The Pittsburgh Steelers’ season has ended much too early, and after
another disappointing year there are takeaways that need to be addressed in the
offseason.
It was a roller coaster year that ended with a miss playoff
opportunity, but the Pittsburgh Steelers got plenty of takeaways from 2018. The
season went the complete opposite of how they expected, and this offseason
there is plenty of changes to be made.
There are plenty of learning points to this season, some
that this front office needs to put into place as the spring rolls around. With
seven months to prepare for another Super Bowl run, they need to take in
account everything they wished they could’ve done differently in 2018.
These five takeaways were the difference between meeting
expectations and sitting at home during the postseason. They had 17 weeks to
see that they made poor decisions last offseason and now, they have a chance to
put those mistakes to use and build from them.
The season showed plenty of negatives and positives. There’s
a guideline this team should follow this season to prepare for future success.
The time to let things fall into place is over, now, it’s do-or-die time and
the offseason is the perfect place to prepare.
Pittsburgh should follow the success and the mistakes and
head into 2019 with a gameplan to change this franchise. Next year won’t be any
better if changes aren’t made, and the fans have just about had enough with
underachieving. Now is the only time to improve and nothing less than a
spectacular offseason is required to get back on track.
BUD DUPREE SHOULD
NOT START NEXT SEASON
Bringing back Bud Dupree on his fifth-year option is a
terrible move. Releasing him and signing him to a lesser contract is what the
Steelers should do. From there, they should find another starter and put Dupree
on the bench to work as a backup.
He’s not a starter in this league. He’s been disappointing
since being drafted and watching him this season you could see the potential,
as a backup. But in the starting lineup, he’s a hole and one this defense
cannot afford moving forward.
Whether it’s through the draft or free agency, the Steelers
need to find a replacement to be in front of Dupree. If not, they’re looking at
another year of questioning why nothing was done about outside linebacker.
THE OFFENSIVE LINE
SHOULD STAY IN TACT
Ramon Foster is looking for a payday but chances are he
won’t receive one. Ben Roethlisberger said he’d return for the 2019 season as
long as his offensive line did, and whether or not this includes Foster won’t
be known until the spring.
Pittsburgh will offer him something but if early
negotiations don’t work they’ll turn to BJ Finney as their next starting left
guard.
Marcus Gilbert may be the deciding factor in Foster’s
future. Matt Feiler played extraordinarily well when stepping in this season
and should be given a chance to start in 2019. Between him and Chuk Okorafor,
the right tackle position is promising, even without Gilbert.
If Gilbert can clear up some cap space the Steelers may use
the money to retain Foster. If not, the Steelers could see some change on the
offensive line in 2019. We’ll see next season if it’s a positive or negative
move.
COTY SENSABAUGH
SHOULD STAY BUT NOT START
Coty Sensabaugh was somewhat of an unsung hero in 2018.
Keeping him to play behind Joe Haden and whoever they sign or draft this
offseason is key to keeping the depth of the secondary sharp. With Artie Burns’
time hopefully over, keeping Sensabaugh is important.
Brian Allen is developing well but not quick enough to take
on a significant role next season. Keeping Sensabaugh on the bench allows the
Steelers to use three outside corners and keep Mike Hilton and Cam Sutton on
the inside.
The secondary needs to add two key players in the offseason
– corner and safety. Morgan Burnett is not the answer and Terrell Edmunds isn’t
a starter right now. If they can fill those two roles and keep Sensabaugh
around their defensive backfield will take a major boost.
THEY NEED TO BE
AGGRESSIVE IN FREE AGENCY
Kevin Colbert needs to stop being timid and realize not
signing someone in the offseason means taking another step backwards. Morgan
Burnett was a terrible signing and Jon Bostic served no improvement for this
team. This offseason moves need to be made or the expectations won’t change
from this season.
Fans have seen enough timid behavior. 2018 was the final
straw for a lot of people and plenty of supporters are calling for Tomlin and
Colbert’s heads. They need to impress with an offseason move if these fans are
going to show any support this summer.
It’s the final chance for both of these two, hopefully. They
need to show they want to win now and make a move that shows they’re capable of
improving this team. If nothing happens August is going to roll around and this
team is going to be just as good as they were in a season they missed the
playoffs.
THE FUTURE IS
BRIGHT
2018 was the biggest disappointment in years. Each season
this team seems to find ways to hurt fans but nothing has been worse than
watching them miss the playoffs in a year many believed they could compete for
a Super Bowl.
Nevertheless, the future remains bright. Coaching changes
need to be made this offseason, a draft without mistakes and aggressive free
agency needs to happen and this team is once again a favorite come August.
There’s plenty of good to go with the bad and until the
talent on this roster begins to diminish, there’s nothing this team can’t do on
any given year. Despite a long and sad few months ahead, 2019 remains promising
and fans still have something to look forward to, even if it’s seven months in
the future.
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