With the awful luck that the Pittsburgh Steelers suffered in the 2015 NFL season, calling the year a success would not be far-fetched. The Steelers started three different quarterbacks, center Maurkice Pouncey was out all year, left tackle Kelvin Beachum tore his ACL in Week 7, running back Le’Veon Bell went out with a season ending ACL injury as well, Bell’s replacement De’Angelo Williams injured himself in the last game of the season and missed the whole playoffs, and wide receiver Antonio Brown missed the last playoff game with a concussion. Bell was also suspended for the first two games of the season but Williams filled in perfectly for him. So not having Bell those two games wasn’t too bad of a loss. In spite of all that, the Steelers still made it to the playoffs as the sixth seed with a record of 10-6. They went on to beat the Cincinnati Bengals in the wild card round and played the eventual Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos tough in the next round, losing 23-16.
Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl Chances in 2016
The Steelers were resilient and had a deep enough roster to stay competitive last year. They still have most of their key players, but have questions on both sides of the ball. Pittsburgh is primed for another playoff run, as they have entirely too much talent to not compete. The question is, do the Steelers have what it takes to make it to their first Super Bowl since losing to the Green Bay Packers in 2011?
What They Have
Offensive Power
The Pittsburgh Steelers have no shortage of offensive power. Even with the injuries that they sustained, the Steelers ended up in the top four in team passing yards, total yards, and points. Wide receiver Antonio Brown ended the season with 1,834 yards receiving, second to Julio Jones. The fact that Brown was able to put up those numbers with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger missing four games is absolutely amazing and sets the sky as the limit to what he can do. If Big Ben had been there, would Brown have shattered receiving records by ending up with 150 catches and 2,000 yards at the very least? There are a lot of what ifs concerning that passing attack with Roethlisberger out, but it is a known fact that the offense is much more deadly when he is at the helm.
The running game is led by Le’Veon Bell, who is in the conversation for the best running back in the NFL at the moment. He has everything that a running back needs to be successful: speed, power, reliable hands, quick feet, great vision, awareness, and blocks really well. The problem Bell had last year was staying on the field. He missed the first two games of the season because of a suspension, played the next five games, and then was knocked out for the the rest of the year by Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict. In fact, the Steelers never got to have a whole game with their three-headed offensive monster of Bell, Brown, and Big Ben. DeAngelo Williams played very well when Bell went down; having both of their top running backs at the same time must be making the team and the fans drool. With no shortage of weapons heading into the season, the Steelers will have one of the top offenses again.
Domination in the Trenches
To win, dominating the trenches is a necessity. Protecting the quarterback, and on the opposite end, getting to the quarterback is critical to a team’s success. Having the best offensive and defensive line is not necessary to win the Super Bowl, but being great on both sides of the line is important. Last year, the Steelers had that. Despite the injuries to Beachum and Pouncey, the offensive line excelled. Right tackle Marcus Gilbert, viewed as a second round bust prior to the season, had one of the best seasons of any tackle that season, allowing only one sack in all 18 games. Guards David DeCastro and Ramon Foster were ranked by Pro Football Focus as the 15th and 16th best guards dominating in both run and pass protection. The Steelers were also 8th in both pass protection and run blocking last year, they’ll look to improve on that number next season.
The Steelers defense hasn’t been its usual dominant self, not for a few seasons. But that is more due to the fact that the secondary has been weak. The defensive front line has still been very good; they ranked third in sacks and only allowed 3.8 yards per carry last year. Cameron Heyward and Stephon Tuitt are two underrated defensive ends, and only getting better. The linebacking corps is still intact as well, with Lawrence Timmons, James Harrison, and Bud Dupree leading that deadly pass rush attack.
What They Need
Protecting the Blind Side
The Steelers offense is pretty complete from top to bottom. Their wide receiver and running back corps is deep, Ben Roethlisberger is still an elite quarterback, and they added tight end Ladarius Green to replace recently retired Heath Miller.
The Steelers offensive line was also very good last year, even with the injuries that they sustained. Right tackle Marcus Gilbert played really well after his job status was threatened before the season, guards David DeCastro and Ramon Foster played great like always, and Cody Wallace, played adequately in Pouncey’s place at the center position.
The biggest question on the offense, and maybe on the whole team is the left tackle position. When Kelvin Beachum went down in Week 7, Alejandro Villanueva took over the responsibility of protecting Roethlisberger’s blind side. Beachum was one of the best left tackles in the game when he was playing, so those were big shoes to fill. Villanueva did a decent job, but was not elite. He improved his play every week, which leaves everyone with the hope that he will continue to improve. However, all hope aside, Villanueva allowed 7.5 sacks last year and was ranked the 51st best tackle by PFF.
The Steelers signed Ryan Harris for competition, but he wasn’t any better with the Denver Broncos. The Steelers will look to either one of these players to take care of Big Ben and keep him safe, and in all honesty, they aren’t great options. The left tackle position could be the deciding factor on how the season ends for the Steelers. They need to be sure they find the right guy to man one of the most important positions on an NFL team.
Defending the Pass
On defense, neutralizing the opposing quarterback is more important than anything. Having an elite pass rush is the first step, but that pass rush needs some help in the back, so that those pass rushers have some time to get to the quarterback.
The Steelers did not have a good secondary last year. The reasons that they were 30th in the league in passing yards allowed include having older players, players getting injured, and basically not having a lot of talent in the secondary. This was one of their biggest draft needs and they attacked it in the first two rounds. They took cornerback Artie Burns and safety Sean Davis in round one and two, taking care of two positions in their secondary. However, the problem with these two players is that they are both raw. They have size, they have great athletic ability, but it might take them some time to get used to the speed of the NFL and learn to guard NFL wide receivers.
Senquez Golson is a 2015 second round pick that hasn’t seen the football field yet. He does have potential and could join Burns and Davis on a youth movement in revamping the Steelers secondary. But as of now, the secondary is weak, and full of questions and holes. For the Steelers to compete for a title, they need these young players in the back of their defense to advance their skills quickly.
The Bottom Line
The final question, the bottom line: will the Steelers get appear in their ninth Super Bowl? As of now, they aren’t the favorites. It seems that they are a step below the New England Patriots overall. The Patriots are pretty complete top to bottom, and the Steelers will need their whole team to be at the top of their games if they are to beat the AFC favorites.
If Villanueva takes full control of that left tackle spot and plays at a high level, their offense will be almost unstoppable. On the other side of the ball, the Steelers need their young players to step up, in all three lines of defense. If the Steelers can achieve those two goals, they will be deadly from offense to defense, and a favorite to make it to Super Bowl 51.
