The Pittsburgh Steelers went hog wild in free agency this offseason, overturning a large fraction of their roster from a season ago by adding several notable names to the team for 2023. Pittsburgh signed OGs Isaac Seumalo and Nate Herbig, S Keanu Neal, DL Armon Watts and Breiden Fehoko, EDGE Markus Golden, ILBs Cole Holcomb and Elandon Roberts, CBs Patrick Peterson and Chandon Sullivan as well as several other free agents to fill reserve/special teams roles with the team.
With so many new members on the team in 2023, many wonder how each new player will hold up in their new threads in their first season in Pittsburgh. Jake Rill of Bleacher Report recently published an article predicting the outcomes of several of Pittsburgh’s free agent signings from the offseason. Regarding LB Cole Holcomb, Rill believes that the off-ball linebacker won’t have a problem surpassing the 100-tackle mark in 2023.
“Cole Holcomb has the potential to be a tackling machine,” Rill wrote. “He showed that during the 2021 season, when he recorded a career-high 142 tackles over 16 games. That was often how well he played during his four-year tenure with the Washington Commanders. However, the North Carolina product was limited to seven games last year because of a foot injury. Otherwise, he was well on his way to a third season with more than 100 tackles, because he already had 69 at that point. Holcomb is still only 26, though, so the Steelers may have gotten a steal when they signed him to a three-year, $18 million contract. He could provide tremendous value if he can stay on the field.”
Holcomb surpassed the century mark for tackles as a rookie in 2019, logging 105 total stops in his first season in Washington. He started only 10 games in 2020, seeing his tackle totals drop to 72. He rebounded in a big way in 2021, posting 142 stops which ranked in the top ten across the league that year. He was well on his way to matching that total with 69 total stops last season but was lost for the year seven games into 2022.
Much like Rill mentioned above, should Holcomb stay healthy and on the field, he should have no problem recording triple-digit tackles. However, Rill’s next projection for CB Patrick Peterson is a little more of a hot take as he believes that Peterson plays all 17 games and picks off four passes in his age-33 season.
“Patrick Peterson is an eight-time Pro Bowler and a three-time All-Pro selection, but he hasn’t earned either of those recognitions since 2018,” Rill said.” He’s now a 32-year-old with 12 years of NFL experience whose best years are likely behind him. That doesn’t mean he can’t still be a productive player, though. He showed that over the past two seasons while playing for the Minnesota Vikings, which followed 10 years with the Arizona Cardinals to begin his NFL career. In fact, the LSU product had five interceptions in 2022, his second-most in any season. He’s also a reliable presence in a team’s secondary, considering he started all 17 games for the Vikings last year.”
Peterson posted the second-most INTs in a season last year with five picks in 2022, two shy of his all-time mark of seven back in 2012. Four INTs would rank as his third-best season in his NFL career from a pick perspective, which may be a tough sell given his age. Still, Peterson showed last season he still has gas in the tank, having enough athleticism to hang with receivers in man coverage while being opportunistic in his off man/zone coverage opportunities to jump routes and make plays on the football.
Peterson played all 17 games last season and has been pretty healthy over the course of his NFL career. Should he play a full season in 2023, he will have a shot of hitting four INTs, helping make up for the loss of CB Cameron Sutton, who had three INTs himself last season, and help Pittsburgh try and lead the league in INTs for a second-straight season.
