NFL Pittsburgh Steelers

Pittsburgh Steelers Must Promote Josh Harris And Drop Dri Archer vs. Baltimore Ravens

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Josh Harris, Pittsburgh Steelers

Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

On Tuesday, it was announced that the Pittsburgh Steelers signed running back Ben Tate ahead of this Saturday’s bloodbath against the Baltimore Ravens. The move reveals a couple of things: that confidence is waning in the health of all-round superstar Le’Veon Bell, and that the Steelers are determined to keep playing the same brand of football through the playoffs.

Tate spent four years with the Houston Texans, seeing playing time behind Arian Foster. After deciding he was starter material, Tate landed in Cleveland, where he survived exactly half the season before making a cameo appearance with the Minnesota Vikings. A Hall-of-Fame career it isn’t, but assuming Tate will only be with the Steelers temporarily, his 4.4 career YPC average just might be enough to get the job done behind a re-energised offensive line and a pair of excellent blocking tight ends.

Of course, learning an entire playbook in under a week is no cakewalk, so it’s expected that Tate will split carries with another back. From what fans saw on Sunday night, that back must be Josh Harris, not Dri Archer. Pittsburgh shouldn’t be ready to give up on the pint-sized spark plug just yet, but Archer’s playing style simply doesn’t suit the Steelers at the moment.

Ben Roethlisberger’s only interception of the night came after Bell’s injury, when Archer was forced to make a blitz pickup. He didn’t only whiff on the block; he lacked any sort of confidence making contact. The outside rusher blew right past him and created just enough panic in Big Ben to force an inaccurate throw.

Harris, at a much stouter 210 pounds, is as infinitely better pass blocker. He boasts enough speed to be a threat in the open field as well, evidenced by a 50-yard run that was brought back for a holding call away from the play.

So where does that leave Tate? The man needs to simply do his job on Saturday night. Not even a two-man tandem can come close to replicating the impact of Bell, but Tate can at least try to apply Bell’s best attributes, like hitting holes, bailing out his quarterback and, most importantly, protecting the ball.

For years in the ‘Burgh, coach Mike Tomlin has preached his “next man up” philosophy. It’s about to get tested like it never has before.

Jonathon Natsis covers the NFL and the Pittsburgh Steelers for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @JohnHollywood92, ‘like’ him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google+.

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