Here is the Beer We Go Steelers 2015 Report Card. I posted recently in a forum that without the Super Bowl trophy the season was a failure. It would be a huge mistake to call this season a failure. While winning the Super Bowl is ALWAYS the goal, the way the Steelers played can never be called a failure. This team had so much life and so many players stepped up and made it a great year.
GRADES:
Coaching: A+, Mike Tomlin had a tremendous season, he pushed the right buttons several times. He was the only coach to understand the value of the new Two Point Rule, and the Steelers fought until the bitter end. He never made excuses and put the Steelers in a position to win. They never felt sorry for themselves and they developed several good players. The San Diego game tells the story for me.
Todd Haley’s offense was again SCARY and they torched The Bronco’s number one defense two times and absolutely wrecked “The Legion of Boom”. He protected Ben and the offense was original and fun to watch. When they were rolling they were hard to stop. Keith Butler’s rookie campaign, was solid on some fronts, the pass rush was excellent and the front seven continued to develop. The secondary was lousy an the stats showed it, they did get better though as the season progressed. Mike Munchack, year two gets a mention for his excellent work with the O-Line, which is now a strength, not to mention he lost two of his best and the Steelers never really missed a beat.
QB: A-, Big Ben had a great year again and played well in both playoff games, he is tough an a great player. He gives the Steelers a chance to win every week. Michael Vick looks like he is at the end of the line and had some moments but for the most part, was a disappointment. Landry Jones, saved the season when he came in and beat the Cardinals, one of the best teams in football. He struggled after that however.
RB: B+, It was a lost season for Le’Veon Bell, he was suspended came back and played great, then was injured and lost for the year. DeAngelo Williams had a great season filling in and the Steelers running game kept on moving. He too was injured and the Steelers needed to rely on Fitz Toussant and Jordan Todman. Both showed signs that they could play in this league. Unfortunately, Toussant had the key turnover in the Broncos playoff game, but he really did a nice job.
The Fullback situation was interesting as well. Will Johnson played well but lost quite a few snaps to special teams standout Roosevelt Nix. Nix played well and then you guessed it, he was injured. This will be a certain “A” next year.
WR: A+, The best unit on the Steelers, Antonio Brown is amazing and one of the best players in the NFL. Martavis Bryant is on the verge of a huge breakout. Markus Wheaton was steady if not spectacular at some points in the year. The rest of the crew all contributed and played well.
TE: A, Heath Miller, was a key contributor again and really put up great numbers in big games. Jesse James was a very nice addition and is almost a Heath clone. Matt Spaeth is a solid veteran tight end. The Steelers got just about everything they could out of this unit.
OL: B+, The Offensive Line had a very good season. The protection was excellent in most games. The run blocking was terrific and the Steelers made the running backs interchangeable. Keep in mind that the Steelers lost Maurkice Pouncey and Kelvin Beachum. Cody Wallace did a good job and filled in admirably. Alejandro Villanueva did a very good job, given what a raw prospect he is. He will push Beachum next year. Dave DeCastro is one of the best players at his position. Ramon Foster is going to be missed next year.
DL: B, Cam “Steelhead” Heyward continues to be a monster and he is the anchor of the defense! Stephon Tuitt’s development was terrific and Steve McLendon looks like he finally is comfortable playing the nose. They are almost there!
LB: B+, If the Steelers played two more weeks, this might have been an A. They simply continued to get better and better as the year went on. Ryan Shazier showed great strides in year two and was a vicious force in the playoffs. Lawrence Timmons was tough as nails and was a solid foundation in the middle. Both Jarvis Jones and Bud Dupree continued to improve and next year will be the break out year! Arthur Moats played well all year. James Harrison was the best of the bunch and he also turned it up in the playoffs. He will go down as one of the greatest Steelers. If this was his last year, he really made the most of it. Vince Williams and Sean Spence are both very capable players.
DB: D+, The Steelers secondary was again terrible. That being said, William Gay played well and has been a solid contributor. Antwon Blake was the fans whipping boy most of the year, and he struggled most of the time. I am not a Mike Mitchell fan he showboats too much for me, but he played okay. Not sure what happened with Brandon Boykin and why he rarely saw the field.
Special Teams: C, Chris Boswell, AKA “Little Bos” was terrific and will most likely be back next year, after plowing through four previous kickers the Steelers found a good one. Greg Warren played well. Robert Golden did a great job and he was a special teams ace. The kick return game was atrocious and cost Dri Archer his job and Jacoby Jones was worse. Antonio Brown was great but honestly, he should not be returning punts.
BEER WE GO STEELERS! BEER WE GO!