Between the Lines: Pittsburgh Steelers 2009 Review/2010 Preview

As we get ready for the start of the NFL season, FanHouse will be take a look at the offensive line situation for each team in the league -- how they performed last season and how they project into 2010. You can find additional FanHouse offensive line analysis here.

In 2008, the Pittsburgh Steelers proved that you don't need an excellent offensive line to win a Super Bowl.

Back then, the Steelers problems were at tackle and center. Willie Colon and Max Starks were still the tackles in 2009, just like they had been for the previous two seasons, but they have showed steady improvement and are no longer really a problem.

But inside, Pittsburgh still has issues at center (although Justin Hartwig is better than Sean Mahan) and they have never really found a solid replacement for departed Pro Bowler Alan Faneca.

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Player	Sacks	Median Sack Time	Over 3 Seconds
QB/Play Call	12	2.5	5
Max Starks	7.5	3.7	5
Justin Hartwig	7	3	3.5
Chris Kemoeatu	5.5	3.1	2.5
Willie Colon	5	3.3	3
Rashard Mendenhall	4	2.95	1.5
Trai Essex	3	3.3	2
Matt Spaeth	2.5	2.6	1
Heath Miller	1.5	4.1	1.5
Ramon Foster	1	2.65	0
Mewelde Moore	1	2.4	0

The Good: Colon looked like a guard out of position at right tackle early in his career, but by 2009, he truly had grown into the position. Colon has been able to generate good push in the running game for years (which is why many thought he'd be a better guard than tackle), but in 2009, he showed improved pass blocking that turned him into a solid right tackle. Pro Football Focus, in fact, rated him as the best right tackle in the NFL. I wouldn't go that far, but he is much better than his reputation.

No one will ever say that Starks is the best left tackle in the league -- he's far from it. But he has put the worst of his struggles behind him to the point where he now is adequate. The average left tackle gave up 6.6 sacks last season (by Pro Football Focus' calculations); by my count, Starks gave up 7 1/2 sacks last season.

Chris Kemoeatu needed several years to fully digest the playbook, but now that he has an idea of where he should be going, he's been able to take advantage of his massive strength as a run blocker. He's also relatively nimble as a pulling guard for his size. He still does struggle at times with assignments in pass blocking, but even there he has significantly improved.

The Bad: If Starks isn't as bad as his reputation when you compare him to other left tackles, Hartwig is significantly worse than his. The average starting center gave up 1.6 sacks last season, Hartwig gave up seven by my count. (Pro Football Focus also blamed him for seven sacks).

Trai Essex finally earned a starting job at right guard, after years as the team's primary backup tackle. It didn't go particularly well. Essex didn't give up many sacks, but he didn't generate much push in the running game, and according to Pro Football Focus, he gave up 27 quarterback pressures (I didn't chart pressures personally). Ramon Foster, the fill-in for Kemoeatu when he was injured, wasn't great, but as an undrafted free-agent rookie he showed some potential. Foster has some strength to generate push.

It's also fair to note that the Steelers offensive line does get blamed for plenty of sacks that are not really their fault. Ben Roethlisberger was sacked 25 times last season on plays where he held the ball for three seconds or more -- the most of any quarterback in the league.

The Future: Colon's injury does leave a rather large hole in what was already a below-average line. But the Steelers did attempt to address that by signing free agent Flozell Adams. Adams has five Pro Bowl berths -- the entire rest of the projected Steelers' starting five has zero. Adams isn't a Pro Bowl caliber tackle any more -- he struggles to handle speed rushers -- but there is hope that by moving to the less demanding right tackle position, he will get a break on pass blocking, while continuing to be an impressive run blocker.

The bigger change may be the arrival of rookie first-rounder Maurkice Pouncey. It's not clear whether Pouncey will start at guard or center, but it already seems pretty clear that he'll start somewhere. Even though he's missed much of the first week with a hamstring injury, the Steelers' coaching staff is already very, very excited about his potential.

If Pouncey can replace Hartwig or Essex and simply be an average NFL linemen, it should help the run game. Pittsburgh should have plenty of depth on the interior of the line -- Foster and Doug Legursky showed promise last year, while Pittsburgh still has some hope that second-year guard Kraig Urbik will improve on a poor rookie season.

There's significantly less depth at tackle. Jonathan Scott came into camp as the primary backup at left and right tackle, but he was a disaster when he started for Buffalo last year.