In just a few short days, the longest offseason in recent memory for the Pittsburgh Steelers will finally wrap up as the team begins training camp and the preseason. The Steelers are looking to rebound from a disappointing 2018 campaign but we have some questions that need to be answered before that happens. Here are three big questions for the Steelers during training camp.
Do the Steelers need a No. 2 wide receiver?
Up until last season, the wide receiver spot opposite Antonio Brown was something of a revolving door. While he was the constant, the No. 2 receiver on the team varied from week to week depending on the circumstances. In 2017 we saw JuJu Smith-Schuster and Martavis Bryant share the workload. In 2016 it was even more convoluted with no other receiver with more than 48 receptions.
We could see something similar this season. Pittsburgh has four solid options behind Smith-Schuster but you don’t really envision any of them being the weekly threat Smith-Schuster became last season.
Is this finally the year for Bud Dupree?
We’ve all seen the videos. Dupree seems to be training like a maniac to prepare for the upcoming season. We saw it last season as well. But at the end of the day all it netted was 5.5 sacks. There’s no denying the athletic marvel Dupree is. But until all his training can translate to the field, you have to wonder if he’s hit his ceiling in terms of production. This is the last year of Dupree’s contract and he’s making more than $9 million on his fifth-year option.
Are the Steelers equipped to deal with a Ben Roethlisberger injury?
The short answer to this is no. No team is built to deal with a longterm injury to a franchise quarterback. But we aren’t talking about Roethlisberger missing a significant number of games. But in a year where the AFC North is going to be extremely competitive and every game could have playoff implications, is this team prepared to weather two or three games without Big Ben? As of now, Joshua Dobbs is the guy but we are banking on Mason Rudolph making strides in training camp.
