The Pittsburgh Steelers are entering 2024 with an offense that was almost entirely overhauled during the offseason. Arthur Smith, the new offensive coordinator, will be expected to lead this offensive attack to much better results than the Matt Canada era. To help him with that, the Steelers told all of their previous quarterbacks to pack their bags in favor of a pair of low-risk, high-reward players that could hopefully thrive in a new system, as well as high-end rookies on the offensive line, and a receiver room with plenty of new names.
With all of these new additions to the Steelers' offense, Eric Edholm is full of questions about the direction of the offense, including what the identity of this offense will be.
"Russell Wilson and Justin Fields are a decade apart in age, but they're both at a career crossroads. How Pittsburgh plans to use the two signal-callers will be fascinating. Is Wilson the clear Week 1 starter? Is there a Fields package in the offense? Will Fields fully usurp Wilson at some point? That all remains to be seen. If there is a Fields package, it'll be run by new Steelers OC Arthur Smith, whose handling of the Falcons' quarterbacks over the past few years was suboptimal, even if the QB talent in Atlanta was lacking. Smith also must contend with OL changes and a WR corps that lost one of its big playmakers when Diontae Johnson was traded to Carolina. Mike Tomlin played quarterback roulette last year and lost, despite Pittsburgh making the playoffs. The AFC North is a bear. How the offense materializes is the obvious, No. 1 issue for this team right now."
There are plenty of concerns for the Steelers' offensive attack heading into 2024, especially with how Van Jefferson will be expected to be the starting receiver outside of George Pickens. There is also the obvious question of how Russell Wilson and/or Justin Fields fit into this offense and if they can thrive after some rough seasons on their previous teams.
At the very least, the Steelers' offense will be expected to go through some growing pains, as they try to develop chemistry with all these new faces. Even with an improved offensive line, who knows how long it will take for Troy Fautanu and Zach Frazier to fit in with the rest of the line? Can Jefferson be an every-day starter like he was in 2021, or will one of the younger receivers take over for him? Even with all these questions, the Steelers do have a major one answered already.
Steelers' Focal Point Of The Offense
Even with the complete overhaul of the offense, the Steelers will be going with their bread and butter: the dominant run game. Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren have been around for a few seasons, and they each had over 1,000 scrimmage yards in 2023. That run-first offense was what worked for the Steelers, and that is what they will continue to utilize as their primary source of yards and points for 2024.
The Steelers perfectly set up their offense to fit Smith's scheme. When he was the offensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans, they would rely on Derrick Henry for a dominant run game, then Ryan Tannehill and the passing game would be used as an effective complementary piece. That offense led the Titans to an AFC Championship appearance, a division title, and a 2,000-yard season from Henry.
If the Steelers can use that style of offense to their advantage, that will be their identity. While the smashmouth style of football is rarely used in the modern game, it could be the solution to all of the Steelers' growing pains. Mike Tomlin won't have to worry about playing quarterback roulette when he can just move over to the running back roulette wheel and keep winning at that game.
