Are The Pittsburgh Steelers Being Lulled Into Complacency By Dan Moore's Mediocre 2 Seasons?

The Pittsburgh Steelers starting left offensive tackle, Dan Moore, Jr. is entering his third season in the NFL. After being drafted in the fourth round in 2021, he was thrust into a starting role with the black and gold. Don't let the starting title fool you, Moore has received his share of criticism regarding his part in the offensive line struggles. 

The Steelers' offensive line underwent a bit of a transformation after the 2020 season and not for the better. While it had been declining, as many of the linemen aged and the team did not fill empty spots with high-quality stock, it tanked in 2021 and was ranked one of the worst. That meant that hopes were low for the group headed into 2022. Only a few changes had been made and it was hard to see them as significant enough to cause a turnaround. 

But against all odds, this group did just that. The 2022 offensive line improved in nearly every category possible. It helped that they played nearly every snap together, unencumbered by injuries. However, the question remains, is better good enough? That is the question surrounding Moore. According to Pro Football Focus, he finished the season with a grade of 62.3. 

Offensive tackle was widely considered the team's biggest need until the performance of the line in 2022. After the improvement, many fans began to shift their focus toward other positions as potential first-round picks. 

But are the Steelers just being lulled into complacency by Moore's performance in 2022? Is this as good as it gets for him, or should we expect him to continue to grow? Just because he improved, does that mean we don't need to look for a tackle in the draft?

Should The Steelers Still Draft An Offensive Tackle?

The question of drafting a tackle this year was discussed on The Arthur Moats Experience, a podcast by former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker, Arthur Moats. 

Moats was asked the purely speculative question of where he feels Moore would fall in this year's draft class. He acknowledges that it probably isn't a fair assessment since we are looking at Moore two years post-draft with a wealth of experience as an NFL starter. However, even with all of that, Moats doesn't rank him higher than fifth. 

"I like [Peter] Skoronski. I'm stuck with [Paris] Johnson, Anton Harrison, and Broderick Jones. I think I like Darnell Wright a little bit more, he gives me a little bit of the poor man's Broderick."

"But I think Dan is right after that, so it wouldn't be crazy if the Steelers were to choose Dan Moore as the starter and bypass some of those other guys because it's close. That's the issue, it's close and then it's cheap. If it was close, but Dan was on the second contract, we're not having a debate. Then you're not really getting a price benefit per se, but let's get another young guy in there."

Moats said that the Steelers are in a tough position. There is no guarantee with a new draft pick of exceptional play and there are still other areas of need. It all depends on how the team views Moore and his growth. However, he makes it clear that he doesn't feel that encouraged by Moore.  

"Just trying to find somebody that we feel is going to be better than Dan, but the hard part is, Dan has two full seasons of NFL starts facing NFL talent. He's already proven that he can survive out there. We just want to see if can he be dominant. Can he be the elite guy that you pay, that you feel confident with? We haven't seen it get to that level just yet."

"I feel like I'm disrespecting him too because he's had two full seasons of NFL where these other guys are in college. But I think these other guys have more potential."

Where does that leave the Steelers with the draft looming? Do you think they should draft an offensive lineman? Tell us what is on your mind, click to comment below! 

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