Continuing our series looking at the biggest storylines by position group as the Steelers prepare for training camp at the end of the month. In this entry, we’ll look at the kickers and punters.
Punter: Will Braden Mann be able to beat out Pressley Harvin III?
Harvin III, a former Ray Guy Award winner at Georgia Tech, has been underwhelming in two seasons as Pittsburgh’s punter. His rookie year he had to deal with multiple deaths in the family and while he showed flashes last season, he just simply hasn’t been consistent. His career average of 43.6 yards per punt is lower than any season Mann has had, who averaged 45.4 yards per punt as the New York Jets’ primary punter over the last three seasons.
The Steelers added Mann off waivers, and he’s legitimate competition for Harvin. If it weren’t for Harvin dealing with family issues, there’s a legitimate chance that Corliss Waitman could’ve won the job over him late in 2021, and Mann is now his biggest competition since then. For a team that wants to win with the defense and the run game, being able to flip fields in the punting game is going to be as important as ever in 2023.
Harvin’s got a big leg, but he just hasn’t been consistent at all in his two seasons. He’ll unleash a monster punt and then follow it up with a 35-yard duck that gives the opposition good field position. Mann was available for a reason, so it’s not as if he’s going to step in and immediately be better than Harvin, but he’ll have every opportunity to win the job.
This is going to be one of Pittsburgh’s most important position battles during camp, and whoever wins it is going to play an important role in the success of the 2023 Steelers. It’s definitely one to watch closely.
Kicker: Can Chris Boswell return to form?
After signing a contract that briefly made him the highest-paid kicker in the NFL, Boswell had a pretty rough go of things for parts of 2022. He only made 71.4% of his field goals, the second-lowest total of his career behind his disastrous 2018 season where he was just 13-20 on field goal attempts. He was 20-28 last season, and for a team that struggled to put points on the board last season the misses were felt.
Since joining the Steelers, Boswell has been one of the better kickers in the league, and it would be concerning if he didn’t get back to his normal self in 2023. B.T. Potter was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Clemson, and while he has no real shot of usurping Boswell as the starting kicker out of training camp, he could find himself on the practice squad and be a potential option down the line.
Cutting Boswell doesn’t do Pittsburgh any good in terms of cap savings this year, so he’s going to be on the roster. I’m not particularly worried as he always seems to figure things out, but another season where he struggles a bit won’t bode well for his long-term future with the Steelers.
Having a good kicker is one of the best luxuries a football team can have, and Boswell has been one of the best in the league for the majority of his Steelers tenure. The Steelers offense will be better this year, but I’m not sure it’s going to be one of the better ones in the league. The group is going to need to rely on Boswell to make the kicks he should and put points on the board.
The Steelers are no stranger to close games, and the reason they’ve won so many of them is due to Boswell. Hopefully, there are fewer close games and more big Steelers wins (although I wouldn’t count on that given their history), but Boswell is going to need to return to form for the Steelers to be a playoff team this year.
