The Pittsburgh Steelers have made a number of aggressive moves this offseason. All those moves have one goal in mind: winning a Super Bowl. For fourth-year wide receiver Calvin Austin III, who will take on a larger role offensively, there’s only one way the Steelers will do that this season.
That’s having the right mentality and holding each other accountable as brothers within the locker room, pushing each other to be the best versions of themselves.
Speaking with Memphis’ Action News 5 Sports Director Doc Holliday in a sit-down interview, Calvin Austin revealed the one key to the Steelers’ winning the Super Bowl.
“We trying to win a Super Bowl,” Austin said of the upcoming season, according to video via Action 5 News. “So, the only way we can get there is if we all really be brothers and really can come up to somebody and be like, ‘Hey, you ain’t practicing how I think you should, how I know you can practice,’ or ‘I think you should do this on this route.’
“We all gotta be receptive to that tough, needed criticism.”
That type of tough, needed criticism comes from a strong culture. The Steelers have historically had that strong culture. But this offseason, they have seemingly depleted that culture, losing some strong pieces in the locker room. That includes names like Najee Harris, Elandon Roberts, Larry Ogunjobi, and most importantly, Minkah Fitzpatrick.
While the Steelers have brought in some big names this offseason, including Aaron Rodgers, DK Metcalf, Jalen Ramsey, and Darius Slay, those are all new pieces who need to learn the Steeler way and adapt to how things work behind the scenes.
That Steeler way historically includes accountability. But in the wide receiver room the last few years with Austin around, that wasn’t always the case. George Pickens got away with quite a bit, including showing up late to practices and games, and not working as hard as he should in those practices.
Now, with Pickens out of the picture and Austin ascending into a larger leadership role, that accountability needs to come back in a major way. That’s not just in the receiver room, either. Head coach Mike Tomlin likes to talk about treating players fairly, but not equally.
That could be part of why things have sometimes gone sideways for Steelers teams with headaches from players. The Steelers brought in two players who were considered “headcases” elsewhere, so maybe there’s an adjustment there for the Steelers with a bit of a reset here.
If they can do that, hold each other accountable, and truly tap into their talent, the Steelers could make some noise in the playoffs. And who knows, that could lead to a couple of wins and maybe a surprise run to the Super Bowl. The talent is there, at least.
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