Cole was front and center for the o-line

Being ‘that guy’ was a necessity, especially when the line was taking heat from every direction, except within, at the start of the season. The media and fans were hard on them as they worked to become a unit, something that took time.

“I think there’s always going to be strong criticism for the most part for the offensive line,” said Cole. “But in our room, we just didn’t pay attention to the noise. We just kept our heads down and it kept working. We knew the type of guys we had in the room. We knew the type of players we had in the room. We never lost confidence. There was never a point where you thought about losing confidence. We knew the type of players we were and just kept pushing forward.”

That attitude, that patience, paid off as the season wore on, because with an offensive line time is the key. Getting five players to work as one isn’t going to happen overnight. It takes reps, it takes experience, it takes time.

The time was also aided by something else, something that can’t be measured on a stat sheet. It was good health. The Steelers starting five offensive linemen started every game in 2022. Every. Single. Game.

“We all played together,” said Cole. “The whole season long. All 17 games we started together and that is pretty impressive for a group. It’s huge. I think we’re the only offensive line that played all 17 games together this year, which is pretty impressive. The reps are so valuable, especially those in-game reps. There’s no way to replicate it. As you get more reps you have a better understanding for the guys next to you and what they need, what they need to hear from me at the line and just how we play together and just those reps, they’re just invaluable.

“I think we saw that through the year. I don’t think we played horrible early in the year, but we weren’t playing at a super-efficient level. And just as the offensive line went, it felt like the whole offense went. We started playing a little bit better, the offense got more efficient,…