The Steelers season has been a mixed bag overall so far. The team appeared to be horrible in week one, the defense rebounded in week two, and the team as a whole put together an acceptable performance in week three. That said, expectations were high for this team this year, and the results have been pretty flat.
I have been a general fan of the moves that Omar Khan has made this season, but as of this writing, some of the more notable ones have not paid off. There is plenty of time for this to change, but the early return on investments for these moves has been bad. Here are four Steelers offseason moves that already look like disasters.
Steelers disaster #4: Signing Isaac Seumalo
The Steelers made a surprise double dip in free agency at guard, adding both veteran swingman Nate Herbig and star free agent Isaac Seumalo. The Seumalo signing was a relative surprise, as he was regarded as one of the best linemen in free agency and it marked the second consecutive year that Pittsburgh added a notable guard in free agency.
The early results haven’t been as expected though, as Seumalo has struggled. The first two weeks in particular looked rough for the veteran, and his road-grading nature hasn’t translated into good tape for the team yet. Considering the big-money contract he got, this has to be seen as a disappointment.
That said, of all of the moves on this list, I think this one has the best chance of reversing. New additions a year ago James Daniels and Mason Cole got better as the season progressed, and it seems like Pat Meyer's blocking scheme can take some time to master.
Ideally, Seumalo continues in his upward trend, and this line as a whole takes a few steps forward in blocking. To be fair, they have faced stacked boxes as defenses have focused on stopping the run, so blocking hasn’t been easy, but the Steelers need more of a return on their prize free agent signing in order for this move to reverse its current course.