For years, the Pittsburgh Steelers have built their reputation by sticking to a slow and steady approach to building a team. While other NFL teams make splashy signings and trades, the Steelers have always kept the course and never panicked to add players.
Until this year.
This offseason and season has been markedly different. And this made us wonder why the team seems to be going all-in on a season that appears to be lost. Here are a few theories.
Ben Roethlisberger isn’t coming back
The Steelers were dealt a blow when Roethlisberger was lost for the year. The team is now learning to live life with Mason Rudolph. They could be opting for an aggressive stance despite losing their franchise signal-caller because they don’t want to give Rudolph a no-confidence vote by giving up on him with 13 games to play. Or they might be planning for a near-future without Big Ben.
Kevin Colbert isn’t coming back
The Steelers general manager chose not to accept a contract extension this offseason and is essentially operating as a lame duck by choice. It’s hard to believe Colbert is suddenly signing off on all these moves since this has never been his style. This could be a case where he knows he isn’t coming back, the team knows he isn’t coming back and they are moving in a new direction because of it.
The team just doesn’t get it
There’s a real possibility this is all just a matter of desperation to stay competitive for the fanbase. The Steelers organization knows how fickle Steelers’ fans can be and want to make it appear the team hasn’t given up on the season. But does anything thing the addition of Minkah Fitzpatrick and Nick Vannett suddenly makes this team competitive? Pittsburgh has mortgaged its future in a way the fans have never seen before. You just hope they aren’t oblivious of the longterm problems with this.
