In the midst of a whirlwind offseason featuring a number of roster moves, the Pittsburgh Steelers are starting to truly take shape ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft next month in Kansas City.
Though some fringe moves could still occur in the days and weeks ahead to address depth, the way the roster currently looks right now figures to be how it will look come April 27, when the first round of the draft is held.
So, how does the roster stack up to the rest of the league? Well, according to Pro Football Focus, the Steelers are smack dab in the middle of the league, coming in at No. 16 overall Thursday in PFF’s pre-draft power rankings.
“The Steelers boosted their defense and offensive line in free agency. Signing a veteran like Patrick Peterson brings stability to their cornerback room, as the veteran allowed just 43 receptions for 534 yards in 2022, recording five interceptions and a career-high nine pass breakups over the course of the year,” PFF writes regarding the Steelers’ placement at No. 16.
PFF also highlighted the signing of guard Isaac Seumalo as a key addition, which isn’t surprising, but cited the Steelers losing James Daniels as a negative. We all know the Steeles didn’t lose Daniels, so that portion of the comment from PFF didn’t make sense.
With GM Omar Khan and Assistant GM Andy Weidl getting their hands on the roster this offseason after taking over following free agency and the draft last summer, the pair went to work reshaping the roster. Pittsburgh really addressed the trenches with Seumalo and guard Nate Herbig, two guys Weidl knows well from his time in Philadelphia, and the Steelers shored up the defense after losing cornerback Cameron Sutton to the Lions.
As previously mentioned, Peterson was brought in quickly after losing Sutton, while the Steelers completely re-made their linebacker room, signing Cole Holcomb and Elandon Roberts, letting Devin Bush and Robert Spillane walk, and cutting Myles Jack.
Simply on paper, the roster feels better than it did at this point last season. The offensive line looks like a real strength at the moment, though a tackle needs to be selected in the draft at some point. The defense looks better in the trenches with the retention of tackle Larry Ogunjobi and the revamped inside linebacker room.
Slotting the Steelers in at No. 16 overall is a good spot for Pittsburgh and tracks with some previous power rankings from other outlets. ESPN had the Steelers at No. 13 last week, and NFL.com had the Steelers at No. 15. They profile as league average currently, but the draft could certainly boost them up should Khan and Weidl have a strong one.
