3 reasons the Steelers need to get Anthony McFarland Jr. more involved

Anthony McFarland Jr. leapfrogged Jaylen Samuels on the depth chart to take the #3 spot already, but he should be higher.

I will start this off by saying that Benny Snell Jr. isn’t a bad player. I don’t think that his fumble issues are going to persist throughout the rest of his career or anything like that. Yet, he fumbled twice in the first 2 games of the season. Furthermore, he doesn’t have a ton to offer the Steelers at the moment, aside from being a good short-yardage back. I think that the weight loss and his off-season conditioning program worked. He does look more explosive and a bit faster than he did a year ago. But he isn’t going to change any games for the Steelers.

McFarland is clearly a better talent than Snell. He is more athletic and he has that ability to take it the distance whenever he touches the ball. Bringing him in does offer a better change of pace for Pittsburgh’s schemes. But he has the talent and ability for the Steelers to scheme him as the featured back in some games right now. This is being said even with a former pro-bowler, James Conner, on the depth chart.

I don’t see the same kind of ability in Snell. Snell will get positive yardage on almost any play. He is built for that, and he loves to run through contact. But without the speed or elusiveness, an awesome play for him is a 30 yard gain. With McFarland’s speed and agility, an awesome play for him would be a 50-60 yard touchdown run.

We haven’t seen this kind of speed and ability from this position in Pittsburgh since Willie Parker was in his prime. Furthermore, McFarland Jr. is a better receiver than Snell. McFarland’s elusiveness and cutting ability make him a much better route runner and with more rhythm obtained, as he gets more game time, we’ll likely see better hands from him. Most importantly, when the ball gets in his hands, in space, he is a threat to take it to the house. Snell doesn’t provide these qualities.