A Closer Look at Pittsburgh Steelers' Biggest Offseason Priorities

Even though there are still two weeks left in the NFL's regular season, it is never too soon to look ahead to the offseason.

For the Pittsburgh Steelers, that means finding a way to get the best 53 players they can under contract with very little wiggle room. With players like quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and wide receiver Antonio Brown eating up a huge chunk of the salary cap, it takes due diligence to put pieces in place around them.

Unfortunately, the Steelers are going to find themselves in something of a quandary when free agency hits. There are going to be upward of 10 players with starting experience in 2014 who will be without contracts. There are spots where this team has been truly elite, but at the same time, there are others that you just want to put a match to the pile and start over.

So, to be smart, Pittsburgh has to focus on the best players that can be retained with reasonable contracts. Here are the three areas the Steelers need to focus on as the top priorities this offseason.

Re-Signing Arthur Moats

Pittsburgh is going to have quite a list of free-agent outside linebackers at the end of this season. James Harrison, Jason Worilds and Arthur Moats are all pass-rushing outside linebackers who are going to be looking for new contracts this spring. Between the three of them, that’s 25 starts at outside linebacker this season that could be lost.

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There’s no way the Steelers could—or should—retain all three linebackers. Pittsburgh has to ride with linebacker Jarvis Jones on one side until he proves he can rush the quarterback from the strong side. Pittsburgh does have an interesting player on the practice squad in Howard Jones, but at this point he is almost a complete unknown.

This necessitates two things. First, that the Steelers spend a top draft pick on a pass-rushing outside linebacker to pair up with Jones for the long-term. Second, and perhaps more important, is Pittsburgh finds a way to sign Moats to a fiscally-responsible contract as a bridge to the future.

Moats is far from a textbook 3-4 outside linebacker, but he has been a steady contributor who plays with great energy. And at only 26 years old, he is young enough that there is plenty of room to grow.

Assuming that the Steelers are going to let some other team overpay for Worilds and Harrison is going to retire yet again, keeping Moats makes perfect sense.

Those Restricted Free Agents

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The Steelers have an interesting list of restricted free agents this offseason. Much like the linebackers, this trio of players has had a significant role in the success of this team. Here’s the rundown of who we are talking about.

• Robert Golden, S
• Will Johnson, FB
• Antwon Blake, CB

If you follow the belief that you can’t just fire everybody, then keeping these three players makes great financial sense as well as being smart football moves.

Golden is a great special teams contributor and does have some value as a reserve safety. This point is made more significant when you consider that safety Will Allen is an unrestricted free agent. There could be a real spot for Golden in the rotation.

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Blake only has one start in 2014, but he has been the nickel/dime cornerback in every game this season. Keeping Blake makes more sense when you consider that cornerback Ike Taylor isn’t likely to get a new contract and the future is completely uncertain for cornerback Cortez Allen. While Blake isn’t great, he is a good player to bridge the gap in this transition to a retooled secondary.

There just aren’t enough good things to say about how fullback Will Johnson has played. No, he’s not going to show up often in the box score, but his value as a blocker is without question. For all the praise lauded onto running back Le’Veon Bell, his success is due in no small part to the lead blocks that Johnson puts down.

Don’t Forget to Shop Around

Even though money is going to be tight and not every free-agent signing in recent years has reaped great rewards, Pittsburgh cannot overlook potential free-agent signings from other teams.

The Steelers made steps to get younger in 2014, and the moves worked. And you can best believe the 2015 draft class is going to be called on to play early and often as well. That means this team will be even younger.

With that, it is important that if Pittsburgh can bring in a solid veteran contributor or two (like Moats in 2014) and avoid the dented cans (safety Mike Mitchell comes to mind), their presence can only aid in the development of all these young players.

A well-placed veteran cornerback or offensive tackle addition late in the offseason when prices are low could make all the difference in the world.

Free-agent information courtesy of Spotrac.com.