Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith may have come up with the most Steelers formation in the history of the franchise. When fans say they love the smashmouth, run-first style in Pittsburgh, not in their wildest dreams would they have drawn this up on the whiteboard.
On The Pat McAfee Show live from Steelers training camp in Latrobe, Aaron Rodgers gave a shoutout to some of his offensive weapons and mentioned the wealth of talent the team has at tight end. He suggested that the team could line up with an 04 personnel grouping: zero backs, four tight ends.
At first, it was just a testament to the skills of Pat Freiermuth, Jonnu Smith, Darnell Washington, and Connor Heyward. But then the Steelers actually used the formation in practice later in the day.
Pittsburgh Steelers debut 4-TE formation after Aaron Rodgers' shoutout
Reports out of camp indicate that Pittsburgh’s offense broke the huddle with all four tight ends in formation, with Smith lined up next to Rodgers in the backfield. There’s no word yet on who the 11th player in the lineup was for this formation, either.
No one reported what happened on the play that came out of the formation, but Steelers fans are sure to let their imaginations run wild with the blue-collar formation.
As big-boned as the grouping is, there is no running back, and Rodgers isn’t going to carry the ball, so in this specific formation, it’s likely that Smith is getting the ball one way or another. Farbeit from Arthur Smith to hand the ball off to one of his favorite players throughout his coaching career. The tight end had 6 carries for 82 yards, three first downs, and a touchdown in Tennessee from 2019-20. In Atlanta, his lone carry was stopped for no gain.
READ MORE: Aaron Rodgers defends Mike Tomlin in strong message to Steelers critics
There’s more creativity that can come from it, certainly some play action, screens, quick dump-offs to any of the four eligible tight ends. There’s no denying, fans in Pittsburgh are excited to see this one debut during the regular season.
It’s been a running theme with the Steelers this offseason of the fanbase just finding peace and excitement in the fact that the Steelers are trying new things. Thankfully, that appears to be the case on the field just as much as it has in the front office.