Going into the 2023 season, much of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ hopes for returning to the playoffs and contention rides on the shoulder of QB Kenny Pickett. General manager Omar Khan knows that and spent a good portion of the Steelers’ resources upgrading the offense with key additions like G Isaac Seumalo, G Nate Herbig, T Broderick Jones, and TE Darnell Washington. However, for NFL.com’s Eric Edholm when previewing Pittsburgh ahead of training camp, it’s time for the coaching staff to step up and help Pickett’s growth.
“The hope is that an improved offensive line, along with strides from young targets George Pickens and Pat Freiermuth, will make this a more fruitful passing game,” Edholm said. “But Pickett also must take a leap in his game, and offensive coordinator Matt Canada has to help him do that.”
This will not be a dive into whether Canada can help him do that, but rather a look into how Canada could do it. There are three main areas that could potentially help Pickett and the passing game improve leaps and bounds in 2023.
One way to improve the passing game is by attacking the middle of the field consistently. The Steelers have been terrible yardage-wise in terms of the middle of the field despite having Freiermuth as one of arguably the Top 10 tight ends in the league right now. Plus, WR Diontae Johnson can run just about every single route on the field at an elite level, including slants.
A concerted effort by Canada to draw up passing plays that target the middle of the field could definitely help Pickett and the offense develop in 2023. While neither Canada nor Pickett should be forcing the ball into triple coverage, attacking the middle of the field should help spread defenses out, leading to more opportunities across the entirety of the field.
Another way that Canada can help Pickett improve is by making a concerted effort to use play-action more. While overall Pickett’s numbers were not stellar by any stretch of the imagination using play-action in 2022, he did show improvement over the course of the season. He only attempted 66 play-action passes on the season which was 33rd among qualifying quarterbacks.
From the first half of the season to the second half, Pickett did jump nearly a full yard per play-action attempt from 6.0 to 6.8. He did not throw a touchdown in Weeks One through Nine on a play-action pass but threw five from Weeks 10 through 18. A focus on getting Pickett more comfortable while using play-action and just utilizing it more should help the offense as a whole.
The front office did what it could to help improve the offensive depth chart, starting with the offensive line. However, now it’s up to Pickett and his offensive coordinator to take full advantage of the upgrades to get the Steelers back on track offensively in 2023.
