Pittsburgh Steelers: Playoff Loss Potentially Has Major Implications for Future

As the whole world watches Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos' ascension to the divisional round of the NFL playoffs to face the New England Patriots, it is time for the Pittsburgh Steelers to pick up the pieces of a once dominant defense.

What makes things worse for Mike Tomlin's aspirations to build yet another Super Bowl-caliber team is that the offense is suffering a similar fate with some familiar faces falling away for possibly the last time.

The Steelers finished this season with a 12-4 record but lost against the Denver Broncos in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs. For a veteran group such as the Steelers, each season is either Super Bowl victory or failure.

It's not all doom and gloom for the Steelers, as youngsters such as Cam Heyward and Steve McLendon showed promise last night, while Emmanuel Sanders finally looked healthy after a string of injuries that dated back to last year's Super Bowl loss in Dallas.

Unfortunately, however, for every positive there are multiple negatives.

After defensive end Aaron Smith's career was all but ended earlier this year, Casey Hampton and Brett Keisel could potentially have played the last snaps of their respective careers.

Hampton tore an ACL against Denver, something that is very difficult to return from considering his weight, age and the requirements of the nose tackle position. Keisel has what is being described as a severe groin injury.

Keisel's outlook would initially appear more promising, but he is still a 33-year-old defensive end trying to recover from a major injury. Hampton's prognosis is just as seemingly bleak.

Smith, Keisel and Hampton have been a dominant trio for the past decade despite most outside of Pittsburgh overlooking the group of defensive linemen. In Dick LeBeau's scheme, a huge amount is asked of the front three without much recognition.

The Steelers have already started reinforcing this group, but replacing three of their most consistent and uniquely skilled players will not be easy. Evander Hood may not be Aaron Smith, but he has impressed early in his career as a starter. Cameron Heyward showed flashes in his first real time on the field last night but remains unproven as a rookie.

Many draft experts have the Steelers bringing in nose tackle Dontari Poe in the first round of the NFL draft to take over Hampton's role. Poe may not be needed considering the impressive play of Steve McLendon this year, as well as the team's needs elsewhere.

Defensively, the Steelers' biggest problems heading into next year lie in two places where there hasn't been issues for years. James Farrior's level of play has been in decline over the past few seasons. He should arguably have been replaced before this past season.

Farrior's style of play doesn't fit the pass-happy NFL anymore. He was repeatedly caught in coverage over the past two seasons at vital moments. That eventually forced LeBeau to use him as an obvious blitzer in passing situations. An obvious blitzer, unless a special talent, is a worthless blitzer.

Farrior's place on the field has begun to handcuff the team's defensive play-caller.

Surprisingly, defensive play-calling has become an issue. There is no doubt that Dick LeBeau has been one of the best coordinators in the NFL over the past decade and more. However, LeBeau's game plans have been suspect this season, undoubtedly costing the team in pivotal moments.

LeBeau may have led the first-ranked defense in the league in most major categories, but the lack of turnovers produced by the unit, last in the league, reflects how passive the group was this year. The Steelers forced two fumbles last night and recovered one. However, both of those fumbles were created by Ryan Mundy, a backup that didn't start the regular season and likely won't start next year.

For the most part, the secondary is in good shape.

Troy Polamalu struggled in coverage this year and seemingly missed more tackles than he had in the previous three seasons combined, but he is still an elite talent. Ryan Clark had a fine year, leading the team in tackles during the regular season and improving his coverage from the previous year.

Ike Taylor's playoff performance will erase the memory of his All-Pro level of play during the regular season for most fans, but his talent still remains. With William Gay's contract expiring, Keenan Lewis should be an improvement stepping into a starting role. Add promising rookies Cortez Allen and Curtis Brown to the mix and the future is bright for the NFL's top-ranked pass defense.

However, the front seven remains the crutch of the Steelers' defense.

The defensive line may have talent, but it is still going to be inexperienced unless Hampton and Keisel can return to 100 percent. James Harrison's indiscipline eventually caught up to him in the playoffs. Harrison may not have drawn flags, but his indiscipline in scheme responsibility allowed the Broncos' read option game to excel.

Harrison will also be 34 entering next season.

Jason Worilds could step into a starting role as early as next season, which is a lot to ask of such an experienced, albeit talented, player. With Larry Foote and Farrior potentially leaving the team—neither player is great in coverage, which hinders the team—Stevenson Sylvester could be called upon to partner Lawrence Timmons in the middle.

Sylvester is freakishly athletic but has only played on special teams so far in his career.

Many will see this as an overreaction to the Steelers' playoff loss, but that loss simply highlighted underlying flaws that have been evident all season.

While the defense's flaws were underlying, the offensive problems the Steelers exhibited yesterday were obvious throughout the year.

The Steelers finished the game with only one offensive lineman that would start on any other offensive line in the NFL—rookie right tackle Marcus Gilbert. Ramon Foster, Doug Legursky, Trai Essex and Jonathan Scott are all backup-quality linemen.

Losing your best two linemen to injury doesn't help, but this is another issue. Max Starks' torn ACL, coupled with Maurkice Pouncey's repeated injury issues, are major worries for the team.

Starks is a reliable left tackle who would have been re-signed; that is unlikely to happen now. Pouncey has been in and out of the lineup throughout his two-year career. What is more worrying about Pouncey is his awful play this year.

Pouncey really regressed in his second season, and it was notable that there was little drop-off between he and Legursky, outside of a few errant snaps. He wasn't an impact blocker or leader for the group as he was when he was a rookie. His All-Pro and Pro Bowl voting was baffling.

With Gilbert entrenched on the right side, possibly moving to the left, the right tackle position is the only safe slot for the Steelers.

Willie Colon could return to play guard or right tackle, moving Gilbert to the left, but he has also missed the past two seasons through injury. The Steelers do not have one quality guard capable of being a reliable starter in the NFL.

Rashard Mendenhall's name can also be added to the Steelers' lengthy injury list, as he has also torn his ACL. With Mendenhall's running style (aggressive out of cuts) and heavy build, the pressure on his knees post-rehab could severely reduce his effectiveness in the future.

Isaac Redman proved last night that he is a capable runner, but he lacks the explosion or dynamism of Mendenhall.

Offensively, the Steelers' offense was proven to be totally reliant on Ben Roethlisberger's mobility. Bruce Arians essentially had no game plan without Roethlisberger's scrambling and extending of plays in Denver.

Arians has been a target for most Steelers' fans because of his predictable play-calling and overly complicated play designs. Despite his reputation nationally, Arians is hurting the Steelers' offense and their talented receivers.

The Steelers could be at the stage where they finally fall off into a transition period. There is a lot of work to do if this team is to return to the Super Bowl in the near future. If this seems pessimistic, consider the teams that are currently on their way to the Super Bowl.

In Green Bay, the Packers' offense is light years ahead of the Steelers, while their defense is young and opportunistic. The New Orleans Saints' offense is seemingly unstoppable, being more talented and deeper than any other. Offensively, the Saints are set while defensively, there are only a few pieces that will need to be replaced in the coming years.

The San Francisco 49ers can only get more explosive with a better quarterback, while the Baltimore Ravens won the division this year and didn't miss a beat without Ray Lewis. The Cincinnati Bengals and Houston Texans will only get better, as they are young teams with the avenues to build for the future.

Oh yeah...the New England Patriots are also still around with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.

The Steelers have six Super Bowls. Being a playoff team is not what Mike Tomlin strives for. All he has ever focused on is winning Super Bowls. There is no doubt that this team is a distance away from winning a Super Bowl.

There is a lot of work to do, but the right man is at the helm to do it with Kevin Colbert in charge.

Six Super Bowls tell you that this franchise won't be settling for a first round playoff exit and calling it a successful season.

Tweeting @Cianaf