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2010 Offensive Line Analysis - Pittsburgh Steelers

Updates:
June 30, 2010 – RT Willie Colon will miss the entire 2010 season. He was the best lineman on the Steelers last year and it will hurt them tremendously. The Steelers will probably sign another tackle to replace him so we’ll have to wait and see what happens.

2010 Projected Starters:
Left Tackle: Max Starks
Left Guard: Chris Kemoeatu
Center: Justin Hartwig
Right Guard: Maurkice Pouncey
Right Tackle: Trai Essex

2009 Injuries:
G Chris Kemoeatu: Weeks 12, 15-17

2009 Statistics:

Overview:
The Pittsburgh Steelers played at .500 or above for the sixth consecutive season but their 9-7 record wasn’t enough to qualify for the postseason. Their running game was much improved but Ben Roethlisberger was sacked over 45 times for the fourth consecutive season. It is interesting to note however that they were right around the league average in terms of hits to the quarterback so the sacks may not be entirely the fault of the offensive line.

Starting at left tackle for the Steelers will be the 28-year old Max Starks. Starks is very big and strong at 6’8” and 345 lbs but has pretty slow feet. He is a good run blocker and does an excellent job of sealing the edge but will struggle at times in pass protection. Despite allowing eight sacks last year, he was only responsible for the pressure on his quarterback 15 times which ranks him above the league average for left tackles. Starks will never be a great tackle but he should be an average or slightly above average left tackle for the next few years for the Steelers. Opposite of Starks will be Willie Colon who started all 48 regular season games for the Steelers in the past three seasons. Colon stole the starting right tackle job from Starks in 2007 and after struggling a little last year, he really stepped up his game in 2009. He is not as big at 6’3” and 315 lbs but has improved his athleticism over the last year and has gotten much better in pass protection. Last season was Colon’s best in the NFL and although he has been criticized often, many would say that he was the best lineman for the Steelers in 2009. Tony Hills, a fourth round pick in 2008, adds depth at tackle but he has not yet played since being drafted.

Chris Kemoeatu will enter his third season as the starting left guard after taking over for the nine-time Pro Bowler Alan Faneca. Kemoeatu is a big and strong guard at 6’3” and 345 lbs but he has very little mobility. He is a good run blocker if he is asked to block right in front of him but he does not have the ability to pull to the outside. He also struggles with lateral movements in pass protection and gets beaten by quick and strong defensive linemen as we saw in the past two years. He made some nice improvements in pass protection in 2009 but is still below average. Overall, Kemoeatu is strong and big and is a good run blocker up the middle but struggles in other aspects of the position. 2010 first round pick Maurkice Pouncey has the edge to earn the starting job at right guard. He has good size at 6’5” and 320 lbs and has the versatility to play both guard and center. He has pretty quick feet and has the ability to pull to the outside because of that speed. Pouncey will probably be the center of the future for the Steelers but they would like him to start at guard this year. The top backup at both guard and tackle will be the versatile 27-year old Trai Essex. Essex started all 16 games at right guard last season but he struggled all season long in both pass protection and run blocking. He was the weak link on this line last year but remains a pretty good backup. Undrafted free agent Ramon Foster, who started four games in place of Kemoeatu last year, also had a tough season but should improve in his second year as a pro.

Justin Hartwig will return at center after starting all 16 games in his first two seasons with the Steelers. He is pretty big for a center at 6’4” and 315 lbs but lacks strength and does not have a good enough technique to make up for it. He will often get pushed into the backfield in pass protection and does not have the ability to create holes in the running game. For the second consecutive season, Hartwig ranked last amongst centers in sacks allowed and has allowed twice as many sacks as any other center over the past two years.

2010 Outlook:
The Steelers line has been awful for the past four years in pass protection and things won’t get a whole lot better with four starters returning this season. In 11 full games with the group of Starks, Kemoeatu, Hartwig, Essex and Colon last season, the Steelers averaged a respectable 4.3 yards per carry but allowed 35 sacks. Pouncey should be an upgrade over Essex in both pass protection and run blocking but it probably won’t be enough for this line to show major improvement. Depth isn’t particularly good with Essex and Foster but both gained some experience last year and should be better this year. Overall, this line will remain amongst the worst in pass protection but it should once again be above average in run blocking.

See all of our 2010 Offensive Line Analysis Articles