The Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2023 offseason practices concluded in the middle of June and next up is their annual training camp, which gets underway in late July at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe. Ahead of training camp, we will preview the team’s offseason roster three players at a time for you as part of a 30-post series. This Steelers roster preview, which includes outlooks for every player, will be done alphabetically by last name to make it easy to follow.
The next three players we will preview ahead of Steelers 2023 training camp are Ryan McCollum, Anthony McFarland Jr., and Dan Moore Jr.
C Ryan McCollum: McCollum, who entered the NFL in 2021 with the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent out of Texas A&M, spent the entire 2022 season on the Steelers’ practice squad. To date he has logged 100 NFL snaps at the center position and those came as a rookie in 2021 with the Detroit Lions. Those snaps came in four total games in which he started just one of them. While McCollum did log 847 total snaps at center in college, he was essentially just a one-year starter at Texas A&M at that position.
Outlook: Moving forward, McCollum is expected to battle for the right to be the Steelers’ backup center for the 2023 season. Is one of the few true centers on the team’s 90-man roster at this point so his chances of surviving the final round of cuts are decent overall. It also helps that he is not new to the Steelers after spending 2022 on the team’s practice squad. The Steelers, however, could be planning on adding another experienced center closer to the start of the 2023 regular season. If they do that, McCollum is likely to be cut and then hoping to land a spot on the team’s practice squad once again.
RB Anthony McFarland Jr.: Selected by the Steelers in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft out of Maryland, McFarland has had a tough going when it comes to his professional career. Since his 2020 rookie season, which included him playing in 11 games and registering 39 total offensive touches, McFarland has played in just three games since and has registered just 12 total touches on offense.
Last season, McFarland spent most of his time on the Steelers’ practice squad as he was elevated to the Active/Inactive roster for just one game.
Outlook: The Steelers re-signed McFarland to a Reserve/Future contract after the 2022 regular season, so he’s now set to take part in his third training camp with the team. He will compete against several other young running backs on the summer roster for the right to be the team’s third-string option behind Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren.
Proving that he can be an asset on special teams is something McFarland will undoubtedly need to do this summer, and he has even acknowledged that as fact this offseason. Even so, that will be a tough chore for him, especially if he can’t shine as a returner, a role he has not played a lot, both in college and in the NFL. He has a tough road ahead of him when it comes to his chances of making the Steelers’ Week 1 53-man roster.
T Dan Moore Jr.: After being selected by the Steelers in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Texas A&M, Moore has played in 33 of 34 regular-season games and started every one that he suited up for at left tackle. The only game that Moore missed in his first two NFL seasons came in Week 17 of the 2021 season as an ankle injury prevented him from playing in that contest.
Last season, Moore played every offensive snap on his way to registering a Pro Football Focus overall grade of 62.4. Moore, also according to PFF, allowed seven sacks, 10 quarterback hits and 22 hurries in 2022. He was also flagged 10 times in 2022 with five of those penalties being for holding and four others being called false starts.
Outlook: The Steelers selected tackle Broderick Jones in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, and the Georgia product’s expected to be the team’s franchise left side player at some point moving forward. Even so, Moore will be tasked with holding off Jones from becoming the new starting left tackle as long as possible.
There’s a decent chance that Moore winds up being the Steelers’ Week 1 starter at left tackle, and if that’s the case, he will have no room for error with the rookie first-round draft pick behind him. Once, however, Moore is eventually moved aside for Jones, he should become the team’s primary backup at both tackle spots.
Previous Posts In This Series:
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Montravius Adams, Spencer Anderson, Calvin Austin III
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Luq Barcoo, Keeanu Benton, Chris Boswell
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Miles Boykin, Ja’Marcus Bradley, Hakeem Butler
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Jordan Byrd, Dan Chisena, Le’Raven Clark
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Mason Cole, Dylan Cook, James Daniels
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Duke Dawson, Kevin Dotson, William Dunkle
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Breiden Fehoko, Dez Fitzpatrick, Minkah Fitzpatrick
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Pat Freiermuth, Zach Gentry, Markus Golden
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Alfonzo Graham, Kendrick Green, Darius Hagans
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Madre Harper, Najee Harris, Pressley Harvin III
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Nate Herbig, Nick Herbig, Cameron Heyward
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Connor Heyward, Alex Highsmith, Cole Holcomb
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Jason Huntley, Diontae Johnson, Broderick Jones
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Manny Jones, Damontae Kazee, Miles Killebrew
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Christian Kuntz, Nick Kwiatkoski, DeMarvin Leal
90 In 30: Steelers 2023 Training Camp Preview Series: Isaiahh Loudermilk, Braden Mann, Jonathan Marshall
