It\u2019s easy to be excited about the offseason moves that the Pittsburgh Steelers have made thus far. A strong number two wide receiver in Michael Pittman Jr., a back-to-back 1,000 yard rusher in Rico Dowdle and experienced secondary depth in Jaquan Brisker and Jamel Dean highlight the moves that the Steelers have made to plug holes at positions of need with capable players.<\/p>\n
What grade does Pittsburgh deserve for their moves to this point? John Breech of CBS Sports had a positive takeaway.<\/p>\n
\u201cI gave the Steelers a B+ and to be honest, I might have made that an A if they had their quarterback situation figured out. They absolutely crushed it,\u201d Breech said for an AFC North free agency grade exercise<\/a>. \u201cThey had to get that strong number two receiver that they\u2019ve been trying to get for like two years. They went out and traded for Michael Pittman. They gave up almost nothing. That\u2019s a great deal. Then they go get Rico Dowdle of course\u2026 He\u2019s got a running style that\u2019s kind of bruising so he can take some pressure off of Aaron Rodgers. Then you look at that Steelers defense, they really needed to beef up the secondary. They got Jamel Dean, one of the top corners in free agency. They picked up a couple safeties.<\/p>\n \u201cI really like everything the Steelers did.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite losing team MVP Kenneth Gainwell and starting left guard Isaac Seumalo in free agency, the Steelers have fared well in this offseason, albeit with questions about QB Aaron Rodgers<\/a> still looming. While the bulk of free agency is likely behind us, Pittsburgh holds 12 picks in next month\u2019s draft with the opportunity to continue to add to their offseason haul.<\/p>\n The B+ grade that we bestowed upon the Steelers\u2019 offseason exploits is the top grade in the AFC North. The Cincinnati Bengals were the next best grade with a B- in large part due to their defensive signings. Bryan Cook, Boye Mafe, and Jonathan Allen are all strong additions to Cincinnati\u2019s defense, which is in need of a facelift after last season\u2019s struggles.<\/p>\n The Bengals will have to attempt to rebound without star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson who departed for the Baltimore Ravens who received a C+ grade for their moves so far. The significant departures outnumber the key signings for the Ravens as names like Tyler Linderbaum, Isaiah Likely, Alohi Gilman and Patrick Ricard are just some of the contributors to leave Baltimore.<\/p>\n