Ex-Steelers OL Felt Blindsided by Trade Out of Pittsburgh
Los Angeles Rams right guard Kevin Dotson recently revealed how he felt about being traded by the Pittsburgh Steelers in August of 2023. To say the least, it was a move that caught Dotson off guard.
“I just felt kind of blindsided a little bit overall,” Dotson told Ari Meirov of the 33rd Team about his trade to the Los Angeles Rams. “I didn’t really understand. I didn’t believe that I did bad production-wise or anything like that. I was told that this is competition, you’re going to compete for it, but you can kind of tell when it’s not. Once it did that, I just knew that I couldn’t mess my reputation up by being a cancer to the team or anything like that, so I just kept it rolling. Always kept a good attitude. Just waiting for my chance to go somewhere else. I was gonna make my name on it. It’s one of those things where there’s no point in worrying about it. I’m going to do my thing once I get a chance.”
The Steelers traded Dotson to the Rams on Aug. 27, 2023 in exchange for Los Angeles’ fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. The Steelers also sent their fifth-round pick to the Rams as part of the trade.
The Steelers signed veteran guard Isaac Seumalo in the 2023 offseason, so they must have felt that Dotson was expendable.
Dotson shined in his first season in L.A, allowing just four sacks and seven quarterback hits in 881 snaps (14 starts). The impressive season earned him a three-year, $48 million extension with the Rams, averaging $16 million per season through 2026. The contract includes $32 million in guarantees.
Dotson also had a solid season in 2024, playing in all 17 games and two playoff games. He earned the second-highest Pro Football Focus (PFF) offense grade of his career (77.7) and was tied for ninth on PFF’s Jim Wyman list of the highest-graded guards from the 2024 NFL season.
Offensive line guru Duke Manyweather, who has worked with many offensive linemen, ripped Pittsburgh’s O-line philosophy on the Chipped Ham and Football Podcast with Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette last year. Manyweather trains Dotson, along with former Steelers offensive lineman Kendrick Green.
“I respect Coach Tomlin and I respect Pat Meyer, got a great relationship with both of them, and I’ve been very frank with them about this. Kendrick Green should have been playing left guard from the start like he is down in Houston. Kevin Dotson should have been playing right guard from the start. There’s this conversation that always goes on about ‘guys need to be able to play both sides,’ that’s bullshit,” Manyweather said.
RELATED: OL Trainer Duke Manyweather Criticizes Steelers Handling of Kendrick Green, Kevin Dotson