The Steelers certainly haven’t had a season worth remembering this year. Despite a decent start, issues were apparent early on with this team. Over time, cracks turned into fissures, and this team is now in a free fall. While there have been some highlights on the team, there are quite a few players who have fallen flat on their faces.
The holidays are an unforgiving time, and for those players that aren’t living up to the mark are set to find themselves on Santa’s naughty list. We all know what people get on the naughty list though. Here are the five Steelers who deserve a lump of coal this season.
Steelers haven’t gotten enough out of Mykal Walker
Pittsburgh was dealt a tough hand at the linebacker position this season. Despite some significant turnover and investment in the position in the offseason, the team lost two of their top three starters in consecutive weeks. Worse yet, the only remaining starter was Elandon Roberts, a fine player but one that is more limited in coverage.
The team has opted to turn to veteran Mykal Walker in the wake of all of these injuries due to his experience. He had been a capable starter for a short spell, so the hope was that he could return to that form. That hasn’t been the case so far though, as he has quickly become a liability for this defense.
To be fair, Walker is in a less-than-ideal situation. It is hard to come in and start at a high level considering how late he was to join this team. That said, he has turned into a weak point for this team and is constantly picked on in the passing game. Because of those struggles, he easily lands on this list.