Steelers’ Biggest Offensive Dilemma May Not Be The QB Position

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been in the news all offseason.

Whether it was all the drama in the Spring with Kenny Pickett, bringing in Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, or the constant chatter of possibly acquiring WR Brandon Aiyuk.

It was non-stop chatter about the Steelers.

This has not changed as everyone seems split on whether Russell Wilson or Justin Fields should start at QB.

However, after two preseason games, the biggest dilemma for the Steelers may not be who starts at QB.

Below, we will explain the biggest dilemma the Steelers have on offense and if this will improve as the season progresses.

Steelers’ Biggest Offensive Dilemma

The great John Madden once famously said “If you have two quarterbacks, you actually have none.”

This rings true for the Steelers with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields.

Both QBs have their flaws and neither are running away with the starting role.

However, the QB position is a known issue.

The position causing the biggest dilemma in the preseason, which the Steelers have spent a lot of draft capital to improve is the offensive line.

Broderick Jones was drafted in the first round in 2023 by the Steelers to be a starting offensive tackle.

Jones is having a horrible preseason.

He is dealing with an elbow injury but Jones stated he is fine and he just needs to play better.

The Steelers drafted two more rookie offensive linemen in this year’s NFL Draft.

Tackle Troy Fautanu and Center Zach Frazier.

Frazier will start week 1 as Nate Herbig is injured and will be out for the season.

Fautanu is dealing with a left knee injury and has a brace on his knee, which is causing him to miss practices and preseason games.

This may cause Fautanu to not start week 1 but he will eventually become a starting offensive tackle, likely as the season progresses.

Isaac Seumalo and James Daniels are the starting guards for the Steelers and they are both fairly solid.

The potential is there for the Steelers to have a top-10 offensive line.

However, this has far from materialized thus far, given the injury to Fautanu and Jones’ preseason struggles.

Will The Steelers’ Offensive Line Improve As The Season Progresses?

In all likelihood, as the season progresses, this is what the Steelers’ offensive line will look like:

• LT: Troy Fautanu
• LG: Isaac Seumalo
• C: Zach Frazier
• RG: James Daniels
• RT: Broderick Jones

A rookie center, a rookie left tackle, a second-year right tackle, and two veteran guards will make up the offensive line.

This has a lot of potential but the three most important positions are major question marks.

The two guards are solid vets but the tackle positions and center position are the most crucial.

Fautanu needs to first get healthy and then prove he can be a capable left tackle, the most important position on the offensive line.

Zach Frazier will need to be ready to start week 1 and take command as the center.

Jones needs to fully get over his elbow injury and play much better than he has in the preseason.

These three players, Fautanu, Frazier, and Jones are the cornerstone of the offensive line and the Steelers have spent first or second-round picks on all three players.

The QB position is a major question mark but it will not matter if Wilson or Fields start if they can not get any protection.

Pittsburgh will want to run the ball a lot under new OC Arthur Smith and the offensive line needs to be ready to step up and run block.

Play action will be key for Arthur Smith, so running the ball successfully will be crucial for the offense.

The offensive line has the potential to be a top 10 offensive line but it could take weeks for them to gel.

Expect a rougher start for the offensive line but as the season progresses, the Steelers’ offensive line will be much improved.