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Throughout the first couple weeks of the 2022 off-season for the Pittsburgh Steelers, I will be going through each position group to determine where that group was at in 2021, and where they currently sit going into 2022.
As it stands today, the Steelers are expected to have ~$42.7 million in cap space based on a projected $208.2 million 2022 NFL salary cap figure. That leaves them with the most cap room heading into an off-season in over a decade, and is the 9th most in the NFL.
I took a look at the offensive line, quarterbacks, and wide receivers already (links to the other position groups will be at the bottom of each article), so now it is a time to look at the one position group that might be getting overlooked heading into the off-season, and that is the wide receivers.
Starter: Najee Harris, Derek Watt
Key Reserves: Benny Snell
Depth: Anthony McFarland, Kalen Ballage
This review is pretty simple, Najee Harris is really the main name to talk about since he played 84% of snaps in his rookie season. Overall he had a great year after being selected 24th overall, and was a true workhorse that was as advertised. He caught the ball with effectiveness, ran the ball as hard as anyone in the league, while also managing to stay healthy with his ridiculous workload. He did have some areas he needs to improve on heading into 2022 however.
While Harris ran tough, he occasionally looked to bounce runs and sometimes hesitated to hit holes that opened up in front of him. Now, I am not going to put 100% of the blame on him for this, as his offensive line didn’t give him a lot of room to run which could’ve easily contributed to this. Nevertheless it is still an area he needs to improve upon.
The rest of this room doesn’t need a lot of discussion. Benny Snell operated as the main backup most of the year and didn’t show anything much different than his previous seasons. Kalen Ballage barely saw the field, and Anthony McFarland struggled with his health throughout the season while also becoming a heathy scratch for much of it.
The only other name I’ll mention is Derek Watt as he was the starting fullback for the team. For all of you who are disappointed I didn’t dedicate one of these articles to the fullback position, hopefully you’re equally disappointed with how much the Steelers dedicated play time, or lack of play time I should say, to the position as well. Watt was a fine FB when he was on the field, but that wasn’t very often. He was a very solid special teams player however.
Under Contract: Najee Harris, Benny Snell, Anthony McFarland, Derek Watt
Futures Contracts: Trey Edmunds
Free Agents: Kalen Ballage
Well the good thing is the Steelers have a full roster of bodies for the running back position heading into the off-season already. With the number of other holes and players they have to sign or re-sign, this is a good thing. However, don’t be surprised if there is some talent added to this room at some point.
I am not going to talk a whole lot about Harris here because I think most people know what to expect going into next year. He is going to continue to run hard to get yards after contact, he is going to continue to be a solid option out of the backfield, and he is going to continue to play a hell of a lot. Although hopefully next year he can get some better blocking so he doesn’t take such a beating, and someone steps up to let him get some breathers occasionally.
Now, for the rest of the room, there is a lot of question marks. Many people were on the Snell train as he carried the Kentucky Wildcats‘ offense for the three years he was there. He hasn’t shown that same ability in the NFL yet, as he doesn’t seem to have the necessary burst to get away from defenders, or tackle-breaking ability to create yards for himself after contact. With the Steelers run blocking across the last two years, those are a must, but hopefully behind an offensive line that gives him more chances with some running room, Snell can become a decent backup capable of handling some carries throughout the game. He may never be a #1 guy, but he has the ability to pick up yards that are available to him as he does have solid vision and good decisiveness.
The biggest question mark is McFarland. Drafted in the 4th round in 2020, he was envisioned by the Steelers to be a potential big play threat as he was clocked at 4.44s in his 40-yard dash attempt. However, he has yet to show that across his two seasons. Injuries as well as lack of opportunity have definitely played into his inability to showcase his talents, but he hasn’t done much with his limited opportunities when they have appeared. He seems to have either minor issues with his vision or his decisiveness when reading his offensive line’s blocking in front of him, as he has often tried to bounce runs to the outside or been late getting to holes that do open up. That is expected for a lot of young backs, but this year will be the determining point if he is able to improve upon that and be a contributor to the team’s offense. I think he is given more opportunities early in the year to show what he can do, and honestly might be one of my surprise picks for the 2022 season if the team doesn’t add anyone in the off-season.
I’ll finish off my outlook with Watt. Most of Watt’s work is still going to come on special teams in 2022, but I do think he becomes a bigger part of the offense as well. The last few years of Ben Roethlisberger’s career, the team has operated a lot more out of shotgun and less from under center. This typically will result in less playing time from a FB due to formation, and that definitely has been the case with the Steelers. With Matt Canada likely switching up the team’s offense a bit in year two, it is likely the team goes under center more often and Watt gets on the field a decent amount more.
With Ballage being the team’s only free agent, I doubt the Steelers consider bringing him back since he had such little playing time throughout the year. However, I do expect them to add someone to this room in either free agency or the draft.
Who they add is going to be very up in the air, as they could even add multiple people if they aren’t happy with the depth behind Harris. If they aren’t comfortable with Snell as a primary backup, the team could easily add someone with every down ability to backup Harris in the case he goes down with injury or needs a breather. There is also a chance they aren’t happy with what they have seen from McFarland thus far and want to find another big play threat out of the backfield.
Or, there is always the option they do both of these things. After free agency and the draft take place, it will be rather clear how the team feels about their current players, and there are definitely some intriguing names they could add without having to use significant cap space or draft capital.
High Dollar: Chase Edmonds, Leonard Fournette
Non-High Dollar: Marlon Mack, Phillip Lindsay, Jalen Richard
Early Picks: Breece Hall (Iowa State), Kyren Williams (Notre Dame), Isaiah Spiller (Texas A&M)
Late Picks: Sincere McCormick (UTSA), Tyler Badie (Missouri), D’vonte Price (FIU)
There is no denying the Steelers have their bell cow for the next several seasons in Harris. But they definitely can’t have him playing 80%+ of the snaps again next season, as it is very unlikely he will be able to continue his level of physicality he plays with at that rate across several seasons. That is where the other guys on the roster and potential outside guys come in.
I strongly believe the Steelers add a name worth noting to this room either in free agency or the draft. Running backs haven’t been costing a significant amount in free agency in recent years, so adding someone like Chase Edmonds who can handle a decent workload while also being a change of pace from Harris would do their offense a lot of good in my opinion. If not, there are a lot of solid options that can help carry the load for cheaper. Regardless, Harris is going to be the main guy, the Steelers just need to make sure he doesn’t get run into the ground.
Let us know below what you think of the Steelers running back room as we head into the 2022 off-season!
#SteelerNation
Offensive Line Review
Quarterbacks Review
Wide Receivers Review
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
As it stands today, the Steelers are expected to have ~$42.7 million in cap space based on a projected $208.2 million 2022 NFL salary cap figure. That leaves them with the most cap room heading into an off-season in over a decade, and is the 9th most in the NFL.
I took a look at the offensive line, quarterbacks, and wide receivers already (links to the other position groups will be at the bottom of each article), so now it is a time to look at the one position group that might be getting overlooked heading into the off-season, and that is the wide receivers.
Steelers 2021 Running Backs
Starter: Najee Harris, Derek Watt
Key Reserves: Benny Snell
Depth: Anthony McFarland, Kalen Ballage
2021 Review
This review is pretty simple, Najee Harris is really the main name to talk about since he played 84% of snaps in his rookie season. Overall he had a great year after being selected 24th overall, and was a true workhorse that was as advertised. He caught the ball with effectiveness, ran the ball as hard as anyone in the league, while also managing to stay healthy with his ridiculous workload. He did have some areas he needs to improve on heading into 2022 however.
While Harris ran tough, he occasionally looked to bounce runs and sometimes hesitated to hit holes that opened up in front of him. Now, I am not going to put 100% of the blame on him for this, as his offensive line didn’t give him a lot of room to run which could’ve easily contributed to this. Nevertheless it is still an area he needs to improve upon.
The rest of this room doesn’t need a lot of discussion. Benny Snell operated as the main backup most of the year and didn’t show anything much different than his previous seasons. Kalen Ballage barely saw the field, and Anthony McFarland struggled with his health throughout the season while also becoming a heathy scratch for much of it.
The only other name I’ll mention is Derek Watt as he was the starting fullback for the team. For all of you who are disappointed I didn’t dedicate one of these articles to the fullback position, hopefully you’re equally disappointed with how much the Steelers dedicated play time, or lack of play time I should say, to the position as well. Watt was a fine FB when he was on the field, but that wasn’t very often. He was a very solid special teams player however.
2022 Outlook
Under Contract: Najee Harris, Benny Snell, Anthony McFarland, Derek Watt
Futures Contracts: Trey Edmunds
Free Agents: Kalen Ballage
Well the good thing is the Steelers have a full roster of bodies for the running back position heading into the off-season already. With the number of other holes and players they have to sign or re-sign, this is a good thing. However, don’t be surprised if there is some talent added to this room at some point.
I am not going to talk a whole lot about Harris here because I think most people know what to expect going into next year. He is going to continue to run hard to get yards after contact, he is going to continue to be a solid option out of the backfield, and he is going to continue to play a hell of a lot. Although hopefully next year he can get some better blocking so he doesn’t take such a beating, and someone steps up to let him get some breathers occasionally.
Now, for the rest of the room, there is a lot of question marks. Many people were on the Snell train as he carried the Kentucky Wildcats‘ offense for the three years he was there. He hasn’t shown that same ability in the NFL yet, as he doesn’t seem to have the necessary burst to get away from defenders, or tackle-breaking ability to create yards for himself after contact. With the Steelers run blocking across the last two years, those are a must, but hopefully behind an offensive line that gives him more chances with some running room, Snell can become a decent backup capable of handling some carries throughout the game. He may never be a #1 guy, but he has the ability to pick up yards that are available to him as he does have solid vision and good decisiveness.
The biggest question mark is McFarland. Drafted in the 4th round in 2020, he was envisioned by the Steelers to be a potential big play threat as he was clocked at 4.44s in his 40-yard dash attempt. However, he has yet to show that across his two seasons. Injuries as well as lack of opportunity have definitely played into his inability to showcase his talents, but he hasn’t done much with his limited opportunities when they have appeared. He seems to have either minor issues with his vision or his decisiveness when reading his offensive line’s blocking in front of him, as he has often tried to bounce runs to the outside or been late getting to holes that do open up. That is expected for a lot of young backs, but this year will be the determining point if he is able to improve upon that and be a contributor to the team’s offense. I think he is given more opportunities early in the year to show what he can do, and honestly might be one of my surprise picks for the 2022 season if the team doesn’t add anyone in the off-season.
I’ll finish off my outlook with Watt. Most of Watt’s work is still going to come on special teams in 2022, but I do think he becomes a bigger part of the offense as well. The last few years of Ben Roethlisberger’s career, the team has operated a lot more out of shotgun and less from under center. This typically will result in less playing time from a FB due to formation, and that definitely has been the case with the Steelers. With Matt Canada likely switching up the team’s offense a bit in year two, it is likely the team goes under center more often and Watt gets on the field a decent amount more.
NFL Draft and Free Agency
With Ballage being the team’s only free agent, I doubt the Steelers consider bringing him back since he had such little playing time throughout the year. However, I do expect them to add someone to this room in either free agency or the draft.
Who they add is going to be very up in the air, as they could even add multiple people if they aren’t happy with the depth behind Harris. If they aren’t comfortable with Snell as a primary backup, the team could easily add someone with every down ability to backup Harris in the case he goes down with injury or needs a breather. There is also a chance they aren’t happy with what they have seen from McFarland thus far and want to find another big play threat out of the backfield.
Or, there is always the option they do both of these things. After free agency and the draft take place, it will be rather clear how the team feels about their current players, and there are definitely some intriguing names they could add without having to use significant cap space or draft capital.
Potential Free Agent Targets
High Dollar: Chase Edmonds, Leonard Fournette
Non-High Dollar: Marlon Mack, Phillip Lindsay, Jalen Richard
Potential Draft Targets
Early Picks: Breece Hall (Iowa State), Kyren Williams (Notre Dame), Isaiah Spiller (Texas A&M)
Late Picks: Sincere McCormick (UTSA), Tyler Badie (Missouri), D’vonte Price (FIU)
Final Thoughts
There is no denying the Steelers have their bell cow for the next several seasons in Harris. But they definitely can’t have him playing 80%+ of the snaps again next season, as it is very unlikely he will be able to continue his level of physicality he plays with at that rate across several seasons. That is where the other guys on the roster and potential outside guys come in.
I strongly believe the Steelers add a name worth noting to this room either in free agency or the draft. Running backs haven’t been costing a significant amount in free agency in recent years, so adding someone like Chase Edmonds who can handle a decent workload while also being a change of pace from Harris would do their offense a lot of good in my opinion. If not, there are a lot of solid options that can help carry the load for cheaper. Regardless, Harris is going to be the main guy, the Steelers just need to make sure he doesn’t get run into the ground.
Let us know below what you think of the Steelers running back room as we head into the 2022 off-season!
#SteelerNation
Offensive Line Review
Quarterbacks Review
Wide Receivers Review
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
