How Ladarius Green's release affects Pittsburgh Steelers TEs, Jesse James

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Ladarius Green combined one more time on Thursday to leave Jesse James atop the team’s tight end depth chart.

Since the 2016 season began, though, James has only had one game where he didn’t either start in the position or get the most offensive snaps of any Steelers tight end.

At first glance, the Glassport native and Penn State alum stands to gain the most from Green’s release with an injury designation. And as far as his being by far the most experienced pass catcher in the group, that’s true.

David Johnson, the Steelers’ only veteran tight end, has been targeted all of 43 times across five seasons in Pittsburgh.

Yet when comparing how the Steelers doled out tight end snaps with and without Green last year – there's a spreadsheet for you at the bottom here – the future of the position without him is a little more complicated.

Yes, this is significant for James

He averaged 9.5 more snaps per game with Green out of the lineup than with Green in it. Green was having one of the best games with five catches and 72 yards to his name before a blow to the head against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 15 ended his season and Steelers career.

James’ snaps had decreased in each of the previous two weeks while Green’s grew. Though there was room for both, the former San Diego Charger came closer to filling a role in the Steelers’ ideal, win-or-lose-control-of-the-season offense.

AP/Don Wright

But it's every bit as significant for Xavier Grimble

If the Steelers had a healthy Green in training camp last season, there’s a very real chance Grimble would not have made his first 53-man roster in his third year in the league.

Like Green, Grimble offered more of a downfield threat than James did. While the small sample sizes we’re working with here are shrunk further by Grimble having been out with broken ribs for three of Green’s six games, the younger tight end’s snap counts show him as redundant to Green.

Grimble got more than twice as many – 14.2 to 6.3 – reps per game with Green out than in. And that’s counting the appearances when he played through broken ribs with minimal snaps. Prior to having his ribs broken, Grimble averaged 19.9 snaps per contest.

If Martavis Bryant even resembles the deep threat he was in 2015 or Eli Rogers or JuJu Smith-Schuster can open up the middle of the field of out the slot, then Pittsburgh won’t be nearly as pass-dependent on the position as it was last season.

But when the Steelers needed to throw to a tight end, Grimble had the edge on James, knew it and his coaches did, too.

The problem with both Green and Grimble is that neither proved particularly good at blocking.

Which is where Chris Hubbard comes in

AP/Winslow Townson

Accounting for the utility offensive lineman’s four starts in place of Marcus Gilbert at right tackle, Hubbard actually played more with Green on the field.

Part of this is a product of timing. Pittsburgh didn’t deploy its jumbo package, featuring Hubbard as a blocking tight end, until Week 9. Green debuted one week later and as the Steelers moved deeper into what became a three-month slog of must-win games, they depended more and more on Le’Veon Bell and having an extra, dependably blocking body out there for him.

Even when Green was cutting into James’ snaps, he couldn’t be that person. Hubbard played more than three times as many offensive snaps per game when Green was in the lineup than when he wasn’t.

In the three games when Hubbard played the most at tight end, Bell totaled 90 carries for 496 rushing yards and five touchdowns. Pittsburgh didn’t just use Hubbard. At critical times, the team was dependent on him.

Further

Further

Johnson’s playing time somewhat reinforces the need for a blocking tight end that neither Green nor anyone else who played the position by trade was.

It increased by a little less than two offensive reps per game with Green playing despite four of Johnson’s five starts coming when Green was sidelined. Yet Johnson’s role and re-signing speaks to the greater problem the Steelers were facing even before Green’s release.

Pittsburgh has no complete tight end.

Since Heath Miller retired, no Steeler has consistently offered steady blocking against top pass rushers and a dependable receiving option in one body. Mike Tomlin, as a matter of franchise philosophy, wants this to change.

He told the tight ends in rookie minicamp as much, Scott Orndoff, who was one of them, said. Pittsburgh doesn't want to have to mix and match skill sets to situations. Doing so can be a tell for opposing defenses on what the offense is trying to run.

But as long as the Steelers have the 2016 versions of James, Grimble, Johnson, Orndoff and tryout signee Phazahn Odom, they don’t have a choice.

Unless they just stop playing tight ends.

Everyone's snap count data

*Only includes games when Hubbard wasn't a starting OT

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