Position Check: Assessing Pittsburgh Steelers' Strengths and Weaknesses

The goal of every NFL team is to boast more strengths than weaknesses, and for every position to be a greater asset rather than a liability. It's a difficult, often impossible task, but teams continuously strive for improvement and have numerous opportunities to do so, via both free agency and the draft.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have done a good job of having more positions of strength than weakness in recent years, having eclipsed 10 wins over their past three seasons. But where do things stand now? Where do the Steelers need to improve over the next few months and where can they feel most confident?

Let's take a look at the Steelers, position-by-position, to see where they currently excel and where they fall short.

Quarterback

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Strength or Weakness: Strength (with a caveat)

The Steelers' starting quarterback has been Ben Roethlisberger since 2004, and though the 35-year-old briefly questioned his commitment for the 2017 season, there's no reason to truly believe he will not serve as the team's QB1 for the 14th season.

When Roethlisberger is good, he's very good—he's routinely on the verge of reaching or eclipsing 30 touchdowns thrown in a season, and he's been picked off a total of 38 times over the last three years. But there is a concern: the big hits he takes and the injuries that have routinely resulted from them.

Roethlisberger has appeared in all 16 games in a season just three times over his career, most recently in 2014. And there's no question that whenever a backup is on field (in this case, Landry Jones), the overall quality of Pittsburgh's otherwise explosive offense takes a dip.

With a healthy Roethlisberger, there's no doubt that the Steelers' quarterback position is a strength; when he's out with an injury, it's a weakness. And this caveat needs to be mentioned here where it may not for other teams, simply because Roethlisberger has missed more time than most, regardless of the length of his career.

Wide Receiver

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Strength or Weakness: Strength

Atop the Steelers' wide receiver depth chart sits Antonio Brown who, if not the best at his position in the NFL is at least among them.

For four straight years, Brown has had over 1,000 yards receiving (as well as in five of his seven career seasons). In the last three, he's had at least 10 receiving touchdowns. He's been to the Pro Bowl five times, was named a First-Team All-Pro three times and signed a four-year, $68 million contract extension earlier in 2017.

Behind him on the depth chart are a hodgepodge of other receiving options who may not be household names but who can also help the Steelers win games.

Eli Rogers emerged a year ago as the team's primary slot weapon. When not under suspension, Martavis Bryant is a perennial touchdown threat. Sammie Coates is still getting used to the rigors of the NFL, but a year in good health will help his development significantly. And backups like Darrius Heyward-Bey and Justin Hunter are field-stretchers in their own rights.

Ben Roethlisberger has numerous and varied receivers giving him on-field help, and this is why the position is one of strength; it's not simply the ability to boast Brown as their top guy that tips the scales.

Running Back

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Strength or Weakness: Both

Just as the Steelers boast one of the league's top receivers in Brown, so too do they have one of the NFL's best running backs in Le'Veon Bell. A patient runner with unimpeachable vision, Bell also catches passes—earning him and his team another 616 yards in 2016, paired with his 1,268 rushing yards and seven rushing scores.

But the depth chart behind Bell is still a question mark. The past two years, his primary backup has been DeAngelo Williams, but Williams remains in the free agency pool and may not get a third season in Pittsburgh. The other two backs are Fitzgerald Toussaint and Knile Davis, two speedsters who nevertheless don't have the skill set to take over for Bell should he suffer an injury, for example.

It's quite possible that Bell's backup will be found via this year's draft, especially given the level of both depth and talent among the rookie running back class. But until possible becomes probable—or until Williams is offered a new contract—then Pittsburgh's primary strength at running back rests solely in Bell, making it both a boon and a question mark.

Tight End

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Strength or Weakness: Weakness

Two years ago, the Steelers drafted tight end Jesse James in the fifth round to eventually take over for longtime starter Heath Miller. James has a body type that is very similar to Miller's and a well-rounded skill set; still, he has yet to emerge as the receiving (and red-zone) threat that Miller once was. In response, the Steelers picked up free agent Ladarius Green a year ago.

But Green had issues of his own, including an ankle injury that kept him off the field early in 2017 and a concussion that cost him the last few games. As such, Pittsburgh's tight ends combined for only 57 catches for 642 yards and four scores in 2016.

This year, the Steelers would be wise to add another tight end in the draft. They still have Green and James, as well as blocker David Johnson, but a true pass-catching threat at the position is something the Steelers are lacking.

Should they find him—and odds are good, just given the impressive amount of talent at tight end, something that has been rare in recent years—then the position can flip quickly from one of weakness to one of strength.

Offensive Line

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Strength or Weakness: Strength

A number of years during the Ben Roethlisberger era featured a Pittsburgh offensive line that was less-than-impressive. Injuries and poor play both have marred the line. But that was not the case in 2016, and with no change to the Steelers' starters at guard, center or tackle, it should stay that way through 2017.

Roethlisberger was sacked only 17 times in 2016 (and Pittsburgh's quarterbacks a total of just 21 times), while the run game netted the team 1,760 yards and 13 scores, and the offensive line had a major hand in both. Football Outsiders ranked Pittsburgh's line as the league's second-best in run blocking and fourth-best in pass protection. 

Marcus Gilbert and Alejandro Villanueva will reprise their roles as right and left tackles this year, Maurkice Pouncey will remain at center and David DeCastro and Ramon Foster will serve as right and left guards.

As long as this group of five remain healthy (only Foster and Gilbert missed time last year, a combined five games), then the Steelers should again have one of the league's top offensive lines.

Defensive Line

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Strength or Weakness: Strength

The Steelers' defensive line wasn't as good as its offensive counterpart a year ago, ranking 14th against the run and 19th against the pass per Football Outsiders. But the Steelers did that without the services of top defensive end Cameron Heyward, who was limited to seven games after suffering a pectoral injury.

A healthy Heyward once again paired up with fellow end Stephon Tuitt should produce better defensive results in 2017. Meanwhile, the Steelers will mix things up at defensive tackle, with players such as Javon Hargrave, Daniel McCullers and perhaps a rookie all seeing time depending on the scheme and situation.

This isn't the Steelers' flashiest position group, and it's not one of the best in the league. It is, however, good enough for it to be considered a strength heading into the 2017 season, and it could only get better pending the results of this month's draft.

Linebacker

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Strength or Weakness: Strength

For at least one more season, the Steelers should count their linebacking corps as a bona fide strength. James Harrison and Arthur Moats will have another year splitting time on the outside alongside third-year player Bud Dupree.

Ryan Shazier will be a starter at inside linebacker, and Vince Williams—a former backup with starter's skills whom they greatly trust—is the man pegged to take over for Lawrence Timmons, who departed in free agency.

Though the Steelers could use more depth as well as players capable of stepping in and starting in at least a year from now, these players can easily be had in the draft. This is particularly true for edge rushers, who are plentiful and talented. 

The Steelers were in the top half of the league when defending the run in 2016 and had 38 sacks as a defense, and the linebackers were the motivating factor in both areas. This should again be the case in 2017.

Cornerback

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Strength or Weakness: Both

The Steelers' pass defense (and its secondary in particular) gave up 3,882 yards in 2016 and combined for only 13 interceptions. But it also gave up 20 passing touchdowns, ranking it in the top five, leading the Steelers defense to a top-10 mark in points allowed. For these reasons, the cornerback position is both a strength and a weakness.

The Steelers found a starting cornerback quickly in the 2016 draft, selecting Artie Burns in the first round. Burns went on to be the Steelers' fifth-leading tackler as a rookie, tied for the most interceptions with three and had the second-most passes defensed, at 13. He will remain No. 1 on the depth chart this year, with Ross Cockrell working potentially on the outside but likely mostly in the slot.

There are questions that need answered, though, such as what comes next for William Gay, who was demoted late in the 2016 season, especially with the signing of free agent Coty Sensabaugh and whether 2015 Round 2 draft pick Senquez Golson will finally see the field this year after losing his first two seasons to injuries. So much can change, especially should the Steelers target a cornerback early in the draft.

Though Pittsburgh boasts some talent at cornerback, the depth chart is anything but settled at this time. How it shakes out will best determine if the position is trending upward from 2016 or is going to take a step back.

Safety

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Strength or Weakness: Weakness

That the Steelers' safety position is one of weakness at this time is not entirely unrelated to why the cornerback position had its struggles in 2016. But it also has its own areas of concern that make it a liability, namely a lack of depth.

Mike Mitchell and Sean Davis should again be the Steelers' starters this year (with Davis having taken over the job from Robert Golden halfway through 2016). But behind Mitchell, Davis and Golden, Pittsburgh only has one additional safety on its current roster. Further, Mitchell and even Golden could be off the team in a year's time, which means the Steelers need to prioritize boosting their safety depth as well as try to snag a future starter in the process.

No Steelers safety ranked higher than 31st last year based on Pro Football Focus' player grades. And though Mitchell and Davis were two of the Steelers' top-four tacklers, the pair only had a combined two interceptions, 1.5 sacks and 14 passes defensed.

Safeties increasingly have to do it all on the football field, from defending the run to rushing the passer to working in coverage against both receivers and tight ends. Pittsburgh's crop of safeties need to be better, as a group, before this is a position of strength for the team.

Special Teams

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Strength or Weakness: Strength

The Steelers did not have the NFL's most accurate field-goal kicking game in 2016 (and in fact went for a two-point conversion more than any other team in the league). They didn't outpunt every opponent. And none of their kick or punt returns yielded touchdowns. But, still, Pittsburgh's special-teams unit, taken as a whole, had a strong year, and 2017 is shaping up to be even better.

The Steelers still have kicker Chris Boswell in the fold. Boswell was 21-of-25 in his field goal attempts last year and a perfect 36-of-36 in extra points. Though he did suffer a late-season abdominal injury, his roster spot won't be in jeopardy this year. Jordan Berry should again serve as the team's punter and Greg Warren remains the long snapper.

What should be interesting, though, is which player (or group of players) will be Pittsburgh's punt and kick returners. Last season, Antonio Brown handled the majority of the former (15 returns for 140 yards), with an assist from Eli Rogers (seven returns for 45 yards). Meanwhile, a crew of four returned kicks—Fitzgerald Toussaint, Sammie Coates, Cobi Hamilton and Justin Gilbert.

But Gilbert is no longer with the Steelers, Hamilton could already be on the roster bubble and Toussaint has immediate pressure breathing down his neck thanks to the signing of Knile Davis. Davis could handle both kick and punt returns this year, or Rogers could take Brown's punt return role.

This is something to keep an eye on as the offseason unfolds; it is also a sign that the Steelers have myriad options in the return game, which in turn makes it a strength.