The NBA hands out an award each season for the best sixth man in the league. For the Steelers the past few years, such an award just might go to B.J. Finney. The fourth-year offensive lineman has started 10 games in his career with the Steelers, who signed him as an undrafted rookie out of Kansas State in 2015.
The Steelers' record in those games? How about 9-1, including a 26-24 victory earlier this season against the Colts when he stepped in to replace injured Ramon Foster at left guard? Not since the Steelers went 18-1 in games started by backup nose tackle Chris Hoke in his career have the Steelers had that kind of success with a backup.
"He's an experienced guy. He always answers the call," said David DeCastro of Finney. "He's ready to come through. He's a veteran guy. He's played well when he's been called upon."
With Maurkice Pouncey suspended for the next three games -- pending an appeal -- for his involvement in last Thursday's brawl in Cleveland, Finney will get another opportunity, this time at center. The first will come Sunday in Cincinnati when the Steelers (5-5) play the Bengals (0-10) at Paul Brown stadium.
Just two of Finney's 10 career starts have come at center, with the other eight all coming at guard.
But Finney, a four-year starter at center for Kansas State after walking on, will just being doing what comes naturally to him. He's always ready to answer the call.
"To me it speaks to the older guys we have and the coaches that we have," he said of his ability to step in and play well. "Being a younger guy in that room, I'm just ready to plug and play. Being a professional that we all strive to be in the offensive line room, it speaks to them helping me be ready to be in that role and that role I'm in."
This will be the first time Finney will be asked to make multiple starts at center. He's made both of his previous starts there in regular season finales when Pouncey has been sitting out to rest for the postseason. Both games came against the Browns.
"This is the first time I've ever faced somebody being suspended. We'll see how he does with his appeal," Finney said. "My job doesn't change. I've got to be ready for any point in time, so here we go."
The Steelers picked up Finney's option as a restricted free agent prior to this season, as he saw his salary jump from the $225,000 he made as a rookie on the practice squad in 2015, to the $630,000 he made last season, to the $3.1 million he's earning in 2019.
But there also have been some disappointments, such as two weeks ago when Foster was sitting out with a concussion. Finney started at left guard in place of Foster in the win over the Colts. But the coaching staff decided that the following week against the Rams and defending NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald, they would rather slide right tackle Matt Feiler to left guard for that game, moving Finney to the bench.
Mike Tomlin said the move was made to give the Steelers better ability to deal with Donald as a pass rusher. But that doesn't mean Finney wasn't disappointed.
"They did what they thought was best. We got the win and that's what matters," Finney told me. "I wanted to play. Obviously everybody wants to play. They brought me in and sat me down and said, 'This is why we're doing it.' I understood. My job was still to prepare and be ready. (Donald’s) the best in the NFL. He's a great player. Yes, I would have liked to have played against him, but they felt like they wanted to do something different. That's what we did. We got the win and that's all that matters."
If it sounds like Finney is a no-nonsense, team-first guy, it's because he is. He knows he could probably be starting for a lot of other teams in the league. But he also loves being a part of the Steelers organization.
If there remains any doubt about that, one only needs to look back at the video from when he announced his signing by the Steelers in 2015:
Even though he's still not a full-time starter at 28 years old, he's still living that dream.
"Every day," he told me.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
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Steelers practice, Rooney Sports Complex, Nov. 20, 2019 -- MATT SUNDAY / DKPS[/caption]
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