The Pittsburgh Steelers finished their 2019-2020 campaign with an 8-8 record, barely missing the playoffs in the AFC. Although they boasted one of the top defenses in the entire league, they finished 27th in total scoring on the offensive side. One big reason for this could be the fact that they played with three different quarterbacks, and had injuries to key players like James Connor and Juju Smith-Schuster, as both missed a considerable amount of time. Here is why the Steelers offense will prove itself as one of the best units this season.
As mentioned before, Ben Roethlisberger, Juju, and James Connor should all be healthy this season. With a great returning offensive line, 38 year-old gunslinger Roethlisberger will aim to remain healthy for what could be his final season in the NFL after 16 seasons. James Connor proved during the 2018 season that he’s capable of becoming a pro-bowl caliber player, and Smith-Schuster has a huge prove-it type year after his first one without Antonio Brown didn’t go too well. Take the hungry group of players paired with a great coach in Mike Tomlin, and that’s a large part of why Pittsburgh has an underrated offense heading into the 2020 season.
The second reason I think this offense can be great this season is because of the under-the-radar additions they made this offseason. They added one of the best red-zone tight ends in Eric Ebron, having proved himself during time with the Detriot Lions and Indianapolis Colts. The Steelers also drafted an intriguing playmaker in Chase Claypool out of Notre Dame, and Maryland running back Anthony McFarland. Claypool and Ebron can hopefully draw attention away from Smith-Schuster allowing him to have the breakout year everyone’s been calling for.
While it’ll be tough to compete with some of the division rivals like the Ravens and new-and-improved Bengals offense, the Steelers have all the keys to make it happen. A veteran QB ready for one last playoff run, an over-looked group of playmakers, a great supporting cast in the O-line, and top-three defense should push Pittsburgh’s offense over the edge in the 2020 season, proving they are contenders in the always improving AFC.
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