Three Changes Steelers Should Make After Losing Streak
On the heels of a three-game losing streak to some of the best teams in the NFL, it feels like things are starting to unravel for the Pittsburgh Steelers. With players clearly frustrated with their performance, to head coach Mike Tomlin acknowledging their failures as a group, it feels like change of some sort is on the horizon. What could those alterations mean? Only the people in the building truly know the answer to that question as of now.
I have a few thoughts on some tweaks that I believe could help this squad right the ship and finish on a high note, even if that means not being the club that holds up the famous Lombardi trophy in February. After all, the definition of insanity is doing the same things over and over again. When you drop three in a row as a team with contending aspirations, changes are undoubtedly necessary. Below are some worth that are worth pondering on.
Going Back to Beanie Bishop in the Slot
The Steelers downhill trajectory on defense can’t be singularly blamed on any person involved. However, it’s getting pretty difficult to justify putting Cam Sutton on the field these days. It became apparent right away that he had lost a step physically, which is even more notable considering he was never the most athletically gifted corner to begin with. The more complexing and problematic issue is that he’s been involved in quite a few coverage busts over the last few weeks, leading to easy completions for first downs and even touchdowns at times. This is a player that was once known for his football IQ and coverage versatility but those days look to be in the past. It seemed like they were aspiring to be more flexible on the back end with disguises and varied coverage contours but none of that is value added if guys are running wide open everywhere you look.
The alternative to that is to reinsert undrafted free agent Beanie Bishop, who didn’t even log a single snap on Sunday, back into the lineup. Is he the answer to their problems? Maybe not. But at the very least, he’s at flashed at times, with the Jets game an example where he fooled Aaron Rodgers into making an ill-advised throw over the middle, and that’s more than you can say about Sutton since his return. If the last few years have taught this organization anything, it’s that they must stop patching over the slot cornerback position moving forward. Best case scenario is that by inserting Bishop, they can regain some stability the rest of the way.
Further Increasing Jaylen Warren’s Early Down Workload
We’ve seen an uptick in Jaylen Warren’s snaps in recent weeks and I think that’s a trend that needs to continue, specifically on early downs. The reason for that increase is a little unclear but statistically, he’s been the more productive back. Over the last four weeks, his 58.3% rushing success rate is nearly double that of Najee Harris’ (31.8%) and that’s without taking into account that much of the latters production versus the Chiefs came in garbage team with the clock winding down. With a Steelers offensive line that still very much feels like it’s a year away, Warren’s burst and decisiveness as a runner can help mask some of those deficiencies up front to an extent. Heading into the final week of the regular season, the Steelers rank 26th in early downs rushing success rate and given that’s where their theoretical identity lies, there has to be improvement there if this team wants to make noise in January.
That’s why the change in deployment seems necessary at this point in time. The nice part about having a backfield by committee is that you can ride the hot hand. That’s exactly what Arthur Smith and company should do right now. In addition to the short term benefits, it wouldn’t hurt to see Warren in more of a lead back role considering he’s by far the more likely of the pair to return to the Steel City next season. The home stretch could give the franchise more clarity on whether or not they should spend a premium asset on a tailback in the NFL Draft.
Playing Cory Trice On the Boundary
This next suggestion feels the least likely but I would like to see Cory Trice get some more clock in the secondary, even if it comes at the expense of a veteran in Donte Jackson. While the rest of the defense was underwhelming to say the least, he played pretty well and was consistently sticky in coverage against the Chiefs last week after being tossed into action due to injuries. Of course, a lot of this is mainly inspired by my pre-draft evaluation of him as a prospect. The Steelers corners have really struggled as a whole whenever they’ve faced competent passing games. Even Jackson, who has five interceptions this season, has not been nearly as consistent on a down to down basis as the box score would have you assume.
Trice (6-3, 206) is quite a bit bigger and an overall better tackler, which could also have a positive impact in their ability to play the run and screens on the perimeter. The sentiment is very similar to the aforementioned slot corner position. The former Carolina Panther, who is playing on an expiring contract, is already struggling so what does this team have to lose by throwing the youngster into the lineup? What better way to get a feel for his potential than seeing him line up across from Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and potentially Nico Collins over the next two weeks? The cornerback room is in need of a major makeover this spring but perhaps he could factor into that equation with a strong finish.
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