1. Steelers must learn that building a team starts in the trenches
Perhaps the biggest notable difference between the Super Bowl teams this year and the Pittsburgh Steelers comes on the trenches — especially the offensive trenches. The Steelers haven’t spent more than a third-round pick on the offensive line in over a decade, and we are coming up on 9 years without spending a first or second-round pick on an interior defender.
This is the exact opposite strategy of teams like the Eagles and Chiefs, who understand that building a great football team starts in the trenches.
Over the past four years alone, the Eagles spent two first-round picks and a second-round pick to beef up their trenches. This was after already having some impressive trench players like Lane Johnson, Jason Kelce, and Jordan Mailata on offense and Fletcher Cox and plenty of others on defense.
The Chiefs aren’t as dominant in the trenches, but they still spent a good amount of resources building them up. Kansas City drafted Creed Humphrey in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft and traded a first-round pick for Orlando Brown Jr. during the 2021 offseason — knowing full well that it would require a massive contract to keep him around. This team also dished out huge money for former Patriots guard Joe Thuney during the 2021 offseason.
Unsurprisingly, two teams with some of the best trenches in football are in a position to become Super Bowl champions. The Steelers need to take notes from these outstanding NFL teams and model after the success they’ve each had.