History suggests Benny Snell Jr.'s role won't increase much
Tuesday, amongst the Mason Rudolph concussion, Baltimore Ravens' loss and answering questions about coaching in Washington, Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin let everyone know that running back Jaylen Samuels will miss time with a knee sprain.
'Roughly a month' was the timetable Tomlin gave during his Press Conference. After undergoing a scope on his knee, Samuels was declared out for multiple weeks. Tomlin, who has two more reliable running backs, said they'll replace Samuels' role with players they already have on roster.
This means Benny Snell Jr.. Snell, the rookie out of Kentucky, who took the SEC by storm and found himself becoming one of the most talked about power backs in college, hasn't done much this season. Primarily a special teams guy, Snell's opportunities in the backfield have been few and far between, battling with the third spot on the depth chart.
But the Steelers didn't use a fourth-round pick on Snell to keep him sidelined his entire career. With James Conner and Samuels already on the roster, Snell was capable of coming into the season and adapting to the NFL game. There was no rush to put him on the offense, and because of it, they didn't.
Now, he'll get his shot. As the number two back in Pittsburgh, Snell should see the field a few times a game. Over the next month, he may have a chance to have a breakout game, but realistically, his role isn't getting too much bigger with the move up the depth chart.
The Steelers haven't been a dual-threat running team in years. Not since the days of Jerome Bettis returning for a season, and Willie Parker being too good to keep on the sidelines. But since then, they've maintained a single back running game, and that won't change now.
Conner dealt with the same restrictions his rookie season. A third-round pick and hometown hero, Conner was expected to see some sort of action during his rookie campaign. He didn't. Or at least not much.
During Conner's first NFL season, he played a total of 68 snaps. Being on the field only 6.15% of the season, Conner saw just how little backups were used.
The following season, when Le'Veon Bell sat out a year and Conner took over as the primary runner. The year Samuels walked into Pittsburgh and expected to see a larger role than Conner had the following year. Figuring a second-year back, who wasn't supposed to start, was now their top back; the Steelers would work in a system to utilize both runners.
They didn't.
Conner only played 13 games last season, and still spent 64.34% of the season snaps on the field. Even with three games as the starter, Samuels saw a total of 228 plays in his first season.
And this isn't just due to rookies in the depth chart. Remember De'Angelo Williams? Through 10 games as the starter during Le'Veon Bell's absence in 2015, Williams totaled 907 yards and 11 touchdowns. The next season, even starting four games again, Williams 25.02% of the offensive snaps.
The wildcat opened up a role for Samuels, but Snell isn't the same runner as the multi-threat back. Instead, he's more like James Conner. As great as that will be over time, it isn't going to help his role this season. The Steelers are opening up to more than one running back per game, but it's a slow process.
Samuels broke a barrier through five games. Truly, through one game. Prior to Cincinnati, Samuels' biggest day on offense was 2 rushes for 4 yards and 2 targets for a reception and another 2 yards.
At one point, all three running backs will be utilized in Pittsburgh, but not now. There's no sign saying it's Benny Snell Jr. time, anymore than it was Jaylen Samuels time. The Steelers don't get too crazy with their running game, and despite leaving special teams to play some offense, Snell is going to spend a lot of his time doing exactly what he's done the first five games.
