Conservative approach a huge gamble
The Steelers closed the season by going 7-2 down the stretch to finish at 9-8, and that apparently is a cause for celebration. Maybe celebration is too strong of a word, but the fact they went 7-2 down the stretch seems to trump the fact they were barely over .500 and missed the playoffs.
I look at the approach of the offseason, and it is pretty clear the Steelers are taking a “we are on the right track” approach as there won’t be any significant changes made. There are no significant coaching changes, no moves in the front office and very few significant moves will be made to dramatically change the roster.
That is the approach teams that go 12-5 and win a few playoff games might take, but the Steelers were nowhere close to that. And for the first time in the Super Bowl era,
they are going to go six seasons in a row without a playoff win.
It is not surprising because that is the approach the Steelers always seem to take — slow and steady and favoring stability over change — and it could be a good plan if what they showed down the stretch
wasn’t fool’s gold and propped up by an incredibly weak schedule in the final nine weeks.
If the big picture is still to the liking of Art Rooney II and company, then I suppose this is the best course of action. I wonder, however, if this team had still gone 9-8
but had their games rearranged so they had gone 2-5 down the stretch, would we be having a different conversation? If that’s the case, then the Steelers need to rethink how they do things because the order of the games shouldn’t have an impact on decisions that are made.
The thing is it might work out well for the Steelers, and that’s the desired outcome of this offseason of holding the line and making minimal changes. Maybe the improvement shown over the course of the season by Matt Canada will continue and the offense will pick up momentum during training camp
and become really good. And maybe the defense wasn’t a product of playing terrible quarterbacks down the stretch and maybe it is that good.
Of course, maybe the offense that averaged 18 points and less than two touchdowns per game and produced only 12 passing touchdowns for the entire season wasn’t a mirage. And if that is the case, it could make for a long, uncomfortable season.
The Steelers seem to be choosing stability and seem to be taking the conservative route, but I think they are gambling to be honest. And if they lose on this gamble, then next offseason needs to be a complete rebuild from the coaching staff into the roster.
That’s what should be at stake and the standard for next season would be at least one game improvement during the regular season, a playoff berth and a playoff win. The Steelers may have been fooled into thinking they are closer to getting back into contention than they really are, but they are betting they weren’t and success is right around the corner.
It seems to be a good development that Omar Khan and Andy Weidl will run the draft because that is at least two new sets of eyes on it.
Maybe the evaluation of players will be different and there will be a different approach than the one that had seemingly gotten stale over the past five or six seasons. The thing is if Mike Tomlin has ultimate final say, as some believe he will, then I am not sure how much will change on that front, as well.
The Steelers need some help in some key areas — offensive line, cornerback, inside linebacker, wide receiver and defensive line — and they don’t have enough high draft picks to realistically address them all.
They will need to go get some free agents, as well, and taking a deep dive into free agency is not something they have loved doing in the past, either.
This is a huge offseason for the Steelers because the Steelers are no longer the model franchise and the team that most other teams fear.
And they began the rebuilding process last offseason and had some mixed results. It could be they are on the road to returning to contention, but it also could be they are stuck in that area between really good and bad. That’s the worst place to be.
They had a chance to make some major changes, but all indications are that they aren’t going to and instead are going to just stay the course. That may be the right approach, but if it isn’t, it will be a disaster and it could be the kind of inaction that has devastating consequences for years to come.