The Pittsburgh Steelers came out in style in their first game action of the preseason, flashing both on the offensive and defensive sides of the football. The opening drive on offense was a thing of beauty as QB Kenny Pickett looked in full control, spreading the wealth in the passing game and capping it with an impressive touchdown throw to WR George Pickens.
The long bomb touchdown pass from QB Mason Rudolph to WR Calvin Austin III also stood out from the Steelers’ 27-17 win over Tampa Bay, showcasing a level of explosiveness on offense Pittsburgh hasn’t seen in some time. The team’s performance last weekend has numerous people excited for what this Steelers team can be in 2023. Jason McCourty of GMFB on NFL Network is one of those people but doesn’t know where to put Pittsburgh in the landscape of the AFC North and the AFC Conference at large.
“I just want to pick the Pittsburgh Steelers to win it all,” McCourty said on GMFB. “But in this division…you have the Bengals, you have the Ravens, we don’t know what the Browns are going to be. There’s just so much competition that I just look at these guys and I think that Pickett can make a huge jump, but I don’t know how high to place these Pittsburgh Steelers.”
The AFC North is going to be a dogfight this season as the Steelers, Bengals, Ravens, and Browns all boast talented rosters. Head Coach Mike Tomlin has talked about the challenges of facing the quarterbacks in the division, saying that he wants a roster that can compete with Lamar Jackson, Deshaun Watson, and Joe Burrow without having to put all the pressure on Pickett to duel and beat those guys as a second-year player on the rise.
The Steelers are a difficult team to project in 2023. They managed to finish the 2022 season 9-8 after winning seven of their last nine contests, having a less talented roster last season than they do now. With all the talent Pittsburgh added via the draft, free agency, and trades along with the natural development from Pickett, Pickens, and the other young guys on the roster, this should be a much-improved team from a season ago. Still, the rest of the AFC North has worked to improve this offseason as well and the AFC at large is extremely competitive with the Chiefs, Bills, Chargers, and others all having a case to contend for the conference title.
To have a chance at winning the AFC North in 2023, the Steelers need to keep up the offensive performance they had Friday night and take it into the regular season. Combine that with a stingy defense and the Steelers have as good a chance as any team in the AFC North to hoist the division crown.
