Mark Madden: Would signing Jameis Winston really help the Steelers?

A lot of people want Jameis Winston to be the Pittsburgh Steelers’ backup quarterback.

None of those people runs the Steelers.

ESPN talking heads Dan Orlovsky and Marcus Spears lead the campaign, joined by Chris Simms at NBC Sports. Winston would benefit learning under Mike Tomlin and watching Ben Roethlisberger, then become the starter when Roethlisberger retires.

Winston surely would be helped by that scenario. The first overall pick in the 2015 draft, Winston needs a career reset after throwing 30 interceptions with Tampa Bay last year. Mostly, Winston needs a job.

But how does that help the Steelers? Unless Winston plays for free, how do the Steelers fit his salary under their cap? He just tossed 30 interceptions. That’s 14 more than Roethlisberger in 2018, and Pittsburgh went nuts over that. (A few local media folk who buried Roethlisberger for those picks want the Steelers to get Winston now. Huh?)

The Steelers seem to have zero interest in Winston. They appear comfortable with Mason Rudolph as the backup, whether they should or not.

The season (if it’s played at all) hinges on how successful Roethlisberger’s comeback is. Had Winston been the backup last year, he might have got the Steelers into the playoffs after Roethlisberger got hurt. Or maybe he would have thrown a ton of interceptions. (The Steelers committed an embarrassing 30 turnovers as it was.)

The upcoming season figures to be very different. Can the Steelers defense get 38 takeaways again? Probably not. If Roethlisberger gets injured again, could any backup QB save the season? Probably not.

The Steelers offense needs to improve beyond Roethlisberger’s return. Fewer than 11 fumbles would help. JuJu Smith-Schuster, Vance McDonald and the offensive line need to be appreciably better. James Conner needs to be better and less brittle.

The Steelers helped their offense by signing tight end Eric Ebron. But he’s a mixed bag. He doesn’t block. He’s a bit of a diva. He drops a lot of balls. But at 6-foot-4, he’s a big red-zone target: 13 touchdowns with Indianapolis in 2018. His presence combines with McDonald’s to give the Steelers legitimacy that had been lacking when they line up with two tight ends.

Inking guard/center Stefen Wisniewski raises intriguing questions.

Do the Steelers see Wisniewski as successor to departing free agent B.J. Finney, the backup at both guard and center? (Wisniewski has been a starter at both.) Or do they see Wisniewski as successor to retired starter Ramon Foster at left guard?

Wisniewski started for Kansas City in last year’s playoffs, including the Super Bowl. He must have done OK. The Chiefs won the championship. Wisniewski also started for Philadelphia when the Eagles won the Super Bowl in 2018.

The Steelers’ other option is Chuks Okorafor. Okorafor has mostly played tackle but might be moved to left guard. Or right tackle Matt Feiler might be moved to left guard, with Okorafor being installed in Feiler’s old spot.

But Feiler was very good at right tackle. Why switch him? The Steelers reportedly like Okorafor. But if that’s true, why was he inactive for 15 games last season?

The guy who played in (and won) the Super Bowl should be preferred to the healthy scratch. That’s an absolute no-brainer. Start Wisniewski at left guard.

But here’s betting it doesn’t turn out that way.

Signing special-teams ace Derek Watt was good PR: for the fans, because he’s a Watt brother. For T.J. Watt, because his contract runs out after the 2020 season, and the Steelers want to sign him long-term. But how often do the Steelers use a fullback?