SCB Steelers Quick Hitters: The ‘OTA Questions’ Edition

Good Tuesday to you Steelers fans.

A very quick thank you as I don’t like to dwell on things having to do with myself… Thank you to those that reached out following the near miss with a tornado in my area. Very much appreciated and I’ll be glad to never see that again.

As for the Steelers…

Everyone is back at it today at the Steelers’ Southside Facility with the exception of Cam Heyward. We’ll get to that shortly but first, there are some intriguing questions that I have and you probably have them as well so let’s get started.

1. Do the Steelers value James Daniels as much as the fans do? Long-time Steelers’ beat writer Mark Kaboly of The Athletic said this week that he does not believe the Steelers will extend the contract of Daniels. This is surprising to me for a couple of reasons. First, Daniels is just 26 years old and high-level guards don’t fall off trees all the time. Secondly, if you talk to most fans they’ll tell you that Daniels play has been solid if not pretty darn good. So therefore, I have to wonder if the Steelers aren’t so high on Daniels. This may also explain the drafting of Mason McCormick who was inserted on the right side during Rookie Camp.
2. Who gets the reps at WR2? We know that George Pickens has the wide receiver one spot locked down and we also know that the current roster has more slot type receivers than any team in the league. So…. Who is the #2 wide out then? I believe this will be Van Jefferson’s spot to lose for the foreseeable future and by “foreseeable” I mean, until they find someone they like better. Jefferson has experience and he has some ability but I cannot believe that Mike Tomlin wants to go too far into the season without a better option there.
3. Is it hyperbole, smack-talk at Matt Canada or do the players really, truly like Arthur Smith’s offense? It’s extremely early but the returns so far have been very positive about Smith’s offense. Keep in mind that changing an entire offensive scheme in the NFL isn’t the same as doing it on your Madden game at home. In most cases, EVERYTHING is different. From terminology to timing, many things are different and my hunch is that the players are finding things easier to remember than the previous system along with other factors. Believe me, this is good news because if they were saying the opposite right now that would be really bad.

As for Cam…

One of the most difficult challenges an organization faces is when a player, who has been with them their entire career, reaches the point where they “just don’t have it anymore.” It’s hard on the player, the team, the organization and the fan base but it’s also a fact of life. Some will argue that if Ben Roethlisberger was able to go out on his own terms then so too should Cam Heyward. Unfortunately, this is not Pee Wee Football. It’s the NFL and it’s a business. If you look at the comments by Omar Khan throughout the off-season, my gut tells me the team is not interested in anything past the next year or two – at most. Heyward wants to play three more years and wants to be compensated well during that time. He’s currently the oldest rostered player on the Defensive Line in the league. I am not overly concerned about him missing OTAs but if this stretches into Training Camp – which it might – then I think things could get a little ugly.

The Latest Podcast

Episode 369 of the SCB Steelers Podcast presented by DEK Roofing Inc is available! We discussed the schedule at length plus a whole lot more. Check it out and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube  channel.