I know what you’re probably thinking after reading that headline: “Why would the Steelers worry about trade value?”
It’s a fair question but diving deeper into the NFL Trade Value Rankings from The Ringer’s Sheil Kapadia is another way to take a look at the best 75 players in the NFL today.
For more than two decades, Bill Simmons has done his annual NBA Trade Value Rankings ahead of the start of each NBA season. It’s a show of who are the best players in the world in a snapshot. Kapadia borrowed the idea and put it to use in the NFL. The rankings take into account positional value, age, contract and overall experience. No rookies are included in the rankings.
Unsurprisingly, the Steelers had three key players land inside the NFL Trade Value Rankings Wednesday morning.
Those three players? Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, outside linebacker T.J. Watt and quarterback Kenny Pickett. Wide receiver George Pickens was listed as an honorable mention outside of the top 75, with Kapadia stating he needs to see it again from Pickens and wants to be “100 percent sure” on Pickens on and off the field before including him in the NFL Trade Value Rankings.
Not sure what else Kapadia needs to see off the field from Pickens to put those ridiculous pre-draft character concerns to rest, but that’s his prerogative.
In the rankings, Pickett was the first Steeler inside the top 75, landing at No. 51, headlining the section of Tier 11 “Our Fans Will Riot If We Trade Them.”
That’s pretty accurate right now regarding Pickett and the city of Pittsburgh.
“Pickett is another player I had a really hard time with. He improved throughout his rookie season and performed better than the traditional stats indicate. If nothing else, Pickett looks like a competent starter with a high floor, and he still has three years left on his rookie contract,” Kapadia writes regarding Pickett’s trade value. “I think there’s some upside. Pickett’s a player who could shoot up these rankings by season’s end with a strong showing during his second season.”
It’s understandable that Pickett was hard to rank in the top 75 from a value standpoint. He’s still largely an unknown overall, though there is a ton of hype and great expectations entering Year Two.
Some of the raw numbers from a production standpoint as a rookie are concerning, and his overall ceiling from an evaluation standpoint is a concern as well. But with a big second year building off of his play down the stretch as a rookie, Pickett will find himself rising up the rankings in a hurry.
A young quarterback on a rookie deal is extremely valuable, especially a good one. That would play into Pickett’s favor.
For what it’s worth, Pickett found himself in the same tier with San Francisco wide receiver Deebo Samuel, Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp, Cincinnati wide receiver Tee Higgins, Washington wide receiver Terry McLaurin, and Detroit wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. That’s quite telling.
Along with Pickett, T.J. Watt and Minkah Fitzpatrick cracked the value rankings and landed in the elite category of Tier 5: “Elite and Expensive.”
Watt came in at No. 21, one spot ahead of Las Vegas pass rusher Maxx Crosby.
“Watt missed seven games due to injury last year, but when healthy, he is one of the most disruptive players in the NFL. Over the last five seasons, Watt has ranked first in both sacks (70.5) and QB hits (136). Watt is owed an average of more than $20 million in each of the next three seasons,” Kapadia writes regarding Watt’s ranking. “Teams would gladly pay that for a player of his caliber. In 2018, the Bears gave up a package that included two first-round picks to acquire Khalil Mack from the Raiders. Watt is a couple of years older than Mack was at the time, but that’s the neighborhood we’re shopping in here.”
There is no denying Watt is one of the most disruptive players in the NFL when healthy.
Though he missed seven games last season, it’s not as if Watt has this long, nagging history of being unavailable to the Steelers. Prior to last season, Watt was a beacon of health. He played in 77 of a possible 80 games and recorded snap count percentages of 82, 86, 86, 88, 73 and 83.
Last season’s injury was a freak injury. It’s unlikely to happen again. He’s always on the field and playing a high number of snaps, and that leads to great disruption. He remains an elite-level player, and he’s going to show that in 2023.
Fitzpatrick, coming off of yet another All-Pro season, landed at No. 19 in the value rankings.
“The Steelers sent the Dolphins a package that included a first-round pick to acquire Fitzpatrick in 2019. Fitzpatrick couldn’t net more now that he’s four years older, could he? I think he could! Fitzpatrick was a good, young player then. Now he’s a three-time All-Pro and hands down the best safety in the NFL,” Kapadia writes regarding Fitzpatrick’s ranking. “There’s precedent for teams paying up to land talented safeties in their primes. In 2020, the Seahawks sent the Jets a package that included two first-round picks for Jamal Adams. Maybe Fitzpatrick wouldn’t command quite that steep of a price. Then again, this will be his age-27 season, and he’s under contract through 2026. Maybe he would.”
The trade that the Steelers made with the Dolphins for Fitzpatrick early in the 2019 season continues to look like an absolute steal for Pittsburgh. Just one first-round pick for a three-time All-Pro safety, the best one in the game to boot? What a bargain.
He remains a great player and is entering his prime, which is a scary thought overall for the rest of the league. Were the Steelers ever in a position that they’d need to trade him, they could fetch a significant haul for the star safety. That’s all hypothetical though; he’s a Steeler for life.
Outside of the trio of Steelers, it was quite interesting that Kapadia had Dallas pass rusher Micah Parsons as the NFL’s most untouchable non-QB in the rankings, but it was no surprise that Kansas City QB Patrick Mahomes was the top player on the list.
It’s all hypothetical, but it’s a sign that the Steelers have some elite talent and some very intriguing up-and-coming pieces on the roster. They’re in a good spot moving forward.
