Steelers Now
PITTSBURGH — There’s been a good deal of personnel turnover within the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense this offseason. Most notably, Aaron Rodgers slots in for the departed Russell Wilson and Justin Fields. George Pickens was sent to Dallas after his replacement, DK Metcalf, was brought in.
Along with the new star power, Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith plans on having a more homogenous mix of the ground and air games. Pittsburgh had the fourth-fewest passing attempts in the NFL a campaign ago, Smith’s first drawing up the team’s attack.
“Obviously, as your roster evolves, we didn’t bring Aaron in here and sign DK for all that money to go run the wishbone,” Smith said Wednesday before the team’s mandatory minicamp practice. “You try to play to the strengths of your team.”
Smith added that how the last go-round shook out wasn’t by design. During the home stretch, the Steelers cozied up against an iceberg, a downturn that began when Pickens had to sit with a hamstring injury. During the three-game stretch in which the mercurial wideout was sidelined, Wilson averaged just over 167 yards through the air.
“We ended up having to throw it a lot more at the end of the year,” Smith said. “That’s what happens when you’re down and you’re getting in some no-huddle. Things that were issues last year, some of the untimely turnovers that cost big momentum swings and gains. You get more plays in because you’re trying to hurry up. And so that’s a little bit different.
“Again, we played with a lot of different O-linemen early in the year. Some things, you’re trying to get the guys to get their feet wet. So, we did run it a little bit more. You’d love to be more balanced.”
Dating back to his first year as the Tennessee Titans’ offensive coordinator, in 2019, Smith’s units have ranked in the top five in rushing attempts on four occasions, including last year. Those crews have only cracked the top 20 in passing attempts once (No. 19, 2021).
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Will Aaron Rodgers Finally Provide Balance to Steelers Offense?
