Steelers should have nightmares about how they misused Melvin Ingram

Melvin Ingram and the Pittsburgh Steelers had a falling out last year. Here’s why the organization didn’t handle the situation correctly with the Pro Bowl edge defender.

Over the past several years, we’ve gotten so used to seeing T.J. Watt rake in the accolades. One of those accolades was earning AFC Defensive Player of the Month honors. With Watt sidelined, others around the conference have stepped up. For the month of September, it was pass rusher Melvin Ingram who brought home the award.

Pittsburgh Steelers fans know Ingram all too well. They were ecstatic when the team seemingly stole him late in July of 2021 — just before training camps were set to begin. Obviously, things went sour pretty early in the season. Eventually, Ingram made it known that he didn’t want to continue playing for Pittsburgh and he forced his way out the door before the trade deadline.

At the time, many fans were furious with Ingram. The veteran edge defender signed a contract, and they expected him to see it though. However, seeing Ingram recently earn AFC Defensive Player of the Month honors just reminds me of how poorly the Steelers handled this situation.

Steelers misused Ingram last year

There’s no question that Melvin Ingram was a rock-solid player before joining the Steelers in 2021. Since 2017, Ingram had earned three Pro Bowl appearances as a member of the Chargers, and never once graded out below the 27th-best player at his position, according to Pro Football Focus.

Despite the evidence suggesting that Ingram was still a very good player at the age of 32 for the Steelers, Pittsburgh refused to use him. Things started off pretty well for Ingram, in terms of playing time, but when both T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith were healthy, Ingram’s defensive snaps plummeted, according to Pro Football Reference:

The Steelers played Ingram nearly twice as much in his first three games as they did over his final three with the team. Remarkably, he was able to manage a whopping 18 pressures during this span despite his part-time role.

One thing that I would highly advise fans against is being a ‘box score checker.’ This is someone who only looks at the raw statistical production a player has and determines how good he has been playing based on that alone. When it comes to raw stats, Ingram didn’t have great production with the Steelers. He earned just 10 tackles, 1 sack, and 2 tackles for a loss in six games. However, there is so much more that goes into evaluating a player than this.

While Ingram wasn’t perfect, his pass-rush win rate was excellent, and his quick and consistent pressure on the quarterback during passing downs was helping the defense get off the field. Likewise, Ingram graded out as the 14th-best EDGE in the NFL last season, via PFF. The tape showed that he was still a quality run defender and a solid pass rusher.

Even with the evidence right in front of our eyes (primarily the tape), there was a group of fans who argued that Derrek Tuszka was a better football player simply because his statistical production was better than Ingram’s. This is a dangerous game to play, and I would urge you not to fall into this trap with this line of logic. Ingram was clearly better, and it showed.

What Steelers should have done differently

Instead of forcing Ingram to take a backseat when Watt and Highsmith returned to full health after early-season groin injuries hampered them, the Steelers should have made it an even split between all three of these quality edge defenders.

Every series, they should have been rotating these guys in and out of the lineup in an effort to keep them as fresh as possible. Most teams use a healthy rotation of 4-5 edge defenders. Pittsburgh, however, never rosters more than four and they rely on their starters to play the vast majority of snaps — to the extent of playing winded and increasing the likelihood of injuries (which we saw last year).

I know this is all in the past now. It doesn’t really matter anymore and there’s nothing we can do about it. However, I hope the Pittsburgh Steelers use this as a learning experience on how not to deal with quality football players who want to sign with this team.