The Pittsburgh Steelers will begin training camp next week on July 28th. The long wait for the football season to ramp into full gear is finally upon us. Over the course of the next month, dozens of players will compete for playing time and spots on the roster. The main constant over the past 18 seasons that won't be involved however, is Steelers retired quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger.
The future Hall of Fame signal caller had his last training camp a year ago, but didn't participate in any of the team's preseason matchups. Looking back, the offense had a completely different look in Matt Canada's first few games calling plays after being promoted to offensive coordinator. The 2021 offense through four preseason games can actually be looked back on and provide hope for the Steelers faithful as the unit was something that it wasn't during the meaningful games: explosive.
Steelers preseason last year (no Roethlisberger):
— John Daigle (@notJDaigle) July 19, 2022
1st in pre-snap motion
3rd in explosive (15+ yds) passes (19)
T8 play-action
Steelers regular season with Ben:
27th pre-snap motion
28th explosive passes
30th play-action
Sure, one can argue that the games in August aren't against top competition, but those numbers are drastically different and hard to ignore. Mason Rudolph and Dwayne Haskins Jr. took most of the snaps last year while Joshua Dobbs got a little bit of action. It seems to be clear that Canada had a different plan in mind for an offense led by Roethlisberger versus anyone else.
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers motions from the line of scrimmage against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on November 01, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Getty Images)
The biggest stat there in my opinion is the explosive play rate. According to Sharp Football Analysis, the Steelers were 30th in the NFL last year with an explosive play rate of just 7%. Only the New York Giants and Houston Texans were worse. Yet, the preseason saw the offense rank third in the league and that was thought to foreshadow a dominant offense. But, the important games saw nothing similar.
The franchise has a ton of talent on the offensive side of the ball this year with Najee Harris, Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, Pat Freiermuth, George Pickens and Calvin Austin III. There is no reason why we shouldn't see many more big plays in the 2022 regular season. But, it's not just because of the weapons. Roethlisberger had several in 2021. It all comes down to Canada utilizing fresh legs and arms at the signal-caller position.
Steelers Quarterback Situation For 2022 Will Be Incredibly Different Than Last Year
The good news for Steelers fans is the top two quarterbacks on this year's roster won't just be mobile, but have more talent than last season's preseason quarterback group. Mitch Trubisky and Kenny Pickett will take many snaps in August as they adjust to a new offense and because of their abilities, we are more likely to see the same offense in the regular season as we do next month. Last year, it was a completely different story because of Roethlisberger's lack of participation.
Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterbacks participate in Organized Team Activities (OTAs) Thursday May 26, 2022 at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. (Abigail Dean/Pittsburgh Steelers)
The Steelers were at their best in the Roethlisberger era when the rushing attack was working and play action was a threat. Canada hinted that the offense in 2021 would return to that form, but games that mattered showed us a completely different narrative. The positive part of the upcoming season is the guys taking the snaps throughout both training camp and games, will be who is on the field come September and on.
Do you think Canada will improve the offense heading into the 2022 season and generate big plays more frequently? Let us know in the comments below!
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