Buy Or Sell: The Steelers’ 2024 rookie class will have more immediate impact than last year’s class.
Explanation: The Steelers drafted multiple players last year who emerged as starters or significant contributors, helmed by Joey Porter Jr. Broderick Jones and Keeanu Benton are also starters, with Nick Herbig and Darnell Washington contributing. This year, each of the first three draft picks could start on opening day, with a fourth contributing. Troy Fautanu and Zach Frazier are favorites for the offensive line, while Roman Wilson is in a wide-open position group. Payton Wilson already sounds like he’ll have a defensive role and could push to start.
Buy:
The Steelers’ identity will run through their offensive line this year. For that reason, with Troy Fautanu and Zach Frazier, their 2024 rookie class will have a greater impact than 2023. We don’t even need to talk about Roman Wilson and Payton Wilson—those two will help define the team’s personality.
But Wilson is arguably the best route runner the Steelers already have on the roster, and they need one. He should be no worse than the third wide receiver, and Russell Wilson is bound to find him. As for Payton Wilson, the fact that the Steelers are talking about him as a dime ‘backer is a hint. They are not going to be able to keep him off the field, and once he’s on, he’s not coming off. Sorry, Elandon.
And here’s the thing about the Steelers’ 2023 draft class: they had to wait. Broderick Jones and Joey Porter Jr. didn’t play much in the first half of the year. Keeanu Benton was out there, but inconsistently, and the same with Darnell Washington. They will be bigger in 2024 than this year’s class, but not as rookies.
Sell:
Let’s not get ahead of ourselves with all of this rookie talk. We can’t guarantee that any of the Steelers’ rookies will even win starting jobs. Troy Fautanu especially is moving to a relatively new position, and they return their incumbent starters. Zach Frazier didn’t blow the roof off in the spring, either and the Wilsons are just bit parts for now. Like Nick Herbig, they will have to bide their time.
And we can’t forget what last year’s class actually did, even if not immediately. Joey Porter Jr. transformed the secondary, and thus the defense. The running game spiked when Jones finally started. And Benton did so much more than the stat sheet says, especially while Cameron Heyward was out.
With the Steelers’ 2023 season in the rearview mirror following a disappointing year that came up short in the playoffs once again, it’s time to start asking more questions. Questions about the team’s future in 2024 and beyond. Questions about The Standard.
The rookie class of a year ago was on the whole impressive, but they need to step up into staple starters in 2024. And they needed a strong influx of talent in both free agency and in the 2024 NFL Draft yet again. In addition to a revisitation of the coaching staff.
These sorts of uncertainties are what I will look to address in our Buy or Sell series. In each installment, I will introduce a topic statement and weigh some of the arguments for either buying it (meaning that you agree with it or expect it to be true) or selling it (meaning you disagree with it or expect it to be false).
