The 2023 Pittsburgh Steelers season will be surprising for most NFL fans. In 2022, the Pittsburgh Steelers started extremely slowly with a lackluster record of 2-6 through the first eight weeks of the season. However, following the week nine bye, the team picked up the pace and earned seven wins over the back half of the season. This led to a winning record of 9-8, which was good enough to place them eighth in the AFC.
What led to the Steelers’ late-season success? The biggest story of the season was rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett. Pickett was thrust into action during halftime of week 4 and rapidly progressed over the course of the season. From week 10 on, Pickett had a passer rating of 84.6 while throwing five touchdowns to only one interception. In addition, his ability to stay cool under pressure helped the Steelers to key wins over the Raiders and Ravens.
The other main factor in the Steelers’ late success was the health of star pass rusher T.J. Watt. The Steelers were 8-2 in games that Watt played last season. His impact should be greater than ever in 2023 with him back to full health.
At the beginning of the season, Omar Khan was appointed as the new general manager. In his first off-season, he was absolutely outstanding. During free agency, the team acquired former Eagles guard Isaac Seumalo and former Vikings cornerback Patrick Peterson. In a recent interview, All-Pro center Jason Kelce recently stated that Seumalo is “Probably the smartest player I’ve ever been around.” Patrick Peterson is a former All-Pro and contributed a great amount to the Vikings’ defense in 2022.
While Khan was smart in free agency, where he was truly exceptional was the NFL draft. The Steelers’ draft received an A+ grade from Pro Football Focus, and is widely regarded as one of the best in the league. The team picked up multiple players that have the potential to make impacts on day one of the season.
Trading up from the fifteenth pick to the thirteenth was definitely uncharacteristic for the organization, but the selection of Georgia offensive tackle Broderick Jones was savvy. Jones is almost certainly going to be the starter at left tackle for the 2023 season. In the future he should anchor a line that has previously been below average.
The team jumped at the opportunity to draft Joey Porter Jr., who surprisingly fell to the 32nd pick. Porter Jr. is the son of Joey Porter Sr., who is a former Steelers player himself. Porter Jr. however, should be high in the depth chart of cornerbacks going into the season. Cornerback was clearly a need given the lack of production in 2022 and the loss of Cameron Sutton.
With studs such as Keeanu Benton, Darnell Washington, Nick Herbig and Cory Trice being selected with the later picks, the 2023 draft class should be a key cog in the success of the Steelers for the next decade.
With the development of the existing roster, the extraordinary draft class, and the astute use of free agency, the Pittsburgh Steelers are . If Kenny Pickett can make even bigger strides than expected, the Steelers could easily become candidates for the Super Bowl.
Stay tuned for more exciting NFL content, including roster moves, in depth analysis, and more news from around the league.
Feature image courtesy of Steelers.com
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