It seems like almost every year the Steelers end up with an over .500 record, labelling them one of the most consistent teams in the NFL. At the same time, year after year the boys in black and yellow fail to win the big games and make deep runs in the playoffs.
The Steelers will look a little bit different in 2024. For starters, they completely revamped their quarterback room from a season ago. From what was once Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky, and Mason Rudolph, is now Russell Wilson and Justin Fields.
Acquiring both of these quarterbacks this offseason turned a lot of heads in confusion around the NFL. Wilson has been slowly getting older and declining in productivity at the same time, while there have been many open critics about Fields being unable to perform during his time in Chicago. It will be interesting to see who Mike Tomlin names QB1 come September 8th.
The rest of the Pittsburgh offense will look a bit different as well. The Steelers moved on from Allen Robinson and Diontae Johnson this offseason, creating a hole in the receiver room. They ended up drafting Roman Wilson out of Michigan, and signed Van Jefferson to take over those spots.
After tons of critics regarding the running back room, the Steelers will stick with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren in the backfield. This will definitely be a make or break year for Harris with the Steelers declining his fifth-year option. Warren emerged in some big moments last year, so the possibility of him taking over as RB1 is not out of the question.
The success of the Steelers defense this season will once again rely on the health of their superstar linebacker, TJ Watt. Watt has been with the Steelers now for seven seasons and has established himself as the best linebacker in the NFL. Over those seven seasons, Watt has missed 11 games. In those eleven games, the Steelers are 1-10 and give up almost a touchdown more per game to their opponents.
Watt accounted for 19 sacks in 2023, the most in the NFL. If there is one guy in the NFL that can change the whole dynamic of a defense based on whether they play or not, it is TJ Watt. Pittsburgh did add another big name linebacker to their room in Patrick Queen to pair alongside Watt. The Steelers may very well have the best linebacker core in the league with Queen, Watt, Alex Highsmith, and Cole Holcomb.
The Steelers secondary, lead by Minkah Fitzpatrick, has seen some new additions as well. DeShon Elliot will now pair with Fitzpatrick in the safeties room, and Donte Jackson will pair with Joey Porter Jr. in the cornerbacks room. Fitzpatrick only played 10 games a season ago, so his health will play a big role in this secondary's success.
Pittsburgh is looking like a different and much improved team from a season ago. The Steelers will desperately need good quarterback play this season if they want to have a real shot at the AFC North. It should be an interesting 2024 for the black and yellow.
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