Finishing the 2022 season near the bottom of the league in total offense and scoring, the only way to go is up for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense in 2023.
Good news for Pittsburgh is that young pieces in quarterback Kenny Pickett and wide receiver George Pickens, along with veterans Diontae Johnson, Pat Freiermuth and Najee Harris with a solidified offensive line has the arrow pointing up for the Steelers’ offense.
So much so, in fact, that NFL Network analyst Bucky Brooks believes that the Steelers’ offense is one of four units on the offensive side of the football that will take the “biggest leap” in 2023.
“As Kenny Pickett settles into his role as a QB1 following a solid if unspectacular rookie campaign, Pittsburgh’s offense should take a significant leap forward. Flanked by a well-rounded skill-position group that includes Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, Allen Robinson, Pat Freiermuth and Najee Harris, Pickett should play with more confidence and command in Year 2. Consequently, the Steelers have the potential to attack with an aerial circus that creates and exploits mismatches,” Brooks writes regarding the Steelers’ offense for NFL.com. “Also, the team’s continued upgrading of the offensive line (SEE: free-agent guard Isaac Seumalo and first-round tackle Broderick Jones) — as well as the third-round selection of mammoth tight end Darnell Washington — will enable offensive coordinator Matt Canada to lean on a punishing rushing attack that overpowers opponents.
“Considering the quarterback’s expected improvement and the upgraded personnel around him, the Steelers are poised to make a surge in production that should enable them to compete for a playoff spot once again in 2023.”
It was a rather eventful offseason for the Steelers on the offensive side of the football as GM Omar Khan added the likes of Isaac Seumalo and Nate Herbig in the trenches at guard, and moved up in the draft to select Broderick Jones in the first round. Khan also traded for wide receiver Allen Robinson ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft, and added tight end Darnell Washington in the draft, shoring up the passing game weapons in the process.
For the offense to take a leap forward though in the third year under offensive coordinator Matt Canada, who has been much-maligned, the onus will fall on Pickett in Year 2 and him taking that expected step forward in his second season in the NFL like many quarterbacks before him have done.
Pickett was rather impressive in the second half of the season, cutting way down on the turnovers and general mistakes a young quarterback makes. He put together some strong performances overall in leading the Steelers to a 6-2 record when he was on the field.
Pittsburgh rebounded from a disastrous 2-6 start to finish 9-8, with a handful of wins in the second half of the season coming due to Pickett leading fourth quarter comebacks (Saints and Colts wins) and game-winning drives (Raiders, Ravens). He showed he has that “it” factor in big moments. When the lights get bright and the moment gets tight, he simply didn’t shrink, instead rising to the occasion.
That was big for a young quarterback to go through and grow from. That has him set up for success moving forward and has raised the bar on expectations as well.
Now, it all sets up for a big second season in Pittsburgh.
While he has a bit of a way to go before he proves that he is truly legit and a realistic franchise quarterback for the Steelers, the excitement and expectations around Pickett entering Year 2 are rather high, as they should be. The NFL has recently seen some second-year quarterbacks, like Trevor Lawrence and Jalen Hurts, make significant leaps. Though it might be a stretch to expect Pickett to make the leap into stardom that Hurts and Lawrence did last season, that’s the type of company and expectations he’s put himself into due to his performance down the stretch in 2022.
If Pickett can make that Year 2 leap many are expecting, especially considering how often the Year 2 leaps have occurred for other young quarterbacks in recent seasons, the Steelers will be in a great spot moving forward, seemingly having figured out the most important position in sports rather quickly, and in doing so should be a lot better offensively, though the improvements in scoring and total offense might not be all that big due to the style the Steelers want to play in 2023.
