What's Behind Markus Wheaton's Slow Start to 2014 Season?

You can’t swing a Terrible Towel without whacking into a player on the Pittsburgh Steelers who has underperformed so far this season. It seems that every week a new player lets this team down on some level.

After six games there are still spots on this roster that are in question. One area of particular concern is wide receiver. Pittsburgh is still searching for that player who can line up opposite Antonio Brown and be consistent.

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Second-year wide receiver Markus Wheaton was anointed the starter in the offseason, for better or worse. The hope was that even with Wheaton in the fold as the starter, some of the other players among this group would play well. Well enough perhaps to push him for reps.

Reason being, Wheaton came into the season with almost nothing on his resume. In 2013, Wheaton was only targeted 13 times, of which he caught six. Hardly a ringing endorsement for the Oregon State product. Nevertheless, the Steelers coaches tagged him the starter early and thus far has been unchallenged.

The opinions of Wheaton’s slow start vary greatly, but most concede that 24 receptions after six games is less than ideal for the second wide receiver in this offense.

Here’s a look at Wheaton’s game logs for the first six games of the season.

Week	Targets	Receptions	Yards
1	7	6	97
2	8	5	38
3	5	4	35
4	6	4	57
5	2	1	17
6	11	4	33

Are these numbers terrible? It depends on your definition, I suppose. Wheaton’s performance last Sunday against the Cleveland Browns really skews the data. But let’s be honest, that game left a bad taste in a lot of players’ mouths.

But what has contributed to Wheaton’s slow start? After going back over the games, there are really three factors that stand out.

Lack of separation

For a player touted so heavily for his speed and acceleration, Wheaton is really struggling to get off the line of scrimmage and get separation. Rarely is Wheaton making a catch that isn’t contested, and this is seriously limiting his ability to get yards after the catch.

Scheme limitations

One thing Pittsburgh loves to do is attack defenses short and parallel to the line of scrimmage. This type of attack forces wide receivers to be patient. It might take a catch or two before the Steelers can pop off a long play on a wide receiver screen, but when the opportunity presents itself, you must take advantage of that.

Up to this point, Wheaton hasn’t found a rhythm in this scheme that is giving him the number of targets you would expect from a player who was so productive in college.

Surrounding talent

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Make no mistake, when this season started, the hope had to be that Wheaton would be the second-most productive player on the team in terms of receptions. However, the emergence of running back Le’Veon Bell as a receiver has probably been the one player who has dinged Wheaton more than anyone else.

It is assumed that guys like Brown and tight end Heath Miller would get their catches, but Bell being second on the team in receptions has been a huge surprise. Nevertheless, this passing offense has been about balance. As of now, the Steelers have four players on pace to catch at least 72 balls, and that includes Wheaton.

Overall

Of all the things that this team needs to panic about, Wheaton’s play isn’t one of them. Yes, Wheaton missed seven of his 11 targets last Sunday. But those weren’t all on him. Errant throws and tremendous coverage also played a significant role.

"

Markus Wheaton successfully defenses the pass that was intended for him.

— Sam Farmer (@LATimesfarmer) October 12, 2014"

Everyone needs to cool their jets on Wheaton. With guys like Lance Moore and Martavis Bryant producing nothing, Pittsburgh is going to ride or die with Wheaton. The second-year wide receiver is getting his legs under him, but he plays with passion and intensity.

It is only a matter of time until Wheaton has a breakout game. Wheaton is as much a part of the mess that is this offensive scheme as anyone. Once he has the confidence of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, and the Steelers coaches get their stuff together, Wheaton will be just fine.