We’ve officially reached 100 days until the Pittsburgh Steelers kick off the regular season against the Cincinnati Bengals. In that time, Steeler Nation will be able to intently watch the battle for a new starting quarterback, how things will shake out in the secondary and receiving corps, and what the final offensive line will look like. Once the pieces are set and the coin has been flipped, the Steelers will officially begin a new era in franchise history. So, with 100 days left to go, let’s look at some key contributors who have a good shot of hitting the century mark in five critical areas.
1) First Player to Score 100 Points: Chris Boswell
Boswell has been one of the most consistent and reliable scorers for the Steelers. Not to mention, Boswell is currently the third-highest point scorer in Steelers’ franchise history (he’s 142 points behind Jeff Reed). Therefore, for Boswell to be the first to hit 100 points in 2022 is very attainable.
Through the lens of a kicker, the Steelers may lean on Boswell more in 2022 than ever before to put points on the board. With the offense still new and relatively young, although they have fire power in key areas, they may have trouble early on punching the ball into the endzone. Therefore, we may see drives stall out in the redzone and lead to Boswell field goals over touchdowns. While I’m not saying that’s the key to winning, Boswell may see more field goal attempts than extra points in the first half of the season than he has previously. This will obviously lead to Boswell increasing his point total in 2022 and may get him to be the second-all time highest scorer in Steelers’ history.
Steelers Kicker Chris Bowell lines up for a FG against the Last Vegas Raiders in 2021 (Twitter: @jsko_photo)
2) First Receiver to Reach 100 Yards in a Game: Calvin Austin III
I’m sure you were expecting Diontae Johnson here; and for good reason. Although Johnson swallows almost every pass he sees, he doesn’t necessarily rack up the ‘Yards After Catch’ (YAC) numbers to get him to the century mark early in the season. That is precisely where Austin III shines.
The Steelers were quick to hop on him in the draft to be an offensive gadget player and his college numbers in comparison to Johnson support that. For reference, Johnson only eclipsed 100 receiving yards in a game three times in 2021 (Weeks 2, 10, and 12). Of those, his highest was 105 yards against the Las Vegas Raiders and the Baltimore Ravens. Albeit in college, Austin III had six games where he posted over 100 receiving yards; two of which breached the 200-yard mark. With the Steelers using a fourth round pick on Austin III, they’re looking to get him involved early and often in 2022. With the time he’s spent with the new quarterbacks and his unique skillset, Austin III could very well be a YAC machine in his rookie campaign.
Steelers' WR Calvin Austin III makes a play in OTA's (Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers)
3) First Player to Reach 100 Yards from Scrimmage in a Game: Najee Harris
This may be an obvious pick, but Harris’ 2021 season started relatively slow. In his rookie year, Harris cleared the 100-yard mark in nine games, with his first coming in Week 3 against the Bengals. But with that said, that included 102 receiving yards with only 40 rushing yards. However, we’ve seen a bigger, stronger, and faster Harris arrive in camp and it is clear the Steelers’ offense flows through him.
Although the Steelers added more firepower on offense through the NFL Draft, Harris is still going to be the driving force on offense in 2022. Especially with the significant upgrades along the offensive line, Harris will have clearer running lanes to keep the ball moving forward. I anticipate we see Harris hit the 100-yard mark in a game fairly early on in 2022.
Steelers' RB Najee Harris makes a cut up field in OTA's (Abigail Dean/Pittsburgh Steelers)
4) First Quarterback to Complete 100 Passes: Mitch Trubisky
As of where we stand today being 100 days out from the first regular season game, I anticipate Trubisky winning the starting quarterback job. But with Trubisky being new to the team paired with a presumed reliable and ready Kenny Pickett waiting in the wings, Trubisky may have a shorter leash than others in how long he has to make an impact on offense.
Looking at the numbers, Trubisky has a good chance of hitting 100 completions in the first quarter of the season if we consider that his ‘trial period.’ As a starter, Trubisky has averaged over 20 completions per game with a 64% completion percentage. With offensive coordinator Matt Canada’s offense relying on short and efficient passes, this will allow Trubisky to make easy throws and clear that 100-completion mark early on. For reference, it took Ben Roethlisberger four games last season to complete 100 passes. It is clear Canada’s scheme favors a high completion number for whoever lines up under center.
Steelers' QB Mitch Trubisky makes a pass in OTA's (Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers)
5) First Player to Make 100 Combined Tackles: Myles Jack
As odd as it may sound, only two players on the Steelers made over 100 combined tackles in 2021; those being Minkah Fitzpatrick and Joe Schobert. But with that said, Jack is bringing some additional flare to the Steelers’ linebacker corps that didn’t exist last season. Jack seemed to fizzle out with the Jacksonville Jaguars organization and is looking to stake his claim as a leader on a top-10 NFL defense. That is why I see Jack being the first to rack up 100 combined tackles in 2022.
In his last two seasons, he tallied over 100 tackles in each season and is going to find himself in position to build on that in Pittsburgh. If we think back to last season, it was Fitzpatrick who led the team in tackles with 124 on the season. This was primarily due to the fact he had to line up closer to the line to help with the porous Steelers’ run defense. Now that the defensive line is healthier and there is a solid linebacker group in place, Fitzpatrick can drift back in the secondary and let Jack make the tackles closer to the line of scrimmage. Jack will be able to grab a respectable market share of tackles because of this, and he’s eager to do so. We’ve seen reports and footage of Jack in camp running like his hair is on fire, and he’s going to be carrying that over once the regular season kicks off. Don’t be surprised if Jack averages over eight combined tackles a game in 2022.
Steelers' LB Myles Jack participates in OTA's (Abigail Dean/Pittsburgh Steelers)
Who do you think I missed on this list? Who do you think is going to be posting a ‘100’ in 2022? Let us know in the comments below!
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