If you could take over as general manager and had total autonomy over the Pittsburgh Steelers what would you do first? We decided to dive straight into this hypothetical and came up with a front office wishlist for the offseason. Some of these are things we’d do and some are things we hope will happen.
Here’s our wishlist
Ben Roethlisberger comes back 100 percent
If Roethlisberger doesn’t fully recover from his elbow injury, the rest won’t matter. The Steelers should know more of a timeline for Big Ben’s recovery in February and this update will have a profound impact on the rest of the offseason. But the best news is going to be when Roethlisberger is fully healthy.
Randy Fichtner is demoted to quarterbacks coach
I acknowledge there’s no way the Steelers are going to fire Fichtner because of his relationship with Roethlisberger. But there’s no way he’s cut out to be the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Whether it is to demote him back to his old job or hire a dedicated quarterbacks coach (and run game coordinator), something has to change.
Several big contracts get a restructure
We will dive into this deeper in the coming days but there are several big contracts on the books for 2020 that don’t offer much in the way of bonus money where the Steelers could re-work them to move some base to bonus and free up cap money to sign some priority free agents.
The Steelers trim the fat
There are a handful of guys who are likely to see the wrong side of the business end of the NFL. Guys like linebacker Mark Barron, guard Ramon Foster and others are all bloated cap hits with very little downside to releasing them.
Hit again in free agency
The Steelers ended up with nine rookies on the final 53-man roster. This is a great sign for the future but there are several spots on the depth chart where a veteran could help. Last season the Steelers hit big with cornerback Steven Nelson but missed horribly with wide receiver Donte Moncrief. In 2020, a veteran offensive lineman and wide receiver are just what this team needs.
