The Pittsburgh Steelers were back in the playoffs in 2023 and even though they lost their Super Wild Card game, team president Art Rooney II indicated Monday that he feels the team took another step toward in having a team that will soon compete for a championship again.
According to Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Rooney said on Monday that he agrees with what HC Mike Tomlin said recently when it comes to the team being “closer at this stage of the game than last year.” Rooney reportedly pointed to the Steelers 2023 rookie class, and the work done by GM Omar Khan during the 2023 season to supply injury replacements the team had on defense as reasons why he has optimism moving forward.
Via 93.7 The Fan, here’s Rooney’s entire quote on where the Steelers stand.
“I think it’s fair to say that I do feel that we’re closer this year at this stage of the game than we were at this point last year. As I mentioned, I thought we had a really solid rookie class and a few guys that really stepped in and are solid starters for the future. We need to do that again. We need to have another good draft class. I think we have a core group of players that we can compete with this group. I think the biggest thing we need is quality play at the quarterback position.”
While not a lot to go on in that statement by Rooney, the Steelers’ 2023 draft class, at least through one season, showed a lot of promise. That group of picks was headlined by the top three selections, T Broderick Jones, CB Joey Porter Jr., and DT Keeanu Benton. All three managed to play quite a few snaps during rookie seasons. Jones became the starting right tackle for the Steelers in Week Eight while Porter started seeing starter-like status starting also in Week Eight. As for Benton, he played regularly throughout the season.
While he didn’t play as much outside of special teams, OLB Nick Herbig, a fourth-round selection, made the most of his limited playing time on defense throughout the season. The Wisconsin product finished his rookie season with three sacks and two forced fumbles in addition to a fumble recovery. Even TE Darnell Washington, the second of two third-round selections made by the Steelers in 2023, saw considerable playing time on offense with most of his snaps coming as a blocker.
The Steelers expect their drafted players to make significant leaps in their second NFL seasons and so it will be fun to watch Jones, Porter, Benton, Herbig, and Washington attempt to do just that. Additionally, the team will look to see if they can get contributions in 2024 out of two of their other 2023 draft picks: CB Cory Trice Jr., and OL Spencer Anderson. Trice missed his rookie season due to a knee injury while Anderson barely saw the field as a rookie due to the starting offensive line group staying healthy overall.
As for the job that Khan did in 2023 that Rooney referenced, his in-season additions of veterans such as ILB Myles Jack and S Eric Rowe to the practice squad helped the team weather a season full of injuries at both the inside linebacker and safety positions. Jack and Rowe played extensively for the Steelers down the stretch and helped the team close out the regular season with a 3-0 record and ultimately secure a playoff spot.
While the Steelers made the playoffs in 2023, they still failed to win a postseason game and that’s a huge elephant in the room for the organization at this point. Their last playoff win came back in the 2016 season and that dubious long streak is one that fans of the Steelers aren’t used to seeing.
As is the case every offseason, the Steelers will need to rebuild about a third of their team and that won’t be an easy chore. To do so, Khan will need to have another fantastic draft in 2024 and fill the other holes on the roster via free agency. The Steelers have a few of their own unrestricted free agents that they probably would love to re-sign, including QB Masion Rudolph and S Miles Killebrew.
By the sound of what Rooney said during his Monday sit-down with select members of the local media, the playoff win drought needs to come to an end in 2024 and it’s up to Khan and HC Mike Tomlin to make that happen.
