Right Tackle Willie Colon is out for the season with a torn achilles tendon and Rookie Chris Scott will miss at least 3 months with a broken foot. For a team with a reputation of having pretty severe limitations in regards to O-line play, this is not a good way to start the 2010-2011 season.
Granted, those of us who actually follow the Steelers, watch the games, and make some sort of analysis outside of the glib fluff of the ESPN talking heads, know that a good deal of the bad rep the O-line gets is because of Bens propensity to hold on to the ball too long. That being said, its obvious the Steelers front office has not exactly made it a priority to upgrade the offensive trenches with high draft picks until this years drafting of Center Maurkice Pouncy.
So how does the loss of Colon affect the possible 53 man roster?
Last years Offensive line looked like this:
OC Justin Hartwig
OC/OG Doug Legursky
OG/OT Trai Essex
OG/OT Ramon Foster
OG Chris Kemoeatu
OG Kraig Urbik.
OT Max Starks
OT Willie Colon
OT Tony Hills
If we go with 9 linemen again....here are the players from which the final 9 will come from. Which means three of these players will either be cut or sent to the practice squad.
OC Hartwig, Justin
OC/OG Legursky, Doug
OC/OG Pouncey, Maurkice
OG/OT Essex, Trai
OG Kemoeatu, Chris
OG Urbik, Kraig
OG Brooks, Dorian
OG Jolly, Kyle OT
OG/OT Foster, Ramon
OT Hills, Tony
OT Scott, Jonathan
OT Starks, Max
Unless we sign a FA....I think the final roster will be: Starks at LT...Kemoeatu at LG... Hartwig at OC...Pouncy or Foster at RG...Foster or Essex at RT
That leaves 3 more slots. I think OT Scott has an inside track for a slot due to being brought over from Buffalo with the new O-line coach. OG Urbik should be able to hold on as a reserve...and the last slot I think will go to OC/OG Legursky who will be retained to be the back-up OC in 2011 when Hartwig leaves.
That would mean that OT Jolly and OG Brooks will either be cut or place on the PS (along with Chris Scott when he comes back). It also would mean the end of the Tony Hills experiment.
What do you think?