Pittsburgh Steelers: 5 offseason needs in 2019

4. Left guard

Ramon Foster has been a fixture for the Steelers at left guard for what feels like forever. Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, he’s a 33-year-old interior player heading towards free agency.

The chances of him returning for another tour of duty with the Steelers is pretty minimal. He’ll field more lucrative offers in free agency and the team will believe they can replace him with a younger, cheaper player. Recent evidence from other teams prove that it’s possible to draft a talented guard and turn him into an instant Pro Bowler.

Of course, that will require Pittsburgh to use a fairly high draft pick on a non-premium position. They aren’t going to find Quenton Nelson in the sixth or seventh round. If they want to replace Roster with a rookie who’s capable of starting in his first year it’s going to require the Steelers to use a selection in Round 1 or 2.

That’s the right play for Pittsburgh. They could probably find a replacement level guard in free agency for a cut-rate price, but that’s not the sort of move that will help the Steelers make a long playoff run next year. The two reasonable choices for the franchise are to either bring Foster back on a short-term deal or spend a valuable draft pick on his long-term replacement.