Impossible expectations set Steelers LB Devin Bush up for failure

The NFL career of Pittsburgh Steelers inside linebacker Devin Bush hasn’t started the way he wanted and it definitely hasn’t started the way Steelers’ fans thought it would.

Going all the way back to 2019, the bar for what was going to be expected of Bush was set very high. And I am not just talking about the trade up to get Bush. This move grabs the headlines but you have to go back a little further to understand how Bush might have been set up for failure.

The impetus for a trade to draft Bush was directly related to the team’s loss of Ryan Shazier. In December of 2017, Shazier suffered a spinal cord injury that ended what was an incredibly promising career. Shazier was and still is everything it means to be a Steeler. Always the hardest-working guy on the field, a humble leader and wise beyond his years.

After treading water for a season with Jon Bostic, Pittsburgh made the move they thought would bring them the new Ryan Shazier in Bush. The resume wasn’t quite as good and the scouting report wasn’t quite as glowing. Nevertheless, Bush put together a solid rookie campaign and fans were hopeful.

Then 2020 happened. After five mediocre performances, Bush tore his ACL and his season ended after it just got going. Bush spent the next 10+ months working on rehab so he could get back on the field. And while Bush has gotten back on the field, it is pretty clear he isn’t 100 percent. Is it a matter of his actual health or is this more about confidence in that surgically repaired knee?

Who knows? Bush isn’t talking about it and seems completely oblivious to his struggles this season. Bush has taken plenty of criticism for his obvious lack of maturity as well as his poor play.

In the final analysis, it was going to be an uphill climb for Bush to ever be the player Steelers fans expected, even if he had stayed healthy. Being the guy the team traded up for and living in the shadow of an icon like Shazier was a recipe for disappointment regardless of how he played. The torn ACL and tone-dead attitude are just the ugly icing on a very bad-tasting cake.