Steelers Connected To Massive New Free Agent Dalvin Cook By Big Fox Sports Personality

The Pittsburgh Steelers made it clear in the home stretch of the 2022 season that the rushing attack would be a priority. The organization's rookie quarterback, Kenny Pickett was struggling early on in his career, especially statistically prior to the bye week, but the team finished on a 7-2 stretch and almost miraculously landed in the playoffs. There was a nice balance in the run game between Najee Harris and undrafted free agent, Jaylen Warren. The franchise worked to revamp the offensive line during the 2023 offseason and the two-headed monster could be in line for a huge year.

Harris and Warren aren't the best combination in the NFL, but they could potentially turn into that if Offensive Coordinator, Matt Canada trusts the big men blocking up front. The duo rushed for 1,413 yards in 2022 with the majority of the work going to Harris. The commitment to the run also didn't come until the second half of the season. Pittsburgh's offensive narrative could be drastically different to begin 2023.

The biggest league news that came about on Thursday was the Minnesota Vikings deciding to release running back, Dalvin Cook. The four-time Pro-Bowler has spent all six years of his career in Minnesota and is likely already searching for a new home. The Miami Dolphins might be the best fit, but that doesn't mean he will end up there.

The Steelers seem to be pretty set up when it comes to the running back positions as far as the top two guys go. It would make absolutely no sense for the front office to pursue someone like Cook, with all due respect to his talent. That didn't stop someone from linking the elusive ball-carrier to Pittsburgh shortly after he was released from Minnesota.

FS1 had a segment on the popular show, Speak, on Thursday following the news breaking that Cook would be on the open market. Joy Taylor brought up the idea of the dynamic ball-carrier wearing the black and gold on Sundays. She had a rather intriguing reasoning for connecting Cook to the Pittsburgh offense led by Pickett.

"I think he would be very interesting with the Steelers. When I think about the Steelers' offensive identity, they always have big and fast receivers. They always have a solid running game," Taylor said.

Taylor bounced off of what analyst, LeSean 'Shady' McCoy said earlier in the dialogue. She acknowledged the presence of Harris, but agreed with the former star running back that it's beneficial to have two guys who can carry the ball out of the backfield.

"They have Najee Harris, but, like Shady said, it's a two-back system pretty much everywhere you go now. They don't want to wear someone down."

Taylor should have have done some homework beforehand. Of course, Cook has a better resume than both Harris and Warren, but the failure to mention the 2022 undrafted rookie, who has the potential to be an absolute steal, was irresponsible. The current one-two punch that the Steelers have is more than enough and there is legitimately no reason to bring in a guy who will drastically change the team's current cap situation.

Taylor Implies The Steelers Have Unique Play-Calling Scheme

The worst point that was brought up was in regards to the Steelers' offensive approach. Taylor mentioned that with the right system in place, a team like Pittsburgh could really take advantage of Cook's talents.

"If you have a creative offensive coordinator, you can really utilize a guy like Dalvin Cook."

Unfortunately, Canada has not done anything to have fans believe he is creative. He hasn't even done enough to prove he is capable. The play-caller is on a flaming hot seat and if he can't make it work with the current group he has, there is no turning back for him.

How many teams do you think could use Cook before the Steelers? Let us know in the comments below!

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