Some random Steelers thoughts

I was asked by David Todd during my weekly hit with him on ESPN 970-AM Monday if the Steelers’ season was a success.
I anticipated the question and had given it a lot of thought during my seemingly endless hours navigating my way back to Pittsburgh from Denver.
My answer to Todd, “At this point, we just don’t know.”
It sounds like a copout, but it’s true. Here’s why:
If Sunday’s loss to Denver turns out to be a jumping off point for another Super Bowl run or two, then yes, this season was a success. After all, most of the players on the current Steelers roster had never won a playoff game before beating the Bengals two weeks ago.
Learning how to win a playoff game is a big step for a young team. Ask the Bengals.
At the same time, getting close to the championship and coming up short is also a big step. It can be a driving force.
So if the Steelers use the sting of Sunday’s loss in Denver as a jumping off point for a run to the conference championship game or Super Bowl in 2016, then yes, this season was a success.
That’s what happened to the Steelers in 1994 and 2004. I was in those locker rooms following losses in the AFC Championship games to seemingly lesser opponents – and in the case of San Diego in 1994, that was certainly the case.
Despite the veteran presence of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, the Steelers have a very young roster, particularly on defense. Guys such as Ryan Shazier, Stephon Tuitt and even Cam Heyward needed to get close to the final goal. Now they’ve seen it. They see what it takes to get there. They know that they went 2-2 against the teams remaining in the playoffs – splitting with Denver, beating Arizona and losing to New England. They know they can play with and even beat those teams.
Now, if the Steelers take a step backward next season – as they did after reaching the AFC Championship in 2001 – then this season cannot be considered a success.
But I don’t believe that will happen with this team.
@ I had a lot of time to read through everything said in the Denver locker room on my trip back across the U.S.
Here’s what I learned:
Denver placekicker Brandon McManus said the winds were completely calm during warmups but that he was informed after the teams went back inside that a front had moved in that had winds swirling and gusting up to 30 miles per hour.
McManus called it the most difficult circumstances he’s ever kicked in.
That said, he banged all five of his field goal attemps.
The Broncos did, however, point to the gusting winds as reasons for having so many dropped passes. That kind of makes sense. Peyton Manning’s noodle arm really couldn’t push the ball downfield in that wind without the ball moving quite a bit.
@ The other thing that caught my eye was how the Broncos said they really had to key everything they did on where Shazier lined up. The Broncos were impressed with Shazier and commented on how the Steelers moved him all over the defensive formation.
It reminded me of how opponents used to talk about Troy Polamalu, though Shazier hasn’t shown off Polamalu’s ability to line up in one place and suddenly appear in another at the snap.
But Shazier has that kind of ability. Now that he’s basically got a full season of play under his belt, we should see a much more finished product in 2016.
Of course, when you have a player such as Polamalu or Shazier – guys who are seemingly faster than everyone else on the field – they are going to run themselves out of some plays or miss some tackles. But they’re also playmakers.