The Pittsburgh Steelers could be on the cusp of major changes this offseason. Longtime head coach Mike Tomlin suggested the Steelers could shake things up in the coming months, saying he refuses to sit idly by and assume the result will change after the Cleveland Browns ousted Pittsburgh in the Wild Card Round:
“I'm not going to maintain status quo and hope that the outcome changes,” Mike Tomlin said, via Chris Adamski of the Tribune-Review. “That's the definition of insanity.”
The Steelers have multiple quandaries as they enter the offseason, mostly on the offensive side of the ball.
Ben Roethlisberger struggled this season. Despite throwing for nearly 4,000 yards and tossing 33 touchdown passes, “Big Ben” averaged just 6.3 yards gained per pass attempt. His 60.8 total QBR rating was also the fourth-lowest of his career.
Pittsburgh could look to cut Roethlisberger, but that move would come with a $22.25 dead cap hit. Otherwise, the Steelers have to eat a cap hit of over $40 million.
Wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and running back James Conner are free agents, and there are no guarantees either returns after relatively subpar showings.
Smith-Schuster had 97 catches, but averaged just 8.6 yards per reception. He has looked like a shell of the guy who broke out for 1,426 receiving yards in 2018. Conner averaged 4.3 yards per carry, but he was less explosive in the passing game.
Pittsburgh's defense should remain mostly intact, though Bud Dupree could be looking to cash out. Moreover, as strong as the defense was in 2020, the Steelers struggled to cause turnovers down the stretch and looked faulty against strong rushing attacks.
Everyone wants to upgrade their football teams in the offseason. But it is possible Mike Tomlin is hinting at wholesale changes as the Steelers look to rebound from a tremendously disappointing conclusion to the 2020 campaign.
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