Youthful Steelers Offense Finishes Year Strong, Shows Promise For 2023
The Pittsburgh Steelers offense had many questions coming into this season. Who was the guy at quarterback? Was Najee Harris a flash in a pan? How’s George Pickens going to work out? Was paying Diontae Johnson worth it? Although the Steelers season is over without a chance to compete for the Lombardi, we got the answer to many of these questions.
Steelers Slow Start, Promising Finish
Despite a 2-6 start, where things looked bleak, the Steelers somehow ended up turning it around to finish the season. Going 7-2 after the bye week to secure Mike Tomlin’s 16th straight season above .500. The defense stood up in games to give them a chance, which isn’t surprising as they’re the highest-paid defense in the league. The offense was the culprit in question.
With the bumbling fool Matt Canada as offensive coordinator, the guys ended up taking it upon themselves and figuring it out. Pittsburgh ended up scoring 29 touchdowns on the year and scored 308 points. The offense put up 18 points per game, good enough to win nine games but that number still needs to be raised. Anyone that watched knows that wasn’t necessarily all fault of those on the field, more so a product of the idiot calling the plays.
The Steelers Budding Duo Of Kenny and George
While the Mitch Trubisky project was short-lived, The emergence of Kenny Pickett was real this season. The Pittsburgh kid posted 2.404 passing yards with a 63% completion percentage in 13 games. It may look bad that he had only seven passing touchdowns to his nine interceptions, but not all stats are telling. Pickett may have posted a small number of passing touchdowns, but the Steelers ran a run-heavy offense with second-year running back Najee Harris pounding in seven touchdowns himself. As for the interceptions, the stats may say nine, but not all of those were turnover-worthy plays. Pickett also posted 237 rushing yards with three touchdowns to go with it.
Pickett even found a new friend along the way, a shining star that every team in the league passed on, George Pickens. The former Georgia Dawg solidified himself as a stud in this league, and Kenny’s favorite target. Pickens posted 801 yards on 52 receptions. Although he was third in targets to Diontae Johnson and Pat Freiermuth, Kenny and Geroge just seemed to have that spark. They gave you the feeling that they were going to be a duo to be reckoned with for years to come. Pickens posted four receiving touchdowns and one rushing touchdown on the year, making multiple spectacular grabs week after week. Who would’ve thought a Dawg and a Panther could be such good friends?
Peak At The 2023 Pittsburgh Steelers Offense
Who knows what 2023 holds for these young guns on the Steelers offense? What started as a dim, dingy offense, slowly budded into a shining light at the end of the tunnel, leaving us hungry for more. Next year we will get to see what Pickett is really made of with a full offseason as an NFL quarterback.
We will also get to see how big of a leap George Pickens can make, along with getting to see fellow receiver Calvin Austin for the first time. Austin has a chance to add a new facet to this offense. The speedster from Memphis will add something this offense doesn’t necessarily have. It will be exciting to see. We know what we’re getting from Najee Harris and Pat Freiermuth. Diontae Johnson also returns after a season where he saw 147 targets without a touchdown, the most in NFL history. But Johnson didn’t have a bad year. He was a good mentor to George Pickens.
While many people might not be completely sold on Kenny Pickett and this offense, some fans are. These things take time. You don’t just wake up one day with a perfect offense. It, unfortunately, seems like Matt Canada will be back at the helm of this offense in 2023, but the guys are making it work, it seems. While a change is needed, we might not get it. Give the guys another off-season to master the playbook. If the offensive line play can improve and Matt Canada can avoid tripping over his own feet, the sky is the limit for this offense. Can’t wait to see what 2023 brings.