The Pittsburgh Steelers have made some serious changes from 2023. Let’s use their season-long projections to find some fantasy football value or names to avoid. Here is the Pittsburgh Steelers 2024 Fantasy Football outlook.
Pittsburgh Steelers 2024 Fantasy Football Outlook
Best Values
George Pickens, Wide Receiver
George Pickens is going off the board as the WR28 on Underdog and in the same range in regular redraft leagues. In the early projections (linked above) he would finish comfortably in the high-end WR2 range, if not as an easy WR1. Even at this stage of his career, the difference between Kenny Pickett and Russell Wilson cannot be understated. Even in games with Justin Fields at the helm, he’s going to at least be better than he has in years past, where he was the WR30 in PPR and WR26 in half PPR. Pickens has the talent. The offense has to be better. Worst case scenario, he’s going to finish right around his ADP. Best-case scenario, he’s a league winner in the middle rounds of our fantasy football drafts.
Najee Harris, Running Back
Arthur Smith loves two things in life. Annoying the media, and establishing the run. Najee Harris isn’t the chic, exciting pick he once was. He’s closer to a rusty old farm truck than a Lamborghini these days, but that’s okay. If there’s a back that projects to tote the rock 250 times in this offense, it’s Harris. The spike weeks are completely dependent on touchdowns, but he’s also clearly the goal-line back. Draft him with confidence as a low-end RB2.
The Quarterbacks
One of these two is going to be a huge value. They’re both going off the board outside the top 28, but when they play they’re locked and loaded QB2s. Unfortunately, each is only projected to play half the season. Russell Wilson wasn’t the best version of himself last year but was still the QB16 in PPG in 2023. He’s a good bet to be a streaming option early in 2024, but job security scares folks off of him in season-long and dynasty formats.
Justin Fields is a tricky duck. If he’s the starter, he’s in consideration for QB1 points. But when will he play? He’s a name to keep an eye on for waivers, or with deep benches to stash and play later. Patience is the key with him, but the odds of him playing at least some games are fairly high.
Biggest Players to Avoid
Roman Wilson and the Rest of the Pittsburgh Steelers Receivers
Trying to find a viable WR2 in an Arthur Smith offense is like finding a parking spot in a Target parking lot at Christmas time. The passing pie is already small compared to other teams, and none of the receivers on the roster not named George Pickens have the talent to earn targets at an enjoyable rate. Just punt on the Steelers other receivers completely, unless they make a splash trade.
Pat Freiermuth
The buzz is real this off-season for the Muth. Unfortunately, he won’t be loose. Russell Wilson has never targeted tight ends at a high rate, and Smith’s system likes to rotate through a couple of guys so the already small pie gets cut into even tinier pieces. The truth of the matter is, the offense is going to run through Pickens and the run game, and everyone else is a land mine.
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