The Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2023 draft was a pretty good one, as they found a potential shutdown cornerback in Joey Porter Jr. at the top of the second round and also got a starting tackle in Broderick Jones. Overall, Pro Football Focus ranked the 2023 Steelers draft class as the 10th best in football last season.
PFF listed Jones, Porter, Keeanu Benton and Darnell Washington as the team’s impact players, although I think OLB Nick Herbig should’ve been on the list despite playing limited snaps since he made them count.
“Joey Porter Jr. was thrown into the fire, immediately asked to cover the best receivers in the league. Overall, he held his own and has a bright future. Keeanu Benton didn’t produce high sack numbers, so his good rookie season is flying under the radar a bit,” PFF’s Timo Riske writes.
While Benton only registered one sack last season, he came close to a number of others and the thought is that he’ll continue to ascend as a pass rusher as he continues to grow and develop. Benton looked like a legitimately good piece for now and the future during his rookie season, and he could be a future anchor for Pittsburgh’s defensive line.
Washington wasn’t used much in the passing game but he had his moments as a blocker, and he was primarily drafted to be a blocking tight end while Pat Freiermuth could handle receiving duties. Washington could see some expansion in his role as a receiver going forward, but as long as he works on blocking, he’ll be a valuable piece. Washington should end up being one of the best blocking tight ends in football, and we’ll see if he can continue to add to that facet of his game this offseason.
Porter will enter 2024 as Pittsburgh’s top corner, and he already shadowed top receivers last season, including Ja’Marr Chase, DK Metcalf, and DeAndre Hopkins. That will continue going forward, but the Steelers need to add help around Porter at cornerback, likely through the draft although they could dip their toes into free agency as well. Currently, Donte Jackson is slated to be Pittsburgh’s No. 2 cornerback.
As for Jones, he immediately boosted Pittsburgh’s run game when he entered the starting lineup in Week 9, but he struggled at times as a pass blocker and was inconsistent. The Steelers want to move Jones back to left tackle “eventually,” and we’ll see if they target a right tackle option in the draft that would allow them to move Jones to his natural position.
It comes as little surprise that the Houston Texans and Green Bay Packers were ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, for having the top draft classes in football, as both teams got a lot of production out of their rookies. In Houston, QB C.J. Stroud, EDGE Will Anderson Jr., and WR Tank Dell in particular stood out, while WRs Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks along with TEs Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft helped revamp Green Bay’s passing attack.
Despite ranking 10th, the Steelers’ draft last season was impressive. Hopefully, it’ll be equally or more impressive in 2024, with the draft under a month away as Round 1 begins on April 25.
