson or Matt Feiler. If Okorafor or Alejandro Villanueva goes down, however, it’s possible that Pittsburgh would rather kick Feiler back out to tackle and have Gray step in at left guard.

Any way you slice it, the Steelers are just one more injury away from a nightmare scenario on the offensive line, and it’s only Week 2. Let’s hope this unit doesn’t have any issues taking care of business against the Denver Broncos this Sunday.