Willie Colon Raises One Area Of Concern For Steelers’ Offense

Even without some important starters playing, the Steelers’ offense has shown some potential—minus one area, Willie Colon suggests. Speaking about the offensive line, he raised concern about his former position at right tackle. While Max Iheanachor should take over in time, the currently active options have underwhelmed.

“The left side of the line, I think we can assume they’re gonna be okay”, Colon said on the KDKA Steelers Extra Point postgame show, assessing the Steelers’ offense. “I really like Spencer Anderson; Brock Hoffman once again played well. I think Dylan Cook and Broderick Jones are the ones we’re trying to figure out. We’ll see what happens, but it’s gonna be interesting”.

The Steelers’ new offense under HC Mike McCarthy has potential, but the offensive line must settle in. His first move involved shifting Troy Fautanu and Mason McCormick from right to left, which clearly is permanent. Zach Frazier has serious Pro Bowl potential at center, but the right side of the line is less certain. Personally, I am less high on how the right guards have performed than Willie Colon is.

But the obvious concern about the Steelers’ offense right now is the right end of the offensive line. Dylan Cook has run with the first team all offseason, but he has been shaky in both preseason games so far. Broderick Jones, who has the most starts logged on this line, has struggled just as much, if not more, and against a lower level of competition. He was particularly bad in their second preseason game.

Of course, the hope for the future is Max Iheanachor, but he has already missed two preseason games with what increasingly seems like more than a minor injury. The more time he misses, the longer it will take for him to enter the starting lineup. But if the Steelers’ offense struggles because of the offensive line’s performance, they may pull the trigger on an in-season change.

Before late last season, nobody would be factoring in Dylan Cook right now. Before he started, he was on the practice squad. A serious neck injury suffered by Broderick Jones prompted his promotion to the 53-man roster, and when he got into the game, he proved to be a pleasant surprise. But based on two preseason games, he is not having the same success at right tackle.

And the Steelers never seemed overly sure of Broderick Jones’ place on the offensive line at the best of times. For his first two seasons, he started at right tackle because he couldn’t win the left tackle job. While he seemed on the upswing at the time of his injury last year, he is clearly not at his best now. Some of that could be due to the lengthy time missed and playing his way into shape. But the regular season is fast approaching, and they need a reliable right tackle. Right now, none of their options seem to fit that bill.