Steelers QB Decision Coming Back to Hurt Them Already

The Pittsburgh Steelers' decision to keep four quarterbacks on their 53-man roster might be coming back to haunt them.

Former Steelers guard Willie Colon discussed the current state of the offensive line, which has struggled and is now dealing with a few injuries early this season, while stating that the team should have held onto 10 players at the position instead of having four signal callers.

"This goes back to why a lot of people were kind of scratching their heads when you keep four quarterbacks. When you look at the state of the offensive line, they should have kept 10 offensive linemen for what they're going through right now," Colon said on the "In the Locker Room" podcast. "...And now we're looking at a 42-year-old quarterback who looks like he's aging by the minute, so we may have to shore up protections and we may have to add more reinforcements up front to keep him upright."

Aug 21, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers guard Spencer Anderson (74) takes the field to play the New York Jets at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Poor Play and Injuries Plaguing O-Line

Pittsburgh's offense has sputtered out of the gates, evidenced in part by the fact that the unit has averaged the worst EPA per play (-0.39) in the league, according to SumerSports.

Simply put, the offensive line is the biggest culprit in those struggles. The Steelers have posted the least amount of yards per contact (eight) while also allowing six sacks and a pressure rate against of 43.8 percent (per SumerSports).

Right guard Spencer Anderson had been arguably the group's weakest link over the first two games of the season, but he suffered a bone break in Week 2 against the New England Patriots and thus won't be operating at 100 percent or perhaps even close to it despite still being active for the time being.

Rookie guard Gennings Dunker popped up on the injury report with a knee injury as well this week, and his long-term prognosis is unknown. He was ruled out for the team's Week 3 bout with the Cincinnati Bengals, however.

Jul 29, 2026; Latrobe, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Brock Hoffman (67) participates in drills at training camp at Saint Vincent College. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

How Can Steelers Fix Their Issues Up Front?

The easiest solution for Pittsburgh is to insert Brock Hoffman into the starting lineup at right guard in place of Anderson and do the same with first-round pick Max Iheanachor at right tackle, where he'd step in for Dylan Cook.

The Steelers appear to have messed around with a number of different combinations along the offensive line in the lead-up to their matchup against the Bengals, and changes must be made if the unit is going to turn a corner.

Pittsburgh would benefit from adding another offensive lineman to its 53-man roster even if Anderson and Dunker remain off the reserve/injured list given a lack of depth, production and now health on the interior.

Getting rid of one of their quarterbacks, namely Will Howard or Mason Rudolph, likely isn't in the cards at the moment, but the Steelers did potentially back themselves into a corner by opting to hold onto both of them rather than another offensive lineman.

"Once you made the decision to keep Aaron Rodgers this year, you knew he was gonna have to operate where he was gonna be able to deliver the football from a well, and protection had to be the first concern behind getting the run game going," Colon said. "So it's weird because, listen, you wanna keep four quarterbacks, keep four quarterbacks.

"But now we're in a pickle where, because we walked into the season with a lack of tackle depth, now we're leaning on our guards to kind of fill some of those roles. Now we're starting to get thin."

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