New Steelers wide receiver Allen Robinson unloaded all his thoughts on his new offense and, given what happened in 2022, it's a bold take.
Mike Tomlin avoided breaking his impressive streak of not having a losing season last year with the Pittsburgh Steelers, leading the club to a 9-8 record on the year. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to push the team into the postseason.
This offseason, however, the Steelers have made a clear push to get back into the playoffs with the moves they've made. Most notably, they've fortified the offensive line with the signing of guard Isaac Seamaulo and then drafting Broderick Jones in the first round. In addition to that, though, they also added to the receiving corps by trading for Allen Robinson.
And if you're wondering what Robinson is feeling about his new offense after a disastrous season with the Rams, his take is actually shockingly bold on the Steelers offense. In an appearance on Sirius XM NFL Radio (h/t Pro Football Talk), here's what he had to say.
"When you kind of look at some of the weapons that we have, I think that we're in a position to be a well-rounded offensive group, with a lot of young talent that isn't so young anymore," Robinson said. "Also some vets. That's really when you see some offenses start to take that next step. You have a Kenny Pickett coming into Year Two. You have a George Pickens coming into Year Two. You have Pat [Freiermuth] at the tight end spot going into Year Three. You have a Najee Harris. You bring myself in. We have a lot of guys across the board who can make plays. Especially on third down, when you look at red zone, when you look at creating explosive plays. You have guys to be able to bring some of that to the table at each and every situation."
Steelers: Allen Robinson says offense has weapons for any situation
Suffice to say that Robinson is quite high on what he and the Steelers can do on offense… which is what makes the take a bit shocking, though understandable.
A season ago when they were fighting to finish above .500 after Kenny Pickett took the helm of the offense, Pittsburgh ranked just 18th in the NFL in Offensive DVOA for the season, slightly below league average. And according to the eye test, that made complete sense. Though there was clearly talent in the building, the unit just hadn't progressed or gelled to anything other than average just yet.
So for Robinson to levy this type of praise is a bit bold on his part, and it's clear he's not fully putting that elevation to another level solely on his arrival.
That, in fact, is where what the veteran receiver is saying holds some merit. When you look at his assessment of the offense, it appears that he's high on the progression of young players like Pickett, George Pickens, Najee Harris and Pat Freiermuth. This, in addition to having Robinson, Diontae Johnson, and the aforementioned improved offensive line.
As such, though Robinson is quite bold for putting his read on the offense into the ether when it's as highly complimentary as it is, he might turn out to be exactly right if leaps are made throughout the offense.
And should that happen, you can bet on the Steelers winning a lot more than nine games in 2023.
