Tag: 2020 Steelers season

Steelers run defense to get early test in 2020

Is the Steelers run defense better in 2020?

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Last season, the Pittsburgh Steelers had one of the best overall defenses in the NFL. But when you dig into the numbers you see the one spot where the Steelers struggled. Pittsburgh was ranked No. 14 in rush yards allowed.

We can and will dig more into the reasons why a defense so good struggled against the run more as the offseason goes on. But the reality is this is an area that needed improvement but I’m not convinced the team did anything in the offseason to improve it.

However, it won’t take long to find out. Here’s how the Steelers early schedule breaks down in terms of the run game.

Week 1-New York Giants

Week 2-Denver Broncos

Week 3-Houston Texans

Week 4-Tennessee Titans

Week 5-Philadelphia Eagles

Week 6-Cleveland Browns

Week 7-Baltimore Ravens

Week 9-Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens, Titans and Cowboys were all ranked in the top five in rushing in 2019. The Texans were ranked in the Top 12 and both the Eagles and Browns were ranked in the top 12.

Even moving to the second half of the Season the Steelers will face the Ravens again, the Indianapolis Colts and Buffalo Bills who all ranked in the top seven in rushing last season.

Looking at additions and subtractions this group will be tested. The Steelers lost Javon Hargrave to free agency and will be replaced in the starting lineup by Tyson Alualu. Is this an upgrade or a downgrade?

Additionally, Pittsburgh released inside linebacker Mark Barron and he will be replaced by Vince Williams. This, along with the continued improvement of linebacker Devin Bush and safety Terrell Edmunds should all add up to a big upgrade.

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2020 Steelers stat predictions: Defensive line

Here are our stat predictions for the Steelers defensive line.

Mandatory Credit: Philip G. Pavely-USA TODAY Sports

When you play a hybrid 3-4 defensive front like the Pittsburgh Steelers, you never know from one play to the next where any of the team’s defensive linemen will be lined up. It makes predicting out this group will play out statistically something of a challenge.

Cam Heyward

The undisputed leader of the Steelers defense, Heyward has emerged as one of the best inside/outside defensive linemen in the NFL.

80 tackles, 11 sacks, 20 QB hits

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3 big questions for the Steelers to answer in the offseason

The Steelers still need to answer these questions before the season starts.

Mandatory Credit: Jason Bridge-USA TODAY Sports

The Pittsburgh Steelers look like a team ready for a bounceback after two disappointing seasons. But between now and the start of the regular season the coaches still have plenty of things to sort out if they want to return to the playoffs after a two-year absence. Here are the three big questions Pittsburgh must answer.

Is Big Ben Back, and if not, then what?

Despite a mid-season push, the Steelers season ended in Week Two when franchise QB Ben Roethlisberger suffered a season-ending elbow injury. The defense made a valiant effort to keep the team in the season but in the end there was no quarterback on the roster who could approach the talent of Roethlisberger. All indications this offseason have been that Big Ben is back on the road to full health and even hopes to be better than before.

Roethlisberger led the NFL is passing yards in 2018 with 5,128 and despite being 38 years old is playing his best football. If Roethlisberger isn’t healthy or cannot get back to 100 percent it could mean a long season and a third straight absence from the playoffs. If Pittsburgh has to count on QB Mason Rudolph to lead the team for an extended period of time again, it is hard to see the Steelers keeping pace with teams like the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens.

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Touchdown Wire sees Steelers as one of the top defenses in the NFL

The Steelers defense carried a terrible offense for all of 2019.

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Our friends over at Touchdown Wire went about the task of ranking every NFL defense for the upcoming season. In a league that continues to skew heavier and heavier toward the offensive side of the football, being a truly elite defense is harder and harder.

But as we saw in 2019, the Steelers put together a complete defense, and once the trade for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick was done, the entire defense took a huge step forward. This was good enough for Touchdown Wire to rank Pittsburgh at No. 3.

How did the Steelers manage to go 8-8 with an absolutely disastrous quarterback situation? With a defense that pounced on opportunities throughout the season, and got better as things went along. No team had a better Defensive DVOA (Football Outsiders’ opponent-adjusted efficiency metric) than Pittsburgh from Weeks 10-17, and that had as much to do with the trade for defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick (who became one of the league’s best deep safeties in his new environs) as it did with a defense that led the NFL in sacks (54), pressures (180), and pressure percentage (30.5). If Ben Roethlisberger can make it through the 2020 season, expect the Steelers to challenge the Ravens for the top of the AFC North.

The Steelers squandered once of the best statistical seasons by the Steelers defense last season with a completely anemic offense. This team doesn’t need the offense to be elite to get back to the playoffs. The continued emergence of guys like T.J. Watt and Fitzpatrick puts an offense on the mend to be able to take its time getting to full strength and still remain competitive.

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2020 Steelers stat predictions: Defensive backs

The Steelers secondary was among the best in 2019.

(Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)

Last season we saw the Pittsburgh Steelers take a positional unit that had been a weakness and turn it into a strength. The secondary was perhaps the most consistent and productive units on the defense and really stepped up each week as the offense struggled. The group returns and should be even better in 2020.

Here are our stat predictions for the Steelers defensive backs.

CB Joe Haden

Haden continues to lead the way for the Steelers secondary and shows no signs of slowing down.

60 total tackles, 4 interceptions, 20 passes defended

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5 Steelers who could be surprise starters in 2020

There are still a few positions up for grabs this offseason.

(AP Photo/Don Wright)

Once the Pittsburgh Steelers finally get back together, the coaching staff will have a significant amount of talent to sort through all the talent on the roster and figure out which groups of starters give this team the best chance to win.

Here are five guys we think could end up stealing (sort of) starting jobs by the time the season starts.

OT Zach Banner

Banner ending up the starting right tackle actually depends on what happens at left guard. The position took a huge hit this offseason when Ramon Foster retired and B.J. Finney signed with the Seattle Seahawks. Stefen Wisniewski was signed as a replacement but he’s more of a journeyman than a top starter. This means the Steelers could move starting right tackle Matt Feiler to left guard leaving Banner and Chuks Okorafor competing for the starting right tackle spot.

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Steelers unproved WR corps lands in middle of PFF rankings

The Steelers WR corps is all potential right now.

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If you are looking to judge the Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver corps, last season didn’t help. Terribly inconsistent quarterback play made the position most dependent on quarterback look awful. Nevertheless, the talent is there, they just need consistency.

Pro Football Focus ranked every wide receiving corps heading to the season and unfortunately the Steelers only made it to No. 18.

In terms of potential, there might not be a more exciting group on the list. JuJu Smith-Schuster already has a 100-reception season on his resume and goes into the season as the leader of a young and talented group.

With Ben Roethlisberger back and healthy, the sky is the limit for this group. Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, James Washington and Chase Claypool offer a group of receivers that can do a little of everything on the field.

Where would you rank the Steelers receivers on the PFF rankings? Let us know in the comments who good you think this group can be this season.

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Steelers stand to lose over $400 million playing in empty stadiums

The NFL might be playing games without the fans this season.

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Mike Ozanian of Forbes offered a grim image of what the NFL would look like if the league decides to play games in empty stadiums. Overall, Ozanian estimates the NFL will lose $5.5 billion this season if they play their entire season without fans in the seats.

For the Pittsburgh Steelers, Ozanian estimates based on 2018 revenue figures, the Steelers stand to lose $156 million in stadium revenue and $439 million overall.

If these numbers seem massive, it is because they are. But the real money for the NFL is in the TV Contracts. Those account for nearly 60 of the NFL’s total revenue. Nevertheless, being short several billion dollars isn’t something the NFL wants to deal with.

It is hard to imagine the Steelers will be playing any games without fans present. And if they do, it is highly unlikely it is for anything more than perhaps the preseason and a few early regular-season games.

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2020 Steelers stat predictions: Linebackers

Here are our predictions for the top Steelers linebackers in 2020.

Mandatory Credit: Philip G. Pavely-USA TODAY Sports

The strongest positional unit on the Pittsburgh Steelers heading into 2020 is the linebackers. The Steelers defense was elite last season and much of that falls on the play of these guys. As a franchise, Pittsburgh has always been known for linebacker play and this group is one of the best in recent history.

Here are our predictions for this group for the coming season.

EDGE | T.J. Watt

Watt continues to build his case to be the best all-around linebacker in the NFL.

62 total tackles, 16.5 sacks, 1 interception, 7 forced fumbles

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Steelers employees plan to return to facilities on Tuesday

The Steelers can begin getting back to business on Tuesday.

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The NFL has started opening up and the Pittsburgh Steelers are ready to get to work. Pittsburgh Steelers Director of Communication Burt Lauten released a statement indicating the team will open up facilities on Tuesday, May 18.

We will begin the process of opening our facilities on Tuesday, May 19, with a limited number of staff being permitted in our buildings. Health and safety of our employees will continue to be our priority as we phase up to the fully-allowed staff level.

As with everything related to the re-opening of businesses, the Steelers will need to follow social distancing guidelines and follow guidelines to ensure they are carrying on business the safest way possible.

This is the next step in the Steelers getting back to business. There is no timeline on when players will be able to return to the team facilities. This will be a gradual process but it is certainly a step in the right direction for everyone missing football.

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