What Does Ben Tate Offer the Steelers Against Baltimore on Saturday?
On the heels of the Pittsburgh Steelers' leading rusher Le'Veon Bell suffering a hyperextended right knee in the team's Week 17 defeat of the Cincinnati Bengals, the team has signed veteran free agent Ben Tate.
It's a sign that Bell won't be ready for Saturday night's game against the Baltimore Ravens. Head coach Mike Tomlin (via WPXI's Bill Phillips) said on Tuesday that even if Bell is medically cleared to play, it "doesn't mean he will play," adding that it would be a "complex" decision.
Tate adds four years of on-field experience to a backfield that would otherwise be comprised solely of two rookies, Dri Archer and Josh Harris. However, like Archer and Harris, he will not be enough to completely replace everything that Bell offers as an all-around running back.
While Tate has four years of experience, the Steelers will be his third team in 2014. He started the season with the Cleveland Browns before being released. The Minnesota Vikings then picked him up, but cut him seven days ago. He totaled just 371 yards and four touchdowns on his 119 rushes between both teams, catching nine passes on 12 targets for 60 yards and zero scores.
The Steelers do not need a running back who averages 3.1 yards per carry. However, they do need one with Tate's experience. The two rookies have just 19 carries and 56 rushing yards between them this season. Neither know the intricacies of pass protection, nor do they have the receiving duties of a running back mastered.
| 2014 | 119 | 371 | 3.1 | 4 | 12 | 9 | 60 | 0 | 431 |
| Career | 540 | 2,363 | 4.4 | 14 | 91 | 67 | 347 | 0 | 2,710 |
The pass-protection aspect, especially as it relates to Saturday's game against the Ravens, might be the biggest reason why the Steelers chose to add a veteran running back to their roster. Baltimore's defensive front, led by linebackers Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil, has combined for 49 sacks this season.
With Bell sidelined and the run game comprised of a new addition and two rookies (along with fullback Will Johnson, who is likely to get touches on Saturday), Ben Roethlisberger and the passing game will likely be the heart of Pittsburgh's offense.
He certainly was when the Steelers and Ravens last met in Week 9, with the Steelers defeating the Ravens, 43-23, Roethlisberger throwing six touchdowns and the run game netting only 55 yards.
While the Ravens' secondary should be especially susceptible to the Steelers' second-ranked passing offense, the front seven is a different story. The Ravens' defensive front will be gunning for Roethlisberger—and it also must be noted it sacked Roethlisberger three times in that Week 9 contest.
If Roethlisberger cannot be protected, then it doesn't matter that the Steelers boast the league's best wide receiver in Antonio Brown, or that Roethlisberger is having the best season of his career. Roethlisberger must be kept upright for the Steelers to move the ball with any effectiveness on Saturday.
Tate wasn't the most efficient pass-protecting running back this season. According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), he gave up one sack, one hit and four hurries on 34 pass-blocking snaps for the Browns.
However, he was used as a pass-protector on 25.6 of the pass-play snaps in Cleveland. He also pass-blocked on 24.6 percent of his passing snaps in 2013 with the Texans. Protection is, at least, not an unfamiliar task for Tate.
Neither is catching the football. Though he had just 12 targets this season, on his career Tate has been thrown to 91 times, with 67 receptions for 347 yards and no scores. He's not a yards-after-the-catch threat like Bell—or even Archer—but he does know how to do the job, which is more than can be said for the rookies.
Tate isn't destined to be a long-term member of the Steelers' roster—in fact, he may only make a one-game appearance, depending on Bell's health—but he fills an immediate need at running back.
There is simply too much at stake for the Steelers to depend on rookies to perform jobs that generally fall to veterans. Tate might not be the best runner, the best receiver or the best pass-blocker, but he's done all three things at a professional level well enough to make a career of it.
That is not the case for Archer or Harris. Tate's basic familiarity with the myriad roles of an NFL running back makes this signing a logical one.
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