The Steelers had 10 players named to the Pro Bowl and aren’t playing in the Super Bowl, which speaks volumes about this team, this season. They were ultra-talented and had more stars than any other team, yet failed to win a playoff game.
There are many reasons this season, despite a 13-3 regular season record, was ultimately a failure. Almost all of them are on defense. The Steelers had the fifth-ranked defense in the NFL and were seventh in points against, but if ever there was a case to be made for statistics lying, it’s with that unit.
The Steelers led the NFL in sacks, but 13 of their 55 came against the awful Cleveland Browns. The sack numbers hid that the pass defense gave up too many plays of 40 yards or more. The Steelers also allowed 4.4 yards per carry, so they weren’t stellar against the run, either.
That’s why the first item of business is not Le’Veon Bell. It’s true a deadline is looming for the team to decide to use the franchise tag on Bell, but Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert need to let the bean counters worry about that. Their entire attention needs to be focused on fixing the defense, which is easier said than done.
There is no guarantee that Ryan Shazier will ever play again. Of course, his health is the first concern, but for practical reasons the Steelers must also address a hole in the middle of their defense. That means they need to either draft or sign an inside linebacker.
They also need to move on from Mike Mitchell, who is expensive ($5 million) and no longer getting the job done. That means they need a safety. And even though they have used three of their past five first-round picks on an outside linebacker, they need to go get another one. T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree need to be pushed — especially Dupree — and need to play much more consistently next season.
That addresses only some of the problem, though, as the Steelers’ biggest problems are at cornerback. Free agent Joe Haden helped, but his play is slipping. Artie Burns was a first-round pick but hasn’t played like it.
Former NFL executive and current ESPN analyst Louis Riddick said this year’s draft isn’t great for linebackers. The Steelers may need to go to the free agent market, but that could prove to be difficult given their salary cap numbers and the pending Bell contract.
The Steelers have been creative in the past with the salary cap and can be again. They simply have too much offensive talent to lose another season because their defense isn’t strong enough to win a playoff game. Bell’s contract isn’t the most important thing on the Steelers’ plate — fixing the defense is — and there is a lot of work to be done.
First Published: January 29, 2018, 5:57 p.m.
