into hypotheticals.Maybe because doing so would only make the Pittsburgh Steelers‘ painful late swoon all the more painful.“Would’ve
Xavier Grimble Jersey , could’ve, should’ve,” Roethlisberger said after Pittsburgh’s season ended a half-game shy of a fifth straight postseason berth. “I can sit here and say ‘Yeah, we’d be dangerous in the playoffs.’ But we didn’t make it, so it doesn’t matter.”Roethlisberger’s tone was a mixture of pragmatism and disappointment with a dash of resolve. As difficult and occasionally weird as 2018 was — from the season-long absence of running back Le’Veon Bell to the occasionally erratic behavior by star wide receiver Antonio Brown to a series of losses in November and December in which the Steelers let second-half leads slip away — the longtime quarterback remains adamant the Steelers are on the right path.“Anytime you can kind of keep that core group, keep people together, the less turnover the better usually,” Roethlisberger said. “So, from the top down I think that is important.”Maybe
Anthony Chickillo Jersey , but there is bound to be some level of change over the next few months as a team that featured the NFL’s passing leader and six Pro Bowlers tries to reconcile all that talent with an inability to lock up a third consecutive AFC North title.Offensive line coach Mike Munchak could be a hot property for one of the head coaching vacancies. Defensive coordinator Keith Butler’s unit tied for the league lead with 52 sacks but produced just 15 turnovers, third-fewest in the NFL.The special teams were erratic, penalty-riddled and largely ineffective under Danny Smith.And still the Steelers appeared to be in good shape after a six-game midseason winning streak pushed them to 7-2-1 by Thanksgiving.Four losses over the final six weeks followed, each setback coming in a game Pittsburgh led after halftime.“There were plenty of opportunities to be made and we didn’t capitalize on them,” defensive end Cam Heyward said.Four turnovers in Denver , the last a pick in the end zone by Roethlisberger. A slow, methodical meltdown over the final 30 minutes against the Los Angeles Chargers, when the Steelers lost a 16-point home lead for the first time in franchise history.Another in an increasingly long line of pratfalls in Oakland, this one coming when the Raiders went the length of the field twice in the fourth quarter . A wrenching 31-28 setback in New Orleans two days before Christmas that featured a couple of questionable calls against cornerback Joe Haden and a gutsy but ill-fated fake punt attempt in the final minutes that came up a half-yard short of a first down.“I don’t know what the problem is
Mike Hilton Jersey ,” guard David DeCastro said. “Football is an honest sport. That’s why I love the game. It’s honest. It lets you know exactly how it feels about you, what you get in and what you get out. The record is what it is.”And what does 9-6-1 mean?“Wasn’t good enough, that’s for sure,” DeCastro said.The issue, Heyward insisted, wasn’t coaching or the steady trickle of off-the-field headlines, be it Bell’s refusal to sign his $14.4 million franchise tender or Brown’s series of missteps.The only player in NFL history with six straight 100-catch seasons suggested he wouldn’t mind getting traded after a former team employee tweaked him on Twitter and threatened to harm a reporter who attempted to do an in-depth piece on Brown’s personal life. The drama continued into the final week.Multiple reports on Monday — citing sources — said Brown sat out Sunday’s 16-13 win over Cincinnati as punishment for skipping meetings and getting into a heated disagreement with a teammate.“There’s plenty of circuses that go around and everybody likes to make a big deal about my team,” Heyward said. “But you know, that doesn’t mean we shy away from it. When we were winning
Joe Haden Jersey , (the questions were) ‘How do you guys keep doing it with the wins?’ I don’t really follow that as something that deters me or distracts me. Everybody in this locker room wants to win. When we don’t win, it hurts us bad.”Pittsburgh did win — extending its streak of non-losing seasons to 15 — just not when it absolutely mattered. A play here or there and the Steelers are in the postseason and a threat to play into February.Instead, a year that got off to a weird start with the offensive line publicly venting about Bell opting not to end his standoff with the team ahead of Week 1 followed immediately by a six-turnover tie in Cleveland and never really seemed to get to some semblance of “normal” ended with Pittsburgh watching the videoboard at Heinz Field hoping Cleveland could knock off Baltimore.It was strange, momentarily exhilarating and ultimately futile.“It’s tough but that’s the bed we made,” Heyward said. “It’s something we have to live with. We put ourselves in this situation and we can’t look at anybody’s fault but ours.” Sitting behind the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys on their list, the Steelers offensive line is expected to be one of the best in the league once again in 2019." Latest NewsPro Football Focus ranks Steelers offensive line as third best in NFL New,7commentsSitting behind the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys on their list, the Steelers offensive line is expected to be one of the best in the league once again in 2019.EDTShare this storyShare this on FacebookShare this on TwitterShareAll sharing optionsShareAll sharing options for:Pro Football Focus ranks Steelers offensive line as third best in NFL TwitterFacebookRedditPocketFlipboardEmailPhoto by Roy K. Miller/Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesWhile the Pittsburgh Steelers have seen themselves downgraded in the rankings at certain position this offseason following the loss of Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell, there still appears to be at least one area their dominance is unquestioned heading into 2019.With all five starters who played the majority of the snaps along the offensive line last year set to return
Vance McDonald Jersey , the consensus opinion among the experts suggests the Steelers should have one of the best offensive lines once again this season. As per the rankings released by Pro Football Focus on Tuesday, Pittsburgh has the third best offensive line in the league, eclipsed only by the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys.Where PFF see the Steelers as one of the best, Sean Wagner-McGough of CBS Sports has Pittsburgh ranked at the top, with the Eagles in second spot and the Cowboys third in his article from Tuesday.The significant loss of Mike Munchak notwithstanding, there is a lot to like about the group the Steelers will take into training camp. With the re-signing of Ramon Foster earlier in the year, Pittsburgh retains four starters who have played together consistently since 2015. And having started 10 games in 2018, Matt Feiler gives the team a strong option at right tackle to replace Marcus Gilbert.The quality of talent is not simply limited to the starters either, with B.J. Finney arguably good enough to start on most lines around the league
Tyson Alualu Jersey , while tackles Chukwuma Okorafor, Jerald Hawkins and Zach Banner provide the Steelers enviable depth at the position.Assuming new coach Shaun Sarrett can keep them all going in the right direction, there is every reason to believe that Pittsburgh will end the season with one of the highest graded offensive lines in football.
