Steelers News: Evaluating depth at the running back position

It has been a one-of-a-kind offseason for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020. Unable to attend most player pro days and participating in the NFL’s first virtual draft, the Steelers keep pushing forward toward a return to football activities. Just because the Steelers are unable to hold their typical OTA’s doesn’t mean we stop providing you with features, commentary and opinions to tide you over throughout the offseason!

Today in the black-and-gold links article we take a look at the quality of depth at the running back position for the Steelers and not just the quantity.

Let’s get to the news:

• Looking at the depth chart at running back for the Steelers

Steelers’ running back depth quantity vs. quality

By: Jeff Hartman, DK Pittsburgh Sports

Let’s get something straight: Mike Tomlin does not like a running back-by-committee approach.

Never has, and likely never will.

Whether it was running the wheels off Willie Parker, watching Le’Veon Bell be an every down back or James Conner being the primary ball carrier when healthy, any way you slice it, Tomlin likes to have a back he can trust, and lean on, when it matters most.

Entering the 2020 season, the Steelers are faced with a dilemma at the running back position, but it isn’t about having enough players on their depth chart. Instead, it is about having enough capable options on the roster.

Quality over quantity.

As stated earlier, Conner is the man for the Steelers’ offense, but his injury history forces fans to wonder what will happen if, or when, Conner is sidelined. When you look at the players on the depth chart, it does anything but give you the warm, fuzzy feeling. But first, let’s look at the players who make up the Steelers’ running back depth chart.

James Conner

Jaylen Samuels

Benny Snell Jr.

Kerrith Whyte

Trey Edmunds

Anthony McFarland Jr. (R)

Ralph Webb

Conner, a Pro Bowl player in 2018 during Bell’s holdout, has proven if he is healthy he is more than capable of getting the job done. After Conner, not much is certain.

To read the full article, click HERE (Free)

• Steelers fans may not be welcomed to watch their first scheduled preseason game

Hall of Fame Game ‘highly unlikely’ to be played in front of fans, says Ohio governor

By: Joe Rutter, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s business-as-usual approach to its signature events in August has met some resistance from Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine.

DeWine said Tuesday that the Hall of Fame Game in Canton on Aug. 6 and the Hall of Fame induction ceremony two days later should not be held with fans in attendance.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys are scheduled to kick off the NFL preseason schedule in the Hall of Fame Game at Tom Benson Stadium, which has a capacity of 23,000.

The game sold out in an hour and more than 10,000 tickets have been sold for the Aug. 8 enshrinement ceremony.

“Having a crowd that size, I think is highly unlikely,” DeWine said. “Certainly, it could not occur today. It would be very dangerous to do it today.”

Given the proximity of the Hall of Fame from Pittsburgh, Steelers fans are expected to comprise a majority of the ticket holders for the game and the ceremony in which former safety Troy Polamalu and former head coach Bill Cowher are enshrined.

Last week, the Hall of Fame opened its doors to visitors after being closed since March 16 because of the coronavirus pandemic. A Hall spokesman said the preseason game would serve as a “test case” for the NFL in its return to play amid the pandemic.

To read the full article, click HERE (Free)

• Ramon Foster shares about what it takes to make it in the NFL

On The Line: Size, talent matter in NFL, though not like mental toughness

By: Ramon Foster, DK Pittsburgh Sports

It never comes as a shock.

When I’m in a public venue and I’m spotted, it’s easy to assume I played football or some sport at some level. That’s especially true around a crowd of people at those places we used to visit — bars, concert venues, restaurants — before the world was sat on its behind by this coronavirus pandemic.

Places where adult beverages flow freely, an easy conversation starter is “Wow, you’re a huge guy.”

Or I get asked, “Who do you play for?”

It might sound hard to believe, but I try to blend in as much as I can, or at least to avoid eye contact. Because I know that question is coming.

Not that I mind those types of walk-ups. I realize it comes with the territory, and most guys would love to be my height or to be a professional athlete. And hey, size is an attribute that’s easy to measure. If you’re looking for a significant other to start a family with, it could be a dealbreaker. Sad but true.

But this isn’t a column about height or being a big guy. It’s about something that took me a while to realize is an actual talent: Mental toughness!

One of the things Mike Tomlin always said to me is, “I don’t think you understand. Your mental toughness is a talent. Everything we’ve thrown at you, you’ve caught it and given it back. Your mental toughness is a talent, and you don’t understand it because you just live it.”

I never considered that a “talent.” I just had the mindset I was going to do everything I could to stick around and be “above the line” — as Tomlin likes to say — with my performance and not let my teammates down. It hadn’t clicked with me that it helped separate me from others.

To read the full article, click HERE (Free)

• BTSC articles you may have missed

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An exclusive interview with rookie Christian Montano

Will Carlos Davis contribute to the Steelers in 2020?

Looking at the Steelers defensive players who will be free agents in 2021

As expected, the Steelers will not hold their annual “Friday Night Lights”

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