I’m trying my absolute best to put a positive spin on the Pittsburgh Steelers’ M*A*S*H Unit, I mean…. Offensive line. I suppose I could sit back and bitch and complain but at this point, that won’t do anything. Therefore, I choose to be positive! I assumed whatever happened to James Daniels yesterday wasn’t good but I didn’t expect a season-ending Achilles injury.
Lost for the season, Daniels joins Troy Fautanu, Nate Herbig and Dylan Cook (who could return) as offensive lineman bitten by the injury bug. So why am I being positive? It’s pretty simple really. This team has invested a lot in the offensive line and they now have little choice but to go with the youth movement.
Think about it. Dan Moore is now the veteran of this unit. He’s in his fourth season. Broderick Jones and Spencer Anderson are in their second years and Zach Frazier and Mason McCormick are rookies. We all hope that Isaac Seumalo can return sooner rather than later to anchor this line as the only real veteran but we don’t know how close he is to returning.
If you’re down in the dumps over this, ask yourself, did you believe this team was destined for Super Bowl greatness anyway? I hoped at best they’d get into the playoffs and win a game and that’s still possible. But if nothing else, the injuries are giving these young men an opportunity to learn on the job.
There are going to be ups and downs and moments where we want to bury our head in the sand. There are also going to be moments where everything clicks too. In the end, if these young men learn to work together and become a closer, more cohesive unit next year and beyond then maybe we’ll look back positively at this mess. James Daniels was likely headed for free agency anyway so these guys are all they have so let’s think positively.
For today anyway.
