Steelers' Overlooked Depth at Running Back
We'll start by saying this - Le'Veon Bell played all 16 games for the Steelers only once in five years. If we're labeling James Conner as injury-prone, we have to look at the back before him and what 200-plus touches in a season does to a running back.
Running Backs on the Roster:
James Conner
Benny Snell Jr.
Jaylen Samuels
Anthony McFarland
Trey Edmunds
Kerrith Whyte Jr.
Ralph Webb
Spencer Nigh (Fullback)
Derek Watt (Fullback)
Some have ruled out Conner's future in Pittsburgh because he's yet to finish a season healthy in the three years he's taken the field. Being a minuscule part of the offense in his rookie year and missing six games in 2019 leave him without anything to lean on when it comes to a contract. Therefore, he's gone, right?
So that's where we'll begin.
In two years as the starting running back, Conner has played 13 games in one season and 10 in the other. In 2018 (13 games), he earned himself a Pro Bowl appearance with 973 yards and 12 touchdowns.
It started fine. Even without finishing the season, coming off a near 1,000-yard year was enough to leave hope in the backfield. Conner was the man heading into 2019, but plenty of players were set for big years before Week 1 kicked off.
2019 (10 games) was a disaster. The offense as a whole was one of the worst in the NFL, and no one could stay healthy. No one. Not just Conner.
Which ties in another category we'll need to talk about - Anthony McFarland.
The Steelers drafted McFarland out of Maryland in the fourth-round, their third pick overall. A speedy back who only played two active seasons at Maryland before declaring for the NFL.
In two years, McFarland averaged 6.4 yards per carry and ran for eight touchdowns while playing the season on an ankle sprain in 2019.
Pittsburgh didn't draft him to be the starter, though. At least not this season.
McFarland's role in the offense is to add speed and ultimately help add more options behind Conner. The running game saw what happened when Jaylen Samuels and Benny Snell Jr. were leaned on as the primary backs, and it was clear they needed more explosiveness from the running game.
Snell is the primary backup heading into camp. Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin praised his rookie season all year but made it clear they'd like to see improvement in the backfield.
If we're honest, McFarland's role is to compliment Snell if Conner does miss time this season, leaving Samuels as the fourth and likely the last back to get cut.
The expectations for the backfield should be Conner's heavy dose with a sprinkle of Snell and a minimal workload for McFarland. Tomlin said it himself that he's a "feature back" coach, which shouts, "James Conner isn't going to see fewer reps."
When it comes to the rest of the backs, it's hard to find a place for some. Kerrith Whyte Jr. came into Pittsburgh amid chaos and proved to be a reliable runner out of the backfield, and a decent kick returner.
If he can work on his pass-catching ability, he can be the fourth runner this season. A low-budget back who has some upside, and can be relied on when needed.
Trey Edmunds has a special teams factor that could play a role, but his work on offense is obsolete. While it'd be nice to keep Terrell Edmunds' brother on the roster, Edmunds' best chance to gain the upper hand on Whyte is to prove his worth on punt and kick coverage as more critical than Whyte's return ability.
Finally, there's the added benefit of a fullback. Derek Watt signed a three-year, $9.75 million contract to come join T.J. in Pittsburgh, and the expectations are high.
Not only did Watt lead the NFL in special teams tackles last season, but he's also as consistent as they come.
He's not a player who needs to worry about injury and has been a fullback the Los Angeles Chargers have used when working with Melvin Gordon - the bigger of the Chargers' backs - in three of the last four years.
It's easy to say the impact of Watt is significant, but it's not easy to show without turning your head towards a highlight reel.
Just remember this, Conner's face lit up when he was asked about the return of Rosie Nix coming off a knee injury last season.
That smile says it all. Conner loves a hard-nosed fullback in front of him. Now he's got a healthy one.
Noah Strackbein is a Senior Writer with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
