New Pittsburgh Steelers OC Arthur Smith is installing a new scheme, which means there will be bumps in the road in 2024 — even for an experienced quarterback like Cousins. Very likely, he will be starting the season on the PUP list, which further complicates yes he can get mental reps, but thinking and doing are two different things.
Age
Cousins is 35 years old and will be turning 36 before the start of the season. That means the Steelers could quickly find themselves right back where they were towards the end of Ben Roethlisberger’s career, sitting with a declining quarterback at a large-cap figure and no real in-house options to transition toward.
Chemistry
Cousins would be coming to a brand-new team, who don’t have receivers that have worked with him before. It takes time to build chemistry, that would need to happen very quickly and that isn’t always that easy — especially if he does miss time and reps returning from his injury.
Are the Steelers ready to win?
Are the Steelers truly ready to make an all-in bet? The answer to that question is likely not. We’re just all hoping to win a playoff game and start there from there. Only the Steelers’ brain trust can truly answer these questions. At the forefront of their minds, too, will likely be the situation that just played out with the New York Jets and Aaron Rodgers (who also suffered an Achilles injury).
Yes, anyone can get injured, but it only took that one injury, and their season was completely over. That doesn’t mean you don’t try to improve and upgrade. But, they were so all in on Rodgers that they were caught completely off guard when it fell through.
