The Pittsburgh Steelers rookie class in 2022 has been talked about a lot due to the play of the first two picks last season in quarterback Kenny Pickett and wide receiver George Pickens. After a good rookie season for those two and others, such as tight end Connor Heyward, many are now looking towards the second-year jump the class will take.
Today, Heyward spoke with the media in a video posted to the Steelers’ YouTube page and talked about the chemistry his draft class has built and how that has them ready for the second-year jump.
“Just us having a full off season all together and us working together in Florida and just working together here at the facility, just working all throughout the season, in the offseason till now,” Heyward said. “I think it’s just helped us and we just have so much chemistry and understanding of each other and where we’ll be out on the field. I think that year two, it should be the jump that we all want and the jump that we’re all working for.”
While the most important player from the Steelers’ 2022 draft class is Pickett, the rest of the class looks pretty good too. When Heyward was drafted not much was expected from him, but he proved a valuable and versatile player. Pickens has shown he has the potential to be an elite receiver and the Pickett-to-Pickens connection is one that could be the future of this team.
As Heyward said, a lot of the offense got together in Florida this offseason to train and get better. With wide receiver Calvin Austin III not playing at all last year with an injury he needs to get as much chemistry as possible with his teammates. Pickett also needs to get more comfortable as he was not taking first team reps until Week Five of the regular season.
The chemistry on offense should improve a lot this year with the young offensive stars having more time to train together and some playing experience. The offense needs to improve this year for the Steelers to compete in a loaded AFC North, and with so many impact players coming from the 2022 NFL Draft it is vital that they take a second-year leap.
Heyward clearly believes they will. With all the reports of how hard everyone is working and how Pickett looks more comfortable and better this year, it makes sense to expect a second-year leap. While there are many factors that determine how good a football team is, it is hard not to stress how important it is that the 2022 draft class take a huge leap this season.
