The Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive line has a lot of potential. Still, they’ve also got plenty of questions to answer this season. One of those lies in their run-blocking, which the first-team offense simply hasn’t done much of during the preseason. In fact, the starting offensive line has only been on the field for five runs plays during those two games.
After Tuesday’s practice, Mike Tomlin was asked about that. His answer shows that it simply may not be their main focus during the preseason.
“You’re exactly right, we’re collecting a lot of different data,” Tomlin said via the Steelers’ YouTube channel. “We got different agendas during the preseason.”
Part of the reason for the lack of running plays could be that the Steelers just haven’t run the ball well. Against Jacksonville, Kaleb Johnson got off to a slow start. Last week against Tampa Bay, Kenneth Gainwell ran the ball twice for two yards early in the game. The starters have only been on the field a handful of drives, often in passing situations.
That said, Mike Tomlin acknowledges that the Steelers might not want to see run plays as much. Instead, they may want to see how the line could protect Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers is of course not playing in any preseason action, but Tomlin and company may want to see that the line is capable of keeping their quarterback upright.
So far, they’ve impressed in that regard. Mason Rudolph hasn’t had to run for his life at all behind them. They’ve been stout. Their ability to protect Rodgers throughout the season is one of the most important impending storylines, so it makes sense that Tomlin and Arthur Smith would have them pass protecting often. It was especially helpful that both the Jaguars and Buccaneers played starters on defense.
That said, it doesn’t make the lack of a run game any less problematic. It saw a lot of criticism throughout training camp, and isn’t getting off to the best start in the preseason. Kaleb Johnson showed some improvement last week, but Lew Nichols is the only back who’s looked impressive in both games. It’s hard to fault the running backs much, though. The holes just haven’t been there.
For Arthur Smith’s offense, the ground game is mandatory. The reports out of camp are a little worrying, but for better or for worse, Mike Tomlin doesn’t seem quite as concerned about it.
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