4 reasons Steelers shouldn’t be sniffing a RB in the first round of the NFL Draft
By Tommy Jaggi
Steelers need to fix the root issue first
It’s hard to even believe that this many fans seriously want the Steelers to take a running back in the first round instead of trying to fix the root of an issue. With the offensive line currently in shambles, taking a running back with the 24th overall pick would be like trying to stop a ship from sinking with a roll of duct tape. It may be a temporary fix that provides a minuscule amount of relief, but it doesn’t fix the real problem.
Yes, Pittsburgh’s rushing attack was statistically the worst in the league last year, but this isn’t just a running back stat; this is something that the offensive line is obviously responsible for as well. As the old saying goes, “running backs are only going to get what is blocked for them.” While a select few can grind out some tough extra yardage, it’s foolish to think that Pittsburgh’s problems running the football are magically going to disappear by drafting a first-round running back.
The Steelers lost three starting offensive linemen already this offseason, and have done practically nothing in terms of replacing them. Not only that, but the team now appears to be putting their trust in a pair of very unproven offensive tackles to protect Ben Roethlisberger this year in Zach Banner and Chukwuma Okorafor. With their offseason losses, Pittsburgh’s line has to be considered one of the worst in the league, and it’s shocking that fans don’t seem to be more concerned about this. Fixing the offensive line is automatically going to help the run game improve.