The Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t been known for having a high-powered offense in recent years. Ever since Ben Roethlisberger began his end-of-career decline in the late 2010s, Pittsburgh has won games on the back of their defense. They have a chance to be much better on the offensive side of the ball in 2024. The Steelers have likely made upgrades at quarterback, offensive line, and offensive coordinator since last year.
Pro Football Focus released their rankings of the best players in the NFL at each position heading into next season. While the Steelers feel good about the roster upgrades they have made, PFF’s rankings suggest there is still plenty of room for improvement in Pittsburgh.
How PFF Ranks Pittsburgh Steelers Offense Ahead of 2024 Season
Quarterback
Whether or not Pittsburgh’s quarterback play will be better in 2024 than 2023 remains to be seen, but there’s no denying the effort they made to upgrade at the position. They completely overhauled their quarterback room. Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, and Mitch Trubisky have been replaced by Russell Wilson, Justin Fields, and Kyle Allen. While there’s a strong argument to be made for Fields to be their starter, all signs point to Wilson beginning the season as QB1.
Wilson came in at 22 on PFF’s rankings of the top 32 quarterbacks for 2024. He is in the tier titled “Can Singlehandedly Win and Lose Games,” which sounds right for Wilson. He had high highs and low lows in 2023 with the Denver Broncos. When he’s clicking, especially in the deep passing game, Wilson is still a real threat. But when he’s struggling with pocket presence and general awareness, Wilson is bad. He could revive his career in Pittsburgh, or his sudden downfall could continue.
Skill Positions
Starting with their strongest skill position group, the Steelers two-headed monster of Jaylen Warren and Najee Harris came in at 19 and 22 on the list, respectively, which doesn’t feel so monstrous. It was a bit surprising to see both guys that low in the rankings. Both players broke tackles at an elite rate last year. Warren was great in pass protection and as a receiving threat out of the backfield. Harris is a good receiving option, too, though he wasn’t used enough in that capacity last season. Looking solely at PFF grades, each running back was in the top 15 at the position in 2023. With an offensive line that should be improved, each player has a chance to improve on a successful 2023 campaign in 2024.
Moving onto wide receiver, it’s no surprise to see the Steelers have just one player in the top 32. George Pickens was ranked 30th, which might be a little low. Though his raw numbers weren’t off the charts last year, he was very productive when considering he played with potentially the worst quarterback play in the league. Brandon Aiyuk, who has been a popular trade target name for the Steelers, was ranked 8th on the list.
Finally, Pat Freiermuth ranked 15 at the tight end position. That ranking is pretty accurate, as Freiermuth is a quality player, but his production wasn’t very high in 2023. Due to the Steelers lack of talent at the wide receiver position, Freiermuth will be heavily-targeted in 2024, and has a real chance to catapult up the rankings.
Offensive Line
Other than their quarterbacks, the Steelers offense was mostly held back by their offensive line last season. They spent their first two draft picks on day-one starting linemen, giving them a chance to turn it around in the trenches this season. At tackle, neither Broderick Jones nor rookie Troy Fautanu ranked in the top 32, which isn’t a surprise. Jones was fine as a rookie last year but didn’t stand out, while Fautanu has a very high ceiling that he just hasn’t had a chance to showcase yet.
In the interior, both guards ranked in the top 20 of the list, with Isaac Seumalo and James Daniels coming in at number 14 and number 20, respectively. They were Pittsburgh’s two best offensive linemen last year and probably will be again this year. Finally, rookie center Zach Frazier came in at number 29. Of anyone on the Steelers offense, Frazier has the best chance to outperform his ranking. He is a pro-ready center and will fit well into Arthur Smith’s scheme.
Main Image: Philip G. Pavely – USA Today Sports
