The Steelers had five teams inquire about trading for receiver Chase Claypool, most offering second-round picks in exchange, but they made the deal with the Chicago Bears to get a better draft pick with an eye toward the future.
More immediately, though, the trade further decimated a position that once was considered a strength. Since the end of last season, the Steelers have lost four of their top five wide receivers, not to mention a coveted rookie draft choice to a season-ending injury.
However, coach Mike Tomlin said he doesn’t expect the trade of Claypool, a second-round draft pick in 2020, to alter the focus of the passing game. He said the Steelers made the trade because they were “comfortable” with the depth at the position and that Claypool’s absence would open up areas of the field for other players.
“It’s not just the depth at the position we were comfortable with in terms of making that move, but the space of the field Chase made plays for us also is the space of the field where Pat Freiermuth makes plays for us,” Tomlin said Tuesday at his weekly news conference. “It’s reasonable to expect him to get highlighted in that area, as well.”
Claypool’s absence is the only change to the first-team depth chart, offense and defense, coming off a bye week.
But Tomlin said the biggest adjustment during the off week was assessing what the Steelers were doing offensively and which players needed to be featured more, an indication that Freiermuth, rookie receiver George Pickens and undrafted running back Jaylen Warren could see expanded roles in the second half of the season.
“We spent a lot of time how we’re dividing the labor up and who we’re choosing to feature and how much we’re choosing to feature people,” Tomlin said. “When you get to a trade circumstance like Chase, it creates a real avenue to have some of those discussions in terms of distribution of playmaking and who works what areas of the field. We feel really good about some of the work we got done, at least in those discussions.”
Tomlin said Warren might have merited more time at running back after assessing his performance through eight games. Warren is averaging 5.3 yards per carry compared to Najee Harris (3.3), last year’s top draft choice. He is also averaging 7.3 yards on 12 receptions, as opposed to 4.7 yards on 24 catches by Harris.
“We’ve gotten some awesome contributions from Jaylen, and it’s reasonable to expect that to continue,” Tomlin said. “I mentioned the division of labor and who’s done what and who’s done what well. I know that was a topic of discussion and very evident in our tape review.”
However, Tomlin said much of the same thing last month, and the additional carries for Warren never materialized. In fact, he had just two carries the next game after Tomlin said, “We've been playing Jaylen increasingly, anyway, and that's going to continue."
Meantime, one aspect of the offense that has pleased Tomlin is the mobility of rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett, who has been very good throwing on the run despite his eight interceptions and 66.8 passer rating.
Nonetheless, only one team is averaging fewer points per game than the Steelers (15.0), and that’s the Indianapolis Colts (14.7) who fired head coach Frank Reich on Monday.
“I thought our misdirection passing game and pocket movement was really positive and efficient,” Tomlin said.
Flag football
The Steelers have been penalized an NFL-high six times for an infraction that has affected a lot of teams around the league — illegal man downfield. Guard James Daniels has been flagged for three of those infractions, none more costly than the one that wiped out a 35-yard gain by Jaylen Warren in a Week 3 loss in Cleveland.
“We have to be better in-tune with what officials ... not just us, everyone,” Tomlin said.
But it’s more than just the illegal-man-downfield penalties. Of the 22 penalties committed by the Steelers through eight games, 17 have been by the offensive line. It includes five penalties each for holding and false starts. The only lineman to not be penalized for any infraction is center Mason Cole.
“Mason Cole is a hub of communication in the offensive line and has displayed consistent leadership,” Tomlin said. “He’s been steady Eddy, not only in performance, but in presence. He’s a quality veteran football player.”
