While the Steelers have remained competitive this season, there are several regrets the team likely has from this past offseason.
While the Steelers have remained in the playoff hunt throughout this season, the team hasn’t lived up to the lofty standards that they have set for themselves in the past. Despite their success this season, things could have been better for the team’s outlook this season, and for the future had they made different choices this offseason.
The following are the three biggest regrets from this past offseason.
Steelers regret selecting Kendrick Green over Quinn Meinerz
While many will point to the Steelers passing on Creed Humphrey in the first two rounds as the team’s biggest mistake, I believe the greater mistake came in the third round. Yes, Humphrey is a tremendous young player who would have answered the team’s questions surrounding the center position, but Quinn Meinerz is also a tremendously talented young player.
The reason that Meinerz would have been the better move for the team is that they could have still come away with Najee Harris and Pat Freiermuth in the first two rounds, while also coming away with Meinerz in the third round. This would have allowed them to select the players they clearly loved in rounds one and two at positions of need, while also getting their center in the third round.
The Steelers selected Green 87th overall, while Meinerz lasted until 98th overall in this year’s draft. The Broncos selected Meinerz in hopes of him being the team’s future starting center, however, he was forced to start at right guard after Graham Glasgow got hurt. Since stepping in as the starting right guard Meinerz has impressed. While it remains to be seen if his future is at guard or at center, he easily would’ve served as an improvement over Trai Turner at guard, and likely would have been a better option than Green at center, who might be too small to play the position.
Meinerz was linked to the Steelers in the second round, which is why it came as such a surprise that when he fell to them in the third round, they passed on him in favor of Green. While Meinerz may not be better the Humphrey is, if the team could redo things today, they would be ecstatic to come away with Meinerz in the third round to secure either a center or guard long-term, in addition to finding their tight end and running back of the future in the first two rounds.
Steelers regret re-signing Zach Banner
While the team didn’t invest a whole lot of money into Zach Banner, they likely regret inking him to a two-year deal, worth $8 million prior to the season. Although the expectation was that Banner would start at right tackle this season, he was coming off of a torn ACL last season and was placed on Injured Reserve to start this season.
Banner missed time this year, but that isn’t the only reason that resigning him is something the Steelers likely regret. Even after he returned, he has not been able to beat out Chukwuma Okorafor or Dan Moore Jr. for playing time, and it’s not like this offensive line has been a strength for this team. While it was unlikely he’d beat out Moore once he began to play, just due to his young age, it is disappointing that he hasn’t been able to beat out Okorafor, who the team will definitely be looking to replace this offseason.
Had the team not opted to bring back Banner, they could have put more draft capital into the offensive tackle position or could have brought in a different free agent who would have been healthier than Banner has been, or at the very least touched the field. Even though the monetary investment wasn’t much, Signing Banner and expecting him to be a part of the starting offensive line is something the Steelers no doubt regret and wish they had looked elsewhere.
Steelers regret trading for Joe Schobert
Joe Schobert came to Pittsburgh with high expectations, after the Steelers gave up a sixth-round selection in order to get him. With a Pro-Bowl season on his resume, and a hefty contract after signing a five-year deal worth $53.5 with the Jaguars in 2020, expectations were high for Schobert when joining the Steelers defense.
However, Schobert has not lived up to the hype, as he and Devin Bush have been arguably the league’s most disappointing linebacker unit. Schobert has not been bad, but he hasn’t been great either, he’s just been a mediocre player. While they were only on the books for half of his $7 million salary for this year, mediocre play is not what the Steelers were expecting from a player they gave up a draft selection for.
Had they known this was the level of play they would get from Schobert, the Steelers likely would have passed on this deal and opted to sign a potential second starter or a depth piece at the linebacker position. Either way, Buddy Johnson, their draft selection this year out of Texas A&M, would have seen more playing time, as would Robert Spillane. While Spillane has not played great this year, the combination of Johnson and whatever free agent they brought in could have provided comparable production, for a lesser salary, while also allowing the Steelers to keep their sixth-round selection.
Clearly, the Steelers have some regrets from last offseason. Even though they’ve been a contender this offseason, the three moves above are things that had the Steelers done differently, could have been set up a bit better for this season, as well as the future. The Steelers will enter this offseason looking to cut down on the regrets and have a successful draft and free agency period.