2016 Outlook

Coaching Staff

HC: Mike Tomlin

OC: Todd Haley

DC: Keith Butler

ST: Danny Smith

Projected Depth Chart

Offense

QB. Ben Roethlisberger, Bruce Gradkowski

RB. Le’Veon Bell, Deangelo Williams

FB. Roosevelt Nix

WR. Antonio Brown, Sammie Coates

WR. Markus Wheaton, Eli Rogers

WR. Darrius Heyward-Bey

TE. Ladarius Green, Jesse James

LT. Alejandro Villanueva, Ryan Harris

LG. Ramon Foster, Chris Hubbard

C. Maurkice Pouncey, Cody Wallace

RG. David DeCastro, Cole Manhart

RT. Marcus Gilbert, Matt Feiler

Defense

DE. Cameron Heyward, Caushaud Lyons

NT. Daniel McCullers, Javon Hargrave

DE. Stephon Tuitt, Leterrius Walton

OLB. Bud Dupree, Arthur Moats

MLB. Lawrence Timmons, Steven Johnson

MLB. Ryan Shazier, Vince Williams

OLB. James Harrison, Jarvis Jones

CB. William Gay, Artie Burns

SS. Shamarko Thomas, Sean Davis

FS. Mike Mitchell, Robert Golden

CB. Ross Cockrell, Doran Grant

NB. Senquez Golson

Special Teams

K. Chris Boswell

P. Jordan Berry

Breakdown

Offense: 

The Pittsburgh Steelers have the potential to be 1 of the top offenses in the NFL. Even with receiver Martavious Bryant being suspended for the year, the Steelers are still primed to be elite and put up points in bunches. They are loaded in all phases of their offense. It starts with their future Hall-of-Fame QB Big Ben, who leads the way and is poised for what I believe will be an MVP caliber year. He will be joined in the backfield by what is the best RB group in the NFL, led by Le’Veon Bell, who may be the best RB in the NFL, and Deangelo Williams, who is the best backup RB in the NFL and probably top 15 in the league. Even without Bryant, the Steelers are still loaded at receiver, led by the game’s best at the position in Antonio Brown, who is lock for 100 receptions and 1500+ receiving yards. Markus Wheaton will look to replace Bryant and I think he’s talented enough to be the number 2 guy in this offense. Looking to be the 3rd and 4th receivers are Darius Heyward-Bey, who is a burner and Sammie Coats, who is a physically gifted young receiver with a ton of potential. And if that wasn’t enough, at TE replacing long-time Steeler TE Heath Miller, will be Ladarius Green who comes over from San Diego as the Steelers’ lone significant free agent pick-up. He’s 1 of the more talented young TEs in the NFL and will provide more athleticism than the Steelers have ever had at TE. And the offense is held together by a very good offensive line. The Steelers have an interior group that can rival even the Cowboys, led by RG David DeCastro, who might be the league’s next great guard. Next to him at center is Maurkice Pouncey, who has been 1 of the most consistent centers in the NFL since being drafted and at LG is Ramon Foster, who is another pretty good guard. Marcus Gilbert is very reliable at RT, but the 1 question mark about this offensive line is the LT position. Alejandro Villanueva is the favorite to win the job. He started 10 games last year after incumbent starter Beachum went down. The team brought in Ryan Harris to compete for the job, but with Villanueva being younger and a lot bigger at 6’9, 320, I expect him to win the job. Overall, when there is only 1 question mark out of 11 starters I think you’re doing pretty great in terms of personnel.

Defense: 

Pittsburgh should be able to duplicate their success against the run as they bring back all but 1 starter from their front 7. Up front, their 3-man line is led by defensive end Cameron Heyward, who is an absolute stud. He has emerged as an all-around interior defender that rushes the passer and stuffs the run. In the middle, replacing McLendon, is the massive Daniel McCullers who is 6’7, 350 pounds and should be a huge space eater. On the other end is Stephon Tuitt, who was the team’s 2nd-round pick in 2014 and also has a ton of ability. At linebacker on the edges, the Steelers will most likely have a 3-man rotation between their 2015 1st-round pick Bud Dupree, who should be the best of the bunch, veteran James Harrison is still alive and kicking, and their 2013 1st-round pick and underachiever Jarvis Jones who still has plenty of raw talent, but must figure out how to make the most of it. In the middle, they have veteran Lawrence Timmons and Ryan Shazier, who is 1 of the most gifted athletes at his position and is primed to be 1 of the leagues best LBs. The question about this defense is their secondary, most notably the cornerback position. They are pretty good at safety actually, led by Mike Mitchell at FS, who was really good last year and Shamarko Thomas, who offers solid run support. But the cornerback position is highly suspect. William Gay and Ross Cockrell are the projected top 2 guys and quite frankly that’s a scary thought. Gay is decent in zone coverage, but is highly flammable when asked to cover man-to-man against the better receivers in this league. The rest of the corners are incredibly young. Cockrell started 7 games and showed flashes of potential, but he’s another corner that plays better in zone. Senquez Golson was picked by the Steelers in the 2nd round of last years draft and missed the entire year with a shoulder injury. So 2016 will essentially be his rookie season. He might get a shot at the starting job and if not, he should at least get the nickel job. Overall, I think the Steelers are more than talented enough to overcome their shortcomings at the corner position, especially when you consider the fact that this defense won’t be asked to do too much with all the fire power they have on offense.