Fortunately for the Steelers, the NFL's trade deadline and the bye week coincided. It gave Omar Kahn, Mike Tomlin and everyone else who made the ultimate decision to trade Chase Claypool a prime opportunity to take the plunge and rebuild.
You won't hear Tomlin ever use the dreaded R-word, but this is where the Steelers are right now. And that's more than okay.
The bye week is a chance for teams hampered with injuries to heal up. And when the bye comes near the middle of the season, like it did for the Steelers, it provides an opportunity to properly evaluate the state of the team. At 2-6, with the laundry list of problems that stand in the way of becoming anything close to even a .500 team, the Steelers opted to cash in on one of their more valuable trade assets.
And that -- even to which the most casual Pirates fan can attest -- signals the waiving of the white flag on the season.
"It was about draft capital and value for us," Tomlin said regarding the trade during Wednesday's media availability at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. "The Chicago Bears’ second-round pick is a pick that we value, and we’re excited about what that brings us."
Listen, I empathize with Steelers fans. This team hasn't had a losing season since 2003. Bill Cowher only had three seasons under .500 during his tenure as head coach. With three more losses, the 2022 squad will be the fourth Steelers team to finish with more losses than wins in 31 years.
This is uncharted territory for Tomlin, and it's an unfamiliar place for Steeler Nation. And, because of the precedent set by the organization that shares the North Shore with the Steelers, the dreaded R-word often signals dark times ahead.
But, there's a way the Steelers can rebuild without heading on a similar trajectory. First, the NFL's structure -- yes, I'm referring to the salary cap -- makes it far easier to rebuild quickly. With the pick acquired in the Claypool trade, the Steelers will likely have three selections in the first 40-to-50 picks on next spring's draft, including a top-five or top-10 pick in the first round.
Without doing too much digging into the upcoming draft class yet, I do know this year's class will be far deeper than last year. There is serious potential for drafting high-quality prospects at areas of need such as defensive tackle, linebacker, cornerback and offensive line. And, these are guys that can have an impact on the field right away. A strong draft next April could bode well for the Steelers in the win-loss column in 2023.
But, that leads to the point I really want to stress. As attractive as a top-five pick can be, the Steelers need to pull out all the stops and dedicate everything they have to winning as many of these final nine games as possible. And, that's what Tomlin is going to do.
"We’re going to build plans to win games on the weekends that we play," he said after Sunday's loss in Philadelphia. "I promise you."
Yes, tanking can provide more avenues to higher-quality talent in the draft. But, it can also hinder the growth of who the Steelers have internally right now, namely Kenny Pickett. But, there are also second-year players such as Najee Harris and Pat Freiermuth, rookie receiver George Pickens -- who will be asked to step into a larger role with Claypool now in Chicago -- and younger players such as Isaiahh Loudermilk and DeMarvin Leal could see some playing time down the stretch as well.
And, the Steelers will get a nine-game sample size to evaluate how William Jackson III thrives or struggles in their defensive scheme. If he sticks, it'll provide a huge boost at cornerback.
Part of establishing a winning culture is setting the expectation to win. And when the team doesn't win, they don't settle for stacking up losses. They handle themselves as a winning team should. This is where the Pirates -- pun intended -- swing and miss in their never-ending rebuild.
Tomlin's used the bye week to reevaluate all areas of the team, on and off the field.
"We had a couple of days of fundamental work in all three phases and did some things behind the scenes in terms of the evaluation of our schematics and the quality of our work," Tomlin said. "Hopefully, we take the lessons learned and we still, as a staff, even though the field work is done, have some more workdays ahead of us in the bye week. We’ll continue to gather that information and let that information be a component of our next plan and the subsequent plans to follow."
The good thing for the Steelers is the schedule is much more light over the final nine games than it was during the first eight. There are winnable games against the Saints, Colts, Falcons, Panthers, Raiders and Browns. That stretch should make it easier for this young group to grow together and, hopefully, stack some wins.
If the Steelers find some success over the second half of the season and finish with six or seven wins, don't misconstrue it as an opportunity lost to have a high draft pick or think it's some sort of pride issue with Tomlin refusing to accept a losing season on his resume.
In fact, if and when Tomlin does finish with a losing season, him going down swinging is the perfect way to set and lead that winning culture. After all, "the Standard is the Standard."
It's just refreshing to see the Steelers be realistic with where they are. That way, they can get back to competing sooner rather than later.
MORE FROM THE SOUTH SIDE
• A change to the coaching staff is not part of the reevaluation taking place of the South Side. Tomlin was asked this directly Wednesday, and provided a simple, "No."
Never say never, but I'm continuing to stick with the precedent set that Tomlin will not fire Matt Canada before the end of the season. Making the move to rebuild shows Tomlin is willing to lay down his pride even just a little bit, but I'm not convinced the unwillingness to show Canada the door is an issue of pride.
A change at coordinator midseason could only make things more complicated for a young offense that's trying to gel. If I may try to dip my toe in the cliché pool, this is the bed they've made. They may consider riding the season out with Canada as the lesser of two evils.
• This may or may not be Canada passing the buck on playcalling, but it sounds as if he doesn't have unilateral control over each play called.
"We have got a system. We utilize everybody on our staff all the time," Canada explained. "We have coaches who their areas of expertise are used, and certain guys are in charge of third down, goal line, red zone. So, we’re all looking at that. We just have to find a way to get a little bit better and win some games."
• As far as making up for Claypool's absence, expect to see more of Freiermuth in the mix. Tomlin mentioned him specifically. But, there is room for a number of other guys to step up.
"We’ve got some games left to play and we feel really comfortable with the depth that we have at Chase’s position, the wide receiver position," Tomlin said. "More specifically, we’re really comfortable with our playmaking ability inside."
Steven Sims, Miles Boykin and Gunner Olszewski are now primed to see larger roles in the offense. Sims already saw an increased role with Claypool in the lineup, as he caught two passes on three target and gained 21 yards on two carries last week in Philadelphia.
And, Boykin's presence also provides an opportunity to use Diontae Johnson out of the slot, which he is open to doing.
• This may be some blind optimism, but I believe Jackson could be a great fit in Pittsburgh. The Steelers clearly wanted him in the 2016 draft, and settled for Artie Burns when Cincinnati sniped Jackson one pick prior.
Jackson really struggled in Washington, but he'll be asked to play much more man coverage with the Steelers, which properly plays to his strengths. He was playing more zone coverage with the Commanders.
There will be some time to get acclimated to the Steelers' scheme, but it does seem like a better fit on the surface.
"I’ve been playing man all my life, but obviously we’ve got to work at it every day and get back used to playing man," Jackson said. "It’s going to come with repetition."
• Speaking of that draft night, Jackson expected to be drafted by the Steelers. He was heavily courted by Pittsburgh throughout the whole draft process, and Jackson said Cincinnati wasn't even added to his visiting card until the last minute. This may not fully confirm the theory that the Bengals drafted Jackson just so the Steelers wouldn't get him, but it sure provides more evidence for it.
"Oh, it was crazy. But it is what it is," Jackson recalled of the draft night. "Either way, I was blessed to actually even go first round. I dreamed about that as a kid. I mean, I just took it all in and I just moved forward."
• There's been a heavy emphasis by many who are critical of the Steelers' offense that they need to run the ball more often and more effectively. Certainly some game circumstances have forced the Steelers to throw the ball far more often than they want to. But, they also aren't establishing it to start games either.
"Yes, we have to have more success doing everything for this offense to work. But yes, obviously our running game has to be more efficient, we have to stay on schedule," Canada said. "We had a little bit there last week and we had to throw it a lot at the end and we were down two scores right before the fumble. That was a really critical situation, to go down and score there and make it a one-score game and everything is better. But we didn't do that and all of the sudden, you're down two or three scores and your playbook gets smaller because you have to score more points to catch up."
My own two cents: The Steelers need to run more in between the tackles and quit so much outside zone. I don't believe the latter fits Harris' skill set. I don't believe he has the vision needed for zone schemes. And, from talking with a few of the offensive linemen, I really believe this group wants to run more gap schemes as opposed to zone, and the former would be playing to the strengths of the current group.
• I know there are people calling for Jaylen Warren to start over Harris. This is one area where I agree with Canada.
"Some of it is situational. He's been in more third downs with some of those things. With the way the picture is, the box and some of those things are situational, and also how many players are in there to tackle you," Canada explained. "He’s been seeing more success with yards per carry, that’s part of it. Obviously, Najee has spoken about it, and so I'm not speaking out of turn. Najee came out of camp and was getting going and getting going and getting himself back to full speed. So, it’s a combination of both, but they have been in different situations in a game."
Let's at least accept the fact that the Steelers have found a legitimate No. 2 back. That's a welcomed surprise, considering Warren signed as an undrafted free agent. And, let's not give up on a first-round running back after a season and a half.
Does Harris have his flaws? Absolutely. That dance after the catch on a third down was painful to watch. But, let's not forget that even despite playing on a foot at less than 100 percent, he's still had some Najee-esque runs. They've been few and far between. But, I really point to the bullet above -- I really don't believe he or the offensive line is being properly utilized.
• It sounds as if Damontae Kazee will be back in the fold for the Saints game after the bye. But, if the Calvin Austin situation has taught us anything, let's wait until he's actually activated.
However, Teryl Austin is talking as if Kazee will be back, and that gives the Steelers the opportunity to finally run the three-safety look with Kazee, Terrell Edmunds high and Minkah Fitzpatrick.
"Oh, I'm really disappointed," Austin said of Kazee's absence. "He's a really good football player, and he's been working these last couple weeks, so hopefully we'll have him back in the fold, and depending on his fitness and everything, we'll find a role for him. But he's a really good football player and I'm glad he's back."
• T.J. Watt wanted to play in Philadelphia, but the Steelers opted to sit him out. As it is with Kazee, Austin is talking as if Watt will be on the field at Acrisure Stadium against the Saints.
"Well, I'll let T.J. answer his health status or Mike [Tomlin] answer that. I'm not going to answer that. But he was pretty close," Austin said of Watt's availability in Philadelphia. "He was chomping at the bit to play. I know that. Obviously just wasn't ready, so we decided -- Mike decided to wait, and we'll get him back after the bye and we'll go from there."
Watt's return will be a huge boost to the endeavor I laid out from the start. This team needs to set the winning culture. Bringing back the reigning Defensive Player of the Year is a great way to do that.