Welcome to your weekly Pittsburgh Steelers mailbag. As always, we’re here for the next hour to answer whatever is on your mind.
To your questions!
Wasting My Time Arguing: What would your ideal offseason Quarterback situation resolution be?
Alex: Drafting a QB. But easier said than done. Finding that guy, being in range to acquire that guy. Much harder when you’re sitting at No. 20. But I think their future is through the draft. Problem is, on paper, and it’s early, the 2025 NFL Draft class doesn’t look great at quarterback.
PghDSF: What are your thoughts of bringing back Josh Dobbs?
Alex: I guess I’m not opposed. I’m not sure if he wants to keep coming back to Pittsburgh. He’s not the ideal fit for that veteran competition but I get the connection for obvious reasons. I don’t think that’s the route they’re going to go but I understand where your head is at. He’s not someone who is going to start all season for you and feels more like a true and trustworthy No. 2 and a slight downgrade from the Minshew/Brissett’s of the world.
BananasFoster: Ray Fittipaldo sort of stole my thunder but look at the Steelers drafts 2018-2020, just two players left, and 3 if you add in 2017 with TJ. The Steelers HAVE to draft better. is this the reason why the scouting department has been getting an overhaul? And no depth on this team.
Also, can the Steelers really go into this season with Kenny, a journeyman QB signing and a late-round draft pick? If so, literally how will they compete? The QB position needs to be addressed, and NOW. If I magically turned you into a combination of AR2, OK and MT what would YOU do? Trade for Fields, Russell? Sign Kirk? Something needs to be done. They are just spinning their wheels. If nothing, I can almost guarantee you we’ll be sitting here Feb. 15 of 2025 and having the same conversation.
Alex: I don’t know if that’s the main reason for the scouting overhaul. Anytime a new regime takes over, even an internal promotion like Khan, new scouts and front office executives get brought in. Some are Khan’s guys (Sadowski), some are Weidl’s guys (Casey Weidl, Jim Ward) and some guys leave in this transition (Brandon Hunt). Pittsburgh had an older group of scouts without much turnover and eventually, it was going to change.
I’m sure Khan wanted to change and modernize things a bit and the draft record played a role, too. But I don’t think it’s a smoking gun.
As for QB, that seems to be their plan. I understand your point and concern and share it, though I don’t think going out and getting Russell Wilson turns you into a contender either. It’s going to have to be through the draft and Pittsburgh isn’t in a strong position to get a top name right now. But that would be my focus first.
Sonny Saks:
If the options are the following what would you do if your Omar…
A. Stick with Pickett
B. Cousins two year 60 guaranteed
C. Wilson vet min
D. Fields picking up 5th year option and giving up a 3rd and 5th round pick.
E. Mason
Alex: As I’ve said a couple times, it’s really through the draft. That’s the door/option I’d be exploring. Getting a top three name is pretty much impossible but I’d be doing homework on Bo Nix and Michael Penix and J.J. McCarthy. I’m not sure which of the three I’d want, if any, but that’s where my attention would lie.
Black and Gold Mafia: AK,
Pat Freiermuth probably gets extended this Summer. I’m curious how much you think he’ll get on an extension? Pat has top 10 tight end ability, but the numbers don’t match that. He’s also starting to pile up a bit of injury history. I’m a Freiermuth fan, but I struggle with what he should be paid.
Alex: Dave and I have talked about it some. Probably looking in the $10-12 million range. Tight end market has gotten hot and he’s not going to play for less than his value or else he’ll bet on himself and play out the final year of his rookie deal. So that’s about the range I’d be looking at. Dave Bryan wrote about it before the season, pegging his value higher than I have, but it came with the caveat of him putting up similar production as his first two years. Which he did not due to injury.
Dan Blocker: Alex! Is it surprising that we haven’t heard from Kenny Pickett at this point? Or is that by design? I saw he posted Arthur Smith’s hiring on his IG, but he’s basically been quiet.
Alex: Nah, I’m not surprised. It’s the offseason. No obligation to give interviews and I’m sure he’s fine with laying low with how 2023 ended and the heat he’s taken as the questionable future of the position. We’ll hear from him at some point. I don’t think he’s upset about the Smith hire.
asp330jc: What Free Agent players do you see the Steelers eyeing up this upcoming offseason? With us having some significant needs (OT, C, CB, S, MLB, DT/DE, and QB), what players do you think would be wise to spend money on in FA to fill some of those holes before the draft?
Alex: I hadn’t gone through the list of names yet. Soon. But not yet. But broadly, I can see d-line, something at corner, and a veteran offensive tackle be some of the positions they’re more likely to target (along with a veteran QB, if they can’t re-sign Mason Rudolph) without really having a list of names to offer you. I just haven’t gotten to that point yet. But I will.
Billjump: Hi Alex, I find it interesting in what it takes for a player to be elite. Which Steelers players do you currently think are elite? And which players have the best chance to develop into elite players in 2024?
Alex: It’s a short list of currently elite players. Really just T.J. Watt and Minkah Fitzpatrick. I’d even remove Cam Heyward from that true and top elite tier coming off the down/injured season until he shows he can bounce back in his mid-30s. Still a great player, still strong as an ox, but among the interior d-linemen in football, a really strong group, he’s probably not in that elite top 2-4 names. So just Watt and Fitzpatrick.
Who has the best chance to become elite? It’s still not a large list. George Pickens has elite potential. And Joey Porter Jr. in Year Two seems promising. Broderick Jones has a high ceiling but I’d be surprised if he became an “elite” name in 2024. Maybe 2025 if all goes well.
CouchGM:
Afternoon Alex,
I try to be more on the reasonable side, you’re just gonna get disappointed otherwise. Two questions I’m battling with:
1. Inside linebacker is a huge question mark, If Holcomb can’t go on day one what’s the plan? They have nobody
2. Could you see them selecting a quarterback in the draft, if they have to go the older backup route?
Alex: Fair questions.
1. I think their hope and calculation is Holcombe will be good to go by the start of camp. Obviously, they have a better read on his rehab and recovery than I do. But assuming he is, then you have him, Elandon Roberts, and Mark Robinson, who Teryl Austin pegged as 2025 being his year to really shine. You can work with that. They can and probably will add something else to that group, something lower level, and we’ll see if they show any interest playing Jeremiah Moon off-ball.
2. Yes I can but I don’t expect it to be a Day One or Day Two pick. Something on Day Three. More likely a sixth or seventh round pick as a No. 3 option. So the QB room would look like.
– Kenny Pickett
– Mason Rudolph or veteran FA equivalent
– Day Three draft pick
– UDFA or perhaps really low-tier FA QB (a Trevor Siemian type, just to give an idea of the caliber I’m talking about)
That’s my read on how it’s going to go. They do need four arms to camp and they aren’t going to just sign three veterans.
Brian Tollini: Do you feel the Steelers are entering this draft with the assumption this is Diontae’s final season here or do you feel like they have intentions to keep him here? I feel like he will at least want to test free agency and not be tempted by an extension offer again.
Alex: That’s a good question. I’m not sure. My gut feeling is they’re not planning on extending him and he’ll play out 2024. He will be 28 in July so any new years wouldn’t start until his age-29 season which starts getting a little borderline to pay a guy good money. And he’s probably been frustrating to coach and handle at times. Good player but not elite so I could see them at least playing the year out. And there’s incentive for him to be healthy, have a great year, and try to get paid after the ’24 season.
