Asked and Answered: June 9

JOHN GAYNOR FROM ST. CLAIRSVILLE, OH: Devin Bush has been a different player since his knee injury. I hope this is the year he can turn it around. What are your thoughts on him?
ANSWER: I’m neither an orthopedic surgeon nor a coach, but this is what I think about Devin Bush: Before he tore his ACL, he was a good player, potentially on his way to becoming the kind of player the Steelers had in mind when they traded up from No. 20 to No. 10 in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft to select him. What some Steelers fans and media don’t seem to remember is that Ryan Shazier took some time before he began to emerge as one of the defense’s indispensable players, and that there were constant “suggestions” in this very forum that he should be moved to safety because he was too small to play inside linebacker and that because the Steelers insisted on playing him at inside linebacker he was going to continue to miss regular season games with injuries and ultimately earn distinction as a “bust.” Everyone who wrote one of those “move Shazier to safety” submissions to Asked and Answered please raise a hand so you can be mocked suitably.

Anyway, Bush’s rookie season ended with him playing in all 16 games, with 15 starts, during which he contributed 109 tackles, including 9 for loss, one sack, two hits on the quarterback, two interceptions, four passes defensed, four fumble recoveries, and one defensive touchdown. In Shazier’s rookie season, he played in nine games with five starts and finished with 36 tackles, including two for loss, no sacks, one hit on the quarterback, no interceptions, and one pass defensed. Admittedly, Bush’s 2021 season was not one that reflected his draft status and NFL experience, but he did tear an ACL in the fifth game of the 2020 season, and I believe it’s fair to mention that in those four-plus games in 2020 before the injury he had three passes defensed, a sack and two hits on the quarterback to go along with 26 tackles. There can be no argument…