It’s been a rather busy, exciting offseason to date for the Pittsburgh Steelers under GM Omar Khan.
The Khan Artist, as he’s affectionately known, has been wheeling and dealing, reshaping the roster in a major way, especially on offense.
To date, Khan has brought in quarterbacks Russell Wilson and Justin Fields in free agency and via trade, landed linebacker Patrick Queen and safety DeShon Elliott in free agency, and has added wide receivers Van Jefferson and Quez Watkins and kick returner/running back Cordarrelle Patterson to the roster, giving Pittsburgh some serious speed offensively under new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.
Not to mention, he’s plugged some holes defensively, too, trading for cornerback Donte Jackson and recently adding veteran defensive lineman Dean Lowry to the roster.
Things are looking up for the Steelers thanks to some of Khan’s moves, but to be fair, their roster is still a work in progress with some significant holes.
Pro Football Focus’ Dalton Wasserman identified some of those holes that remain for the Steelers on Wednesday morning.
In a piece for PFF.com, Wasserman highlighted the offensive line, wide receiver and cornerback as the Steelers’ biggest needs on the roster after the first few weeks of free agency.
“Pittsburgh has to find starters at center and tackle before the season begins. Broderick Jones can play either tackle spot, giving the team some flexibility. The Steelers also need a wide receiver now that they’ve traded Diontae Johnson to Carolina. Solidifying their quarterback room allows the Steelers to focus on these weaknesses,” Wasserman writes regarding the Steelers’ needs on the offensive side of the football.
Trading their best route runner and separator in Diontae Johnson significantly hinders the Steelers at the receiver position. While George Pickens appears ready to ascend to be the No. 1 receiver in the Steel City coming off a breakout second season in the NFL, the Steelers don’t have much in the way of a running mate for him at the level Johnson was.
The additions of Jefferson and Watkins are fine depth pieces, but neither are moving the needle overall.
Chances are, if the Steelers are going to address the receiver position further, it’ll come via a trade ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft, or early in the first few rounds of next month’s draft, where a loaded receiver class awaits.
The offensive line has needs, too. Center is a black hole for the Steelers currently. While Khan and the Steelers can talk up Nate Herbig as an option all they want, he’s played 49 snaps at center in his career. That shouldn’t be a comforting thought for the Steelers.
Khan, to his credit, stated that the Steelers have been active in the trade market at the position, so something could happen there, but right now it feels inevitable that the Steelers will land one of Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson or West Virginia’s Zach Frazier in the first two rounds of the draft to shore up the position.
Offensive tackle is a major need, too. Jones should move back to left tackle this season, and Dan Moore Jr. might be best served as a swing tackle, but that would open a need at right tackle. If the Steelers want to stick with what the two did last season as the bookends, a third tackle is needed after releasing Chukwuma Okorafor this offseason.
Defensively, the Steelers have issues at cornerback.
“Joey Porter Jr. also needs some help at cornerback after that group ranked 27th in the NFL in overall grade. Patrick Peterson, Chandon Sullivan and Levi Wallace are all free agents, so the Steelers likely need to add multiple players from a draft class with a lot of talent at the position,” Wasserman writes regarding the Steelers’ cornerback room.
A tandem, on paper, of Porter and Jackson is certainly intriguing, but depth is a massive concern. Only Darius Rush, Thomas Graham Jr. and Josiah Scott have NFL experience at the position behind the two projected starters. Not great!
The Steelers are likely to address cornerback in the draft — and early — and there is even a chance, based on everything that’s been said this offseason, that the Steelers circle back to veteran Patrick Peterson for depth.
We’ll see how that plays out.
Overall though, Khan has done a really good job so far this offseason, but there are still some holes that need addressed as they are major concerns sitting here in late March.
