The reaction to the Steelers hiring Pat Meyer as their new offensive line coach was predictable. Since his name wasn't Mike Munchak -- who I told you last week in Friday Insider wasn't returning -- the hiring was sure to be panned immediately.
Then, it became about where Meyer's former employers ranked according to, wait for it, Pro Football Focus. If you don't have any idea what you're talking about when it comes to judging NFL players, you simply mention the rankings or grades on that particular site.
But what about where his teams ranked running the ball?
Well, the 2021 Panthers were 20th running the ball. In 2020, they were 21st. Meyer's previous employer, the Chargers, ranked 24th, 15th and 21st in that in his three seasons from 2017 through 2019.
At least that's a more meaningful statistic.
The conclusion can only be that he's a bad coach, right?
Here's the thing, however, that doesn't take into account things such as how much a team runs the ball and who it is running the ball with. For example, do the team have a running quarterback? It's tough to get into the top 10 these days running the ball without one. Are there injuries at running back or on the line? Certainly, the Panthers might have ran the ball better the past two seasons if Christian McCaffrey hadn't missed 22 of the team's past 33 games.
Finally, what's he working with in terms of talent. It's almost always about the Jimmys and Joes more so than the Xs and Os. You can coach a below-average player up to his maximum potential. There's a good chance he's not going to be as good as a more talented player.
For example, was Chiefs offensive line coach Andy Heck suddenly a moron who didn't know what he was doing in 2020 because Kansas City's line fell apart in the postseason?
Did he suddenly get smarter again this season because the Chiefs traded a first-round draft pick for left tackle Orlando Brown, signed guard Joey Thuney to a five-year, $80-million free agent contract and then used a second-round pick on center Creed Humphrey? Or did he simply have better players with which to work?
Fact is, we just don't know if Meyer is a good coach or not. And we won't know for sure until we get a chance to see the tangible results on the field.
And even then, the results will be based on the scheme, who stays healthy and what the Steelers add to the position.
• So, what did Meyer have to work with in terms of players at his previous stops?
In 2017, the Chargers had a starting offensive line of left tackle Russell Okung, rookie guard Dan Feeney, a third-round draft pick, Spencer Pulley at center, Kenny Wiggins at the other guard position and right tackle Joe Barksdale. Only Okung could be considered anything remotely resembling a solid NFL player.
In 2018, Mike Pouncey was added at center as a free agent, giving the Chargers a second high-quality NFL player. That was the season the Chargers wound up finishing 15th in the league in rushing -- despite having statuesque Phillip Rivers at quarterback adding nothing to the total.
In 2019, Okung didn't play because of a pulmonary embolism and Pouncey didn't play a game because of a neck injury. And the Chargers' line play understandably suffered.
Meyer and the rest of Anthony Lynn's staff got fired.
Circumstances matter.
• That said, I get it. Tomlin's two outside hires this offseason have both come from the Panthers -- not exactly an offensive juggernaut.
That said, the Panthers have again been a team that has missed having McCaffrey on the field for more than 50 percent of their games the past two seasons while starting the likes of Teddy Bridgewater, P.J. Walker, Sam Darnold and the ghost of Cam Newton at quarterback.
Steelers fans who lived through the '80s and a good portion of the '90s know what that's all about.
One thing for sure, Meyer had better be ready to get the most out of offensive tackle Dan Moore and center Kendrick Green in their second seasons.
Their improvement -- or lack thereof -- will be what makes his fate.
• While we're on the subject of offensive lines, everyone assumes the Bengals will easily fix their line this offseason because they have $55 million in available cap space. And maybe they will.
But the Bengals also are going to find life much more difficult drafting at 31 this year as opposed to somewhere in the top 5, where they're used to picking. In fact, the Bengals' top pick this year will be not much different than where they're accustomed to picking in the second round.
They also still have some signings to make to keep their defense together. Safety Jessie Bates, for example, is slated to become an unrestricted free agent.
The Bengals have their quarterback in place. That's great. They got the No. 1-overall pick in the draft right when they took Joe Burrow.
But Burrow also was sacked 70 total times this season, including the playoffs. That was the third-most sacks taken by a player in a single season in NFL history. He's been sacked 83 times in 26 career regular season games.
The Bengals are going to have to spend a good chunk of their available cap space on finding offensive linemen to protect their investment. And that might not allow them wiggle room to also keep or add to the defense.
The NFL is set up to help teams pull themselves up through the draft. But the tough part is maintaining it when you get there.
• Pittsburgh native, podcaster and former NFL.com analyst Dave Dameshek recently tweeted a study he did on quarterbacks who get to the Super Bowl.
Since 1999, Dameshek found that 21 of the 46 quarterbacks who reached the Super Bowl were on their rookie contracts (first five years). If you take Tom Brady out of the equation, that number is 18 of 39.
So, nearly half the quarterbacks in the league who led their teams to the Super Bowl in the past two-plus decades, have been on cheap, rookie deals. They can still afford to pay to put great players around the rookie.
Then, things get more difficult. Other guys want to get paid.
That's what's going to happen to the Chiefs in 2022. Kansas City has 24 players slated to become unrestricted free agents. They have $14.5 million in available cap space.
A big reason for that is because Patrick Mahomes' cap hit goes from $7.4 million in 2021 to $35.8 million in 2022.
But that's the cost of doing business to have a great quarterback.
The Ravens, who are set to begin negotiations with Lamar Jackson on a new deal, will soon find themselves playing in that sandbox. The Browns have to make a decision regarding Baker Mayfield whether they want to do the same -- though obviously not to the same level.
The Bengals are now one year closer to having to pay Burrow $40-plus million per year.
• That same little exercise by Dameshek is a good reminder that teams have gone to the Super Bowl in this century with the likes of Rex Grossman, Trent Dilfer, Jake Delhomme, Jared Goff, Jimmy Garappolo and Matt Hasselbeck at quarterback.
Getting there is one thing. Winning is another. Of that aforementioned group, only Dilfer actually won the Super Bowl.
That's why the Steelers shouldn't settle for just another retread at quarterback.
• The idea that the Steelers would be in the market to potentially trade Chase Claypool makes no sense.
The report, put forth by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, who is a friend who I respect, obviously came from teams hoping to get Claypool on the cheap. In fact, that was part of Fowler's report, that teams hope the Steelers would be interested in trading Claypool while his value is low.
What it doesn't take into account is that the Steelers currently have just three NFL wide receivers -- Claypool, Diontae Johnson and Anthony Miller -- on their roster. And Miller, a former second-round draft pick of the Bears, spent most of the 2021 season on the team's practice squad.
Claypool also costs just $1.8 million against the team's salary cap in 2022.
I highly doubt they'll be willing to move on from him at this point -- especially if another team thinks they're going to get Claypool on the cheap.
• The NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis will be held in two weeks in what could be its final appearance in that city.
The NFL is making a big mistake moving the Combine out of Indianapolis. It's a nice centralized location. There are about a dozen teams for which it is driving distance. For the others, it's an easy plane ride.
But it's all about making the Combine a made-for-tv event. That was not and should not be its purpose.
This is the biggest job interview many of these young men will ever have. The setup in Indianapolis is ideal. Everything is within walking distance and easily accessible for the players.
It's a shame the league is making this yet another money maker.
• The argument that a coach can't be any good if he's been fired from another job might be the most ridiculous one that I see -- a lot.
One of the few coaches around who has not been fired from an NFL job is, wait for it, Mike Tomlin.
In fact, when Tampa Bay fired Tony Dungy after the 2001 season, Dungy wanted to take Tomlin with him to Indianapolis. The Buccaneers wouldn't let Tomlin out of his contract.
That's how he wound up on Jon Gruden's staff.
So, the same people arguing that Tomlin's hires haven't been any good because those assistants weren't retained in other jobs around the league, must feel Tomlin is a good coach, right?
• It's crazy mock draft season. They're coming out left and right. And, to be honest, I'm no different.
In fact, I put one out just last week.
But there seems to be a feeling that the Steelers will take a quarterback in the first round of the draft, no matter what. And that's just simply not true.
Would the Steelers like to acquire a quarterback in the draft? Sure. But it has to be the right quarterback. They're not simply going to take one just to take one.
It has to be the right quarterback.
