Though a Pro Bowl accolade might not mean what it once did in NFL history, being selected to the new Pro Bowl Games each year moving forward remains an honor for players across the NFL landscape.
Players still have to be voted in by the fans and have to put together great seasons to earn the recognition and the votes overall — unless you’re a warm body at quarterback who happened to play a few games and are available for the skills competition. Looking at you, Tyler Huntley.
Anyway, it might not be in the format fans have been accustomed to for 70+ years, but it remains an honor for players to receive that recognition at the end of each season.
Two young stars on the Pittsburgh Steelers are hoping to earn that honor in 2023. Tight end Pat Freiermuth and outside linebacker Alex Highsmith were highlighted as two of 20 candidates to become first-time Pro Bowlers in 2023 by CBS Sports Monday morning.
Freiermuth was highlighted at the tight end position alongside Philadelphia standout tight end Dallas Goedert.
“One of the most underrated players on an improved offense, Freiermuth has gone back-to-back seasons with 60 catches, excelling as a safety valve for Kenny Pickett. The team’s addition of Darnell Washington should allow him to go downfield even more,” CBS Sports’ Cody Benjamin writes regarding Freiermuth potentially becoming a first-time Pro Bowler.
Having a full season with Kenny Pickett at quarterback should do wonders for Freiermuth in 2023. When the two worked together last season, there was a clear trust and comfort from Pickett targeting Freiermuth. In the games Pickett started and finished — that discounts the games against the New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Baltimore Ravens games — the then-rookie QB looked his trusty tight end’s way 62 times in 10 games, good for 6.2 targets per game.
In his first two seasons, Freiermuth has hauled in 123 passes for 1,229 yards and nine touchdowns. That included a stellar rookie season in 2021 with Ben Roethlisberger under center, hauling in 60 passes for 497 yards and seven touchdowns. In Year 2, Freiermuth increased his receptions to 63 and yards to 732, but the touchdowns didn’t follow as the Steelers had some struggles in the red zone offensively.
That doesn’t take away from the consistency that Freiermuth has put on display in his first two seasons. He’s a trusty tight end, one who catches anything in his vicinity, serving as that true security blanket for his quarterback. While his blocking is passable, it’s certainly not a strength of his game. With rookie Darnell Washington now in the fold, that likely takes away some of Freiermuth’s responsibilities as an in-line blocker, which could free him up even more as a receiver.
With another strong season, Freiermuth could make NFL history. If he has 60+ catches again in 2023, he’ll become the first tight end in NFL history to have three-straight 60+ reception seasons to start his career. Last season he joined tight end Keith Jackson as the only other tight end to do it in his first two seasons.
Along with Freiermuth, Highsmith was highlighted by CBS Sports as a potential first-time Pro Bowler in 2023.
The fourth-year veteran found himself alongside Houston rookie Will Anderson, the No. 3 overall picking the 2023 NFL Draft, at the EDGE position, along with Jacksonville second-year pro and 2022 No. 1 overall pick Travon Walker.
“Raise your hand if you knew this guy had nine more sacks than T.J. Watt in 2022. Of course, Watt was banged up, but still, Highsmith has consistently gotten better as a high-motor rusher. Now that his name is on the map, he’s due,” Benjamin writes highlighting Highsmith as a potential Pro Bowl candidate.
Highsmith should have been a Pro Bowler last season, finishing his third season with a career-high 14.5 sacks and a league-leading five forced fumbles. He was a force throughout the season, even with T.J. Watt out of the lineup for nearly half of the season due to an injury.
Without Watt in the lineup, Highsmith recorded just 4.0 sacks in the seven games Watt missed. That’s not a bad number overall and would have put him right around 10.0 sacks on the season had Watt missed the entire year. However, the lack of production and splash plays was a bit noticeable from Highsmith without Watt on the other side.
When Watt was in the lineup last season though, Highsmith was a game-wrecker, recording 10.5 of his 14.5 sacks on the season and four of his NFL-leading five forced fumbles on the year. Having a true dominant player like Watt on the field certainly helped Highsmith in terms of attention paid to the other side of the defense.
Assuming Watt can stay relatively healthy in 2023, Highsmith should be able to put up monster numbers opposite him, garnering plenty of national attention and hopefully earning his first Pro Bowl berth, one that he rightfully deserves.
