Improving the offensive line

It is no secret that Steelers quarterbacks have been sacked at an alarming rate over the past few seasons, and given a decline in rushing yardage this past season it is difficult to not look at the offensive line as an area of the team that requires some improvement.

But just where that improvement will come from remains to be seen. As our friend and confidant Big Dan the 'Burgh Man pointed out to us the other day the collection of offensive linemen the Steelers currently have ~ and many of whom are free agents this offseason ~ is a very young group. How young? Glad you asked. Here they are listed by their age as of the opening night of the 2009 season:

Player	Age as of September 10, 2009
Justin Hartwig	30
Kendall Simmons	30
Max Starks	27
Trai Essex	26
Chris Kemoeatu	26
Willie Colon	26
Darnell Stapleton	23

The question that no doubt has been asked within the Steelers' offices, and is also being asked by fans, is whether or not this group has the potential for improvement; and if so how much improvement? Looking at it a different way, is Pittsburgh better off perusing a list of top free agents or by investing more money into this group of players?

While signing a free agent may seem sexier, and discussing the draft is more fun, the answer to the offensive line issue in Pittsburgh may lie in sticking with, and continuing the development of, this cast of characters.

Steelers @ Jacksonville: The Good,the Bad Better, & the Ugly Best

Every once-in-awhile a performance comes along that does not fit into an existing framework. Such was Sunday's win by the Steelers. Though far from perfect, the team, considering the quality of the opponent, played its best game of this season. So as we head to the bye week in a celebratory mood, we give you the very first "good, better and best."

To begin, we alerted you to an Xbox 360 simulation that predicted a Steelers' loss; and while it had the final score wrong (thankfully) it was pretty close in some other respects. Here as look at some of the numbers:

	Simulation	Actual	Variance
Total Offense - PIT	409	415	6
Total Offense - JAC	276	213	-63
Rushing Yds - PIT	49	129	80
Rushing Yds - JAC	81	38	43
Pass Yds - PIT	360	286	-74
Pass Yds - JAC	195	175	-20
1st downs - PIT	22	28	6
1st downs - JAC	13	14	1
Points - PIT	17	26	9
Points - JAC	24	21	-3

Basking in the warm afterglow of a what was arguably the Steelers' best performance this season we offer up some of our impressions of just what happened.

The Good

1. Going up against a banged-up offensive line the Steelers defense showed no mercy ~ the Jaguars' dynamic duo of Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew was limited to 26 yards on 15 carries. To provide a bit of perspective less than a year ago ~ on December 16, 2007 ~ those same two combined for 247 yards on 37 carries. However the Steelers defense seemed to have learned their lesson because in the two most recent games between these two teams (i.e. 1/5/2008 in the Wild Card game and Sunday evening) they have rushed for only 92 yards on 50 carries.
   
   The Steelers' defense also seems to have figured out how to contain David Garrard ~ force him to throw the football. In the aforementioned Wild Card game Mr. Garrard had 58 yards on 5 carries (including the back-breaking 32-yard scramble on fourth down late in the game) while throwing for 140 yards on 9-for-21 passing ~ and still Jacksonville scored 31 points (thanks in part to Rashean Mathis). Sunday night Mr. Garrard was limited to 12 rushing yards, forced to throw the ball 32 times, and the Jaguars could only muster 21 points (thanks in part to Rashean Mathis). So in addition to the intense pressure that the Steelers front was able to generate throughout the game (despite the fact that James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley were held constantly) they were also able to contain the extremely mobile Mr. Garrard.
   
   While the outstanding performance of the defense was very much a team effort, particular attention must be given to Aaron Smith whose ability to trip up Mr. Garrard, limiting him to a two yard gain (despite a great deal of open ground in front of him), on 1st-and-10 with less than a minute to play, set up the next play on which James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley converged on the Jaguars' quarterback in the backfield, stripped the football away, and forced Jacksonville to use their final timeout. To top-off an outstanding evening it was Mr. Smith who swatted away Mr. Garrard's pass on 4th-and-14, thereby ending the Jaguars' comeback attempt.


2. Mewelde Moore is the best Steelers free agent signing since Jeff Hartings ~ at least this week. His ninety-nine yards rushing (46 in the first half, 53 in the second) was the difference maker in this game. He showed tremendous field vision, a great first step, and far exceeded our expectations. We don't know if he could pull it off a second time (though with Cincinnati coming up following the bye week we would like to see him try), but once was certainly great.

The Better

1. Battered and beleaguered, the offensive line ~ even after the loss of Marvel Smith ~ was better than anyone could have expected. We watched the right side of the offensive line (i.e. Darnell Stapleton and Willie Colon) very closely and were impressed by its consistently good play. In fact, it was our impression that the majority of the pressure that Ben Roethlisberger felt came almost exclusively from the left side of the line. Yes Mr. Roethlisberger was banged around, especially in the second half, but most of that pressure was the result of excellent coverage by the Jacksonville secondary not poor blocking. The three replacement linemen ~ Colon, Essex, and Stapleton ~ performed capably, and this group had its best performance in weeks.


2. Nobody deserves the bye week more than Ben Roethlisberger, and his performance Sunday night is one that we will remember for some time. Thanks to a good job by the offensive line Mr. Roethlisberger had time 'o plenty to throw (as witnessed by the pump fake on Nate Washington's double-move, touchdown reception), and his ability to manage the no-huddle offense (i.e. the improvement in play that occurs when the Steelers' offense employs the no-huddle) has been impressive. While our love of the running game means that we would like to see fewer passes (the 41 attempts in Sunday's game was his highest number of attempts in a game), there's also little doubt that as one of the league's elite quarterbacks Mr. Roethlisberger is more than capable of carrying the load.


3. We hammered Bruce Arians last week, but this week we come to praise him for a pitch-perfect game plan. Anticipating the blitz that came early in the game, Mr. Arians looked to quick passes and an effective running game. Additionally, allowing Ben Roethlisberger to go no-huddle early wore down the Jacksonville defense. There's no doubt that the Steelers offensive coordinator still struggles in responding to the changing tactics of the opposition (i.e. when Jacksonville largely discontinued the blitz in the second half the Steelers' offense began to struggle ~ after 300 total yards in the first half they 115 yards in the second), but his original game plan was a winner.

The Best

1. His team more ravaged by injury than any other Steelers team we can remember, Mike Tomlin refused not only use that as an excuse for poor performance, but refused to believe that it was even a factor to be considered. He may not have convinced us before the game but he convinced his players, and all of the backups . . . and backups of backups (e.g. Scott Paxson and Darnell Stapleton) performed well. The Sunday night performance simply would not have been possible if not for the mental and emotional strength of Mr. Tomlin.

So Many Decisions, So Little Time

This coming Sunday the Steelers begin their shortest training camp e-v-e-r. Twenty-two calendar days, and eighteen days of actual practice (with a couple of games thrown in to breakup the monotony) will be utilized to decide just who the best players are and they will best be utilized. From our perspective here are the pressing issues, presented in no particular order (except for the first one) facing Mike Tomlin and his staff:

• The Ghost of Alan Faneca: The offensive line is mess. At tackle, is Marvel Smith capable of playing like a man playing for a big, free agent contract or have the previous eight seasons revealed all that he is capable of doing? The transition player contract that Mr. Smith signed ($6,850,000) makes it tough to put him on the bench, but is Trai Essex ready to step up in his fourth seasons; and what of Jeremy Parquet? Of course all eyes will be at left guard where Chris Kemoeatu is being asked to replace a perennial All-Pro ~ no big deal, right?


• Which Larry?: Larry Foote has been terrific at right, inside linebacker ~ a solid run-stuffer. However, despite the fact that he is currently listed at right outside linebacker on the Steelers' roster, it is expected that Lawrence Timmons is expected to be given the opportunity to unseat the veteran. Very rarely is the second season for a first round draft pick described as "make-or-break," but the team is anxious to upgrade the speed of its defense, and it is hoped that Mr. Timmons will be a big part of that.


• They're back, but are they ready?: The Steelers suffered some significant injuries on both sides of the football ~ Aaron Smith, Ryan Clark and Willie Parker must notable amongst them ~ so one of the important tasks for the coaching staff will be to assess where those players are physically. Additionally, the declining performance of Troy Polamalu has, in our opinion, coincided with a decline in his physical well-being. It will be interesting to see if Mr. Polamalu's non-traditional off-season regimen will yield positive, long-lasting results.


• Shakin' Out at Wide Out: It seems that we have been predicting the demise of Nate Washington and Willie Reid as members of the Pittsburgh Steelers since the day they landed on the roster. But this time we really mean it ~ the axe is going to fall on one or both of these players this summer. At one time it was believed that Mr. Reid would have an impact as a return man on punts and kicks. His inability to field kicks cleanly certainly had an impact, but not exactly the one that was hoped for. If Jeremy Bloom can perform well in this role Mr. Reid's hold on a roster spot will be even more tenuous. On the other hand, in 2007 Nate Washington showed flashes of being the player the team thought he could be, but he was inconsistent at times both as a receiver and as a blocker. With Dallas Baker and Limas Sweed now on the roster Mr. Washington will be pressed to deliver consistent results.


• Just how tough are we?: In 2007 the Steelers rushing defense ranked twenty-second in the league on plays up the middle, giving up an average of 4.36 yards per carry ~ the first and only time the defense has performed that poorly in the past eight years (i.e. from 2000-2006 the defense yielded fewer than four yards per carry on plays up the middle); and anyone who saw last season's two games versus Jacksonville realizes that the Steelers were far from being their dominant selves. So, was 2007 an aberration or a harbinger of things to come?

Naturally this list is far from comprehensive, but there is little doubt that just addressing the issues we've outlined will occupy much of the time available in this year's training camp.

Jacksonville V. Steelers: The Good, the Bad & The Ugly -- the Wild Card Edition

Wow.

We are e-x-h-a-u-s-t-e-d.

Imagine how the players must feel.

It was an amazing game, and our knee-jerk reaction following the game was to be disappointed at the final score while simultaneously being quite proud of how the Pittsburgh Steelers fought back from as much adversity as a team can encounter on the field of play.

But upon further reflection we must, as we believe the Steelers' players, coaches, and fans must, reject moral victories. The franchise is a great one because of the championships it has won not because the teams have played horribly in one half and played splendidly in the next. The National Football League -- and in particular the playoffs -- is a zero sum game. The Steelers lost, and looking for something to feel good about only delays (and possibly detracts from) the critical self-analysis that must now begin if the team hopes to get back to being a legitimate championship contender.

After a crazy, mixed up game, like the one we witnessed Saturday night there is no way to categorize the game into "Good," "Bad," and "Ugly." The Steelers were all of those things -- sometimes at the same time. Here's some of what we mean:

Ben Roethlisberger : During the first half, just for a moment, we thought we were watching Super Bowl XL. A quarterback rating of 47.8? Three interceptions? Even if the first one is credited to aggressive play by Rashean Mathis (it was a high risk, high reward play which worked out for him and the Jaguars) the two that followed were . . . mind-boggling in their carelessness (and the final one cost the Steelers an opportunity to kick a field goal).

But then there was the second half. Two touchdowns, 188 yards, 17/23 and a 126.72 quarterback rating. He led his team, he willed his team down the field -- taking advantage of the turnovers forced by the defense -- and brought them back to the brink of victory.

The Offensive Line : With 3:43 left in the game the Steelers had the football and a one point lead. Frankly, they were twenty yards -- two first downs -- away from sealing the win. There was a time, a season or two ago, the Steelers could have run out the clock by keeping the ball on the ground, and getting the necessary yardage. The 2007 edition of the Steelers' offensive line managed to lead the team down the field -- for five yards. From that point, the rest is history. Moreover, the 43 yards of rushing that the Steelers accumulated (13 of which came from Ben Roethlisberger) Saturday is their lowest total in the playoffs since rushing for 58 yards in the AFC Championship game against new England on January 27, 2002 in that game Kordell Stewart was the Steelers' leading rusher).

We do want to send some praise the way of Trai Essex. We watched him intently all evening (and then watched the game again via the miracle of Tivo), and must say that he exceeded our expectations by a considerable margin. Additionally, it did not appear that the Steelers modified their playbook appreciably to "protect" Mr. Essex. There were runs to the left, there were QB roll-outs to the left, and until the Steelers' final offensive play of the evening Mr. Essex hadn't been beaten on a pass rush (it should be pointed out that there was almost always a running back helping Mr. Essex in pass protection, but that probably should have been the case when these two teams played the first time this season), and on that play Najeh Davenport didn't exactly do much to lend a hand (i.e. he whiffed on the block). Overall Mr. Essex did well, better than anyone had a right to expect from a third string tackle.

The Defense : Faced with bad field position throughout much of the first half -- Jacksonville's average drive began at their 46-yard line -- the defense limited Jacksonville to 14 points (and let's be fair -- the kick return by Maurice Jones-Drew left them in an impossible position). In the second half the Steelers' defense forced turnovers, and played the physical brand of football that their fans have come to love and expect. They limited the Jaguars to 239 net yards, and held Fred Taylor and Mr. Jones-Drew to a combined 77 yards. But at the end of the game, when they needed to make a play in order to secure victory, David Garrard rumbled for 32 yards thereby ensuring that the Jaguars would have an opportunity to kick a makeable field goal.

No one can question the effort or the intensity of the Steelers' defense. But in the end all that can be said is that they almost played like champions.

[Note added 1/6/08, 5:20 PM: It should be noted how thrilled we were to see LaMarr Woodley making impact plays. The solid performances of Mr. Woodley, Matt Spaeth, and Daniel Sepulveda is making the 2007 draft look solid]

Special Teams : Following the final Steelers win of the season (i.e. the game in St. Louis), in discussing the kick coverage team here is what we said: "If the Steelers are fortunate enough to make the playoffs this glaring weakness will cost them points -- count on it."

Did you doubt us?

And yet the special teams responded. Following the 96-yard return by Maurice Jones-Drew the Jaguars had five more kick returns, and they managed to rack-up a total of 44 yards (i.e. 8.8 yards per kick return). The pooch kick is an amazing thing. On those five kicks we saw speed -- something sorely lacking in games,and years past, on Pittsburgh's special teams.

The punt coverage team was similarly up-and-down. Dennis Northcutt returned three punts Saturday evening. On the first two he managed to get 15 total yards. Again, the speed of the Steelers' coverage unit was terrific. But then, with the offense having failed to get a first down late in the game, deep in their own territory, Mr. Northcutt broke loose for a 16-yard return, enabling the Jaguars' offense to begin their winning drive near midfield.


Conclusion : If we were to identify the turning point in what was a see-saw affair it would have to be the Steelers' fourth quarter possession that began with 3:43 left in the game. With momentum on the Steelers' side, and a one point lead, here's what happened:

• The Jaguars' defense beat the Steelers' offense, forcing a punt.


• The Jaguars' punt return team beat the Steelers' punt coverage team, setting up the Jags' offense at their 49-yard line.


• The Jaguars' offense made enough plays -- including the 31-yard run by David Garrard on fourth-and-two -- to kick the field goal that put them ahead.


• The Jaguars' defense stomped out any hope of a miraculous Steelers' comeback by beating the left offensive tackle and stripping the ball away from the quarterback.

Late in the game, with a chance to win, the Steelers were dominated in every phase of the game. It's hard to find anything to feel good about in that.

Are You Ready for Your Close-Up Mr. Essex?

UPDATE: Steelers.com offers an article assuring all Steelers fans that Mr. Essex is ready for the challenge!

Original Posting

Coaches in the National Football League, when faced with injuries to their players, are fond of saying things like "everyone with a helmet is a playmaker," or "we have the same expectations we have when (fill in the blank) is in there." With that in mind we take a look -- a refresher look, really -- at the Steelers' third-string playmaker at left offensive tackle, Trai Essex.

Upon being chosen in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft (out of Northwestern), Mr. Essex told Pittsburgh reporters that "[t]he Steelers have been my team since I was a kid. Whenever I played Nintendo, they were my team." One can only assume that his electronic version of the Steelers rarely, if ever, utilized a third string lineman. However in assessing Mr. Essex former Steelers offensive line coach Russ Grimm had this to say: "He can play both tackles. He can play both guards. He's an explosive-type of lineman. He fits our scheme. He's a guy we were looking for."

But things haven't really worked out. Mr. Essex hasn't started a game since December 18, 2005 (he started the final three regular season game of his rookie season), and after appearing in 15 games in 2006 he has made it onto the field in only three games in 2007. Now the Steelers are, quite literally, asking him to watch Ben Roethlisberger's back. Though there is precious little evidence to work from, we decided to evaluate the three starts that Mr. Essex has in 2005 in the hopes of getting some idea of what to expect on Saturday against Jacksonville.

Using the NFL's official game books from the final three regular season games of the 2005 season we decided to break down just where the Steelers rushed the football (i.e. rushes to the left side of the offensive line, rushes up the middle, rushes to the right side of the offensive line) and just how effective those rushing plays were (note: for our purposes we did not include quarterback scrambles). Here's how the numbers look:

Date	Opponent	Left	Yds.	Middle	Yds.	Left	Yds.
12/11/05	Cincinnati	11	47	10	25	6	27
12/11/05	Chicago	7	59	20	77	18	59
12/18/05	Minnesota	12	24	8	68	15	42

So what do these numbers mean? A look at the percentages -- i.e. what percentage of runs in any single game went left/middle/right, and what percentage of rushing yardage came from going left/middle/right -- reveals that over the course of the three games, while the Steelers remained committed to running left, the overall percentage of yards gained on such plays steadily declined.

Date	Opponent	Pct. Left	Pct. Yds.	Pct. Middle	Pct. Yds.	Pct. Left	Pct. Yds.
12/11/05	Cincinnati	40.74	47.47	37.04	25.25	22.22	27.27
12/11/05	Chicago	15.56	30.26	44.44	39.49	40.0	30.26
12/18/05	Minnesota	34.29	17.91	22.86	50.75	42.86	31.34

There is no way to say with certainty that it was Mr. Essex's performance which led directly to the decline in rushing effectiveness to the left side; however rushing effectiveness did decline, and in addition to that Mr. Essex surrendered two sacks in the game against Minnesota and was flagged for a holding call as well.

And of course there is the fact that he hasn't started a single game since.

Much has been made regarding the loss of Willie Parker, but as much as that injury hurt the Steelers offensive capabilities it is the losses of Marvel Smith and Max Starks that may is more likely to prematurely end the Steelers' season.