Adrian Fedkiw
Each day leading up to the official start of the NFL football season, I will be providing you with player rankings, team previews, analysis, predictions, opinions and a whole lot more.
There’s no doubt that the Pittsburgh Steelers have the best trio of offensive weapons in the NFL.
They just need Ben Roethlisberger, Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown all on the field together more consistently.
Bell and Roethlisberger need to stay healthy and Bell needs to be a lot more disciplined off the field too. Even without Bell for most of the year, the Steelers were third in total offense and fourth in points per game (26.4).
Against the top three defenses in the NFL last season, the Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks and Cincinnati Bengals, the Steelers scored 34 against Denver, 30 against Seattle and put up 33 in one of the three meetings against Cincinnati.
Another thing to watch out for this year? Brown breaking a couple wide receiver records.
Marvin Harrison’s 143 receptions in 2002 is the all-time mark, Brown and Julio Jones tallied 136 each a year ago, which is tied for second. I’m going to go bold and say that Brown will have the single-season receptions record and eclipse 2,000 yards by season’s end. Martavis Bryant is suspended for the season and Heath Miller just retired, he’s the only legitimate wideout that Big Ben has to throw the ball to.
Grading the Roster
QBs- Ben Roethlisberger (8.7), Bruce Gradkowski (7.2)
RBs- Le’Veon Bell (8.3), DeAngelo Williams (7.3), Fitzgerald Touissant (7.1)
WRs- Antonio Brown (8.7), Markus Wheaton (7.2), Darrius Heyward-Bey (7.2), Sammie Coates (7.2)
TEs- Ladarius Green (7.4), Jesse James (7.2)
Ts- Alejandro Vallanueva (7.3), Marcus Gilbert (7.4), Ryan Harris (7.2)
Gs- David DeCastro (8), Ramon Foster (7.4), Chris Hubbard (7.1)
Cs- Maurkice Pouncey (8.1), Cody Wallace (7.2)
DEs- Cam Heyward (7.9), Stephon Tuitt (7.6), Ricardo Matthews (7.2), Leterrius Walton (7.1)
NTs- Daniel McCullers (7.2), Javon Hargrave (7.1)
OLB- Arthur Moats (7.4), Bud Dupree (7.3), Jarvis Jones (7.3), James Harrison (7.3)
ILBs- Lawrence Timmons (7.8), Ryan Shazier (7.5), Vince Williams (7.3), Tyler Matakevich (7.1)
CBs- Ross Cockrell (7.3), William Gay (7.3), Artie Burns (7.2), Senquez Golson (7.2)
Ss- Mike Mitchell (7.3), Shamarko Thomas (7.2), Robert Golden (7.2)
K- Chris Boswell (7.3)
P- Jordan Berry (7.3)
KR- Demarcus Ayers (7.3)
PR- Antonio Brown (7.4)
Team Rankings
Team- 7.448 (6/32)
Offense- 7.61560 (2/32)
Defense- 7.32261666 (27/32)
Quarterbacks- 7.95 (5/32)
Running Backs- 7.57 (2/32)
Receivers- 7.48 (2/32)
Offensive Line- 7.46 (2/32)
Defensive Line- 7.35 (10/16)
Linebackers- 7.38 (10/16)
Secondary- 7.24 (29/32)
Special Teams- 7.325
Coaches – 7.4
PREDICTION– 11-5 (1st AFC North)
QUARTERBACKS
Roethlisberger didn’t carry the offense in the past due to a stellar Pittsburgh defense. He was limited, but that’s not the case anymore. Big Ben missed five games last year due to nagging injuries and finished the year with just 21 touchdowns and 16 interceptions.
The 34-year-old Roethlisberger has easy velocity on his throws, zipping the deep outs with ease to go along with one of the best deep balls in the league. His release is smooth in the pocket and on the move. Where Big Ben can get in trouble is with his overthrows, and that comes when he overstrides in the pocket.
Backup Landry Jones was forced into action with Roethlisberger and Michael Vick both going down. He went 2-2.
RUNNING BACKS
It’s a double edged sword with Bell because he’s mostly likely going to be suspended again after missing the first two games last year due to a DUI. Bell refused to take a drug test a few weeks ago.
Hells Bells.
What sets him apart from the rest of the backs is his pass catching ability. So he’s a back who can not only run between the tackles, but can line out wide and run short to intermediate routes just like a wide receiver. He had 24 catches on 25 targets in six games before tearing his ACL last year, that’s absurd.
Bell is a patient runner to go along with great vision and jump cutting ability. He runs downhill between the tackles and his excellent body control allows him to swerve around a would-be tackle. His running style reminds me a lot of Marcus Allen, he’s almost like a slalom skier out there. Bell can squeeze through the tiniest of holes and loves to cut it back against the grain.
DeAngelo Williams filled in beautifully for Bell during his absence. He averaged 4.5 yards per carry and totaled 907 yards on the ground to go with 11 touchdowns. The 33-year-old Willliams missed the playoffs with a foot injury, however, and third-stringer Fitzgerald Toussaint had a key fumble late in the AFC Divisional Playoff against Denver.
RECEIVERS
Brown posted 1,834 yards, 10 touchdowns last year. And that was with Roethlisberger missing nearly a third of the season. Even in 2014, he had 129 receptions, fourth all-time to go with 1698 yards and 13 scores.
In my opinion, Brown’s the best route runner in the game. He’s only 5’10, 186 pounds, but his route running makes up for it. His quickness out of his breaks is unmatched. His agility, flexibility and body control are ridiculous.
Brown is also great after the catch using that agility to go with top-end speed. He was targeted 190 times last year, which is absurd and dropped just five balls all year, which is a good ratio considering he caught 136 passes. There’s other receivers that are bigger and stronger than him, but that isn’t an issue to me considering how agile he is.
The depth behind him is lacking, especially with Bryan’t suspension. Markus Wheaton hasn’t shown much and we’ll see about second-year man Sammie Coates, who is a burner that had glimpses last year. Darrius Heyward-Bey is also a vertical threat.
With Miller’s retirement, the Steelers signed unheralded tight end Ladarius Green, who has been stuck behind Antonio Gates in San Diego. He has solid speed for a 6’6 tight end and is adept at going up the seams.
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN
Mike Munchak has done wonders with the Steelers’ line, starting with former Army Ranger and war hero Alejandro Villanueva. The 6’9 behemoth was originally signed by the Philadelphia Eagles to play along the defensive line, but Pittsburgh moved him to the offensive line. He flourished to the point that the Steelers felt content with letting Kelvin Beachum sign elsewhere. Marcus Gilbert is an above-average right tackle that’s been underrated for years.
David DeCastro was an All-Pro right guard last season. He’s solid in both pass protection and run blocking. He likes to use his hands immediately in pass protection to keep defenders at bay. They’re strong and explosive. He has good recovery skills as well. As a run blocker, he’s at his best when combo blocking, again utilizing his strong and powerful hands to blow defenders backwards. The starter at left guard is veteran Ramon Foster.
Center Maurkice Pouncey returns from a fractured fibula. He’s athletic and plays with an attitude and aggression. Pouncey makes all the proper calls at the line of scrimmage and he stays low, which allows him to hold his position on passing downs. In run blocking, he’s one of the main reasons for Bell’s emergence as one of the top running backs in the league. He uses his quickness to pull and then his strength to re-direct when meeting defenders in the hole.
DEFENSIVE LINEMEN
Cam Heyward played with poor instincts his first two years, but has torn it up in Pittsburgh ever since. He’s very versatile. He can pressure the quarterback and hold his own against double teams in the run game. He doesn’t possess a quick first step, but can still get push and collapse the pocket. In the run game, Heyward drops his anchor well and is also athletic enough to get into the backfield and tackle the ball carrier beyond the line of scrimmage.
Stephon Tuitt has turned into a solid three technique, while nose tackle is Daniel McCullers, a 350-plus monster. Javon Hargreave and journeyman Ricardo Matthews provide depth along defensive end.
LINEBACKERS
Inside linebacker Lawrence Timmons is simply a tackling machine, tallying his fifth straight 100-plus tackle campaign a year ago.
At 6’1 234, Timmons is undersized for a 3-4 inside linebacker, but what is undersized anymore? He plays with great quickness and really lays the lumber. He’s very athletic and is a top-notch run defender. He anticipates, gets in position and closes quickly.
As great as Timmons is as a run defender, his ability in coverage needs improvement. He gets targeted a lot and struggles in space when it comes to pass coverage. Timmons’ five sacks tied for the most among the Pittsburgh linebackers.
Timmons’ running mate Ryan Shazier is solid as well, although a bit small at just over 230 pounds. He possesses a lot of speed and is adept going sideline-to-sideline. Shazier also has a lot of range in coverage as well.
Pittsburgh needs to get more pressure on the quarterback from its outside linebackers. Former first-round pick Jarvis Jones has underwhelmed, while last year’s Bud Dupree showed flashes. The 37-year-old James Harrison led the outside linebackers with five sacks.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
Ross Cockrell was a pleasant surprise at cornerback a year ago, although the Steelers still lack a true lockdown corner and depth. They ranked 30th in pass defense in 2015.
William Gay will most likely be the starter opposite of Cockrell and the Steelers used their first-round selection on Miami-Florida product Artie Burns. Robert Golden and Mike Mitchell are solid safeties, while a second-round pick was used on Maryland’s Sean Davis.
TEAM PREVIEWS
Buffalo Bills | New England Patriots | Miami Dolphins | New York Jets
NFL PLAYER RANKINGS