3 Reasons The Steelers Future Is Bright And Fans Should Still Be Optimistic About 2023

The Pittsburgh Steelers are having a much better season in 2023 than they did in 2022. At the same point last season, fans had given up. TJ Watt was returning, but the Steelers were standing in a grave, not a hole. Mike Tomlin’s consecutive winning season streak was in serious jeopardy, and everyone in Pittsburgh was convinced Matt Canada was going to be fired.

Watt has played all eight games so far in 2023. The Steelers have five victories and sit one game behind the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC North. Pittsburgh has already beaten the Ravens once, so currently, they hold the tiebreaker against Lamar Jackson’s division leaders. Tomlin is under increasing scrutiny locally for his decision to retain Canada. The national press gives him credit for turning a dumpster fire into a winning team. There is only one minor issue with that narrative. The team is not a dumpster fire. 

Tomlin and his coaching staff are not working magic. They are hampering the growth of exciting young players. The Steelers head coach is all too often lauded nationally for being consistently mediocre. Pittsburgh’s coaching staff is choking the optimism from Steeler Nation faster than George Pickens can unfollow teammates on social media. The team is winning despite the game plan, which should be a cause for optimism. Here are three reasons Steeler Nation should still be excited about the team’s prospects.

Steelers' Kenny Pickett Is Not That Bad

It is hard, after watching Kenny Pickett struggle with an injured rib, to remember that he is now 12-5 since the bye last season. The Steelers are currently in the bottom three in total offense and total defense, but they are second in the NFL in forced turnovers with eight. Okay, okay, no, he is not Trevor Lawrence or CJ Stroud. He isn’t Patrick Mahomes either. Pickett is never going to be among the league leaders in passing categories. There is however, some evidence to suggest that Pickett’s ceiling might be a little higher than he gets credit for currently.

During the 12-5 stretch over the last two seasons, Pickett has 11 touchdowns and just five interceptions. Pickett does two things as well or better than most young quarterbacks. He does not turn the ball over, and he is just about as clutch as you will find in the NFL. More than half of his wins have been fourth quarter comebacks, and it is something you can’t teach. If Justin Herbert had half of Pickett’s moxie, the Los Angeles Chargers might give the Kansas City Chiefs a run for their money.

Steelers' George Pickens Is Frustrated

This contradicts the current narrative, but Pickens is one of the most supremely gifted wide receivers in the NFL. Physically, he has all the tools to be great. Pickens is visibly frustrated and is starting to lose patience with his quarterback and a coaching staff that has no idea how to use him properly. He is wasted in the Steelers offense in the current scheme. The deep shots down the middle to Calvin Austin III should be the routes Pickens runs.

Pickett has come up short far too often on deep shots to a diminutive wide receiver down the middle of the field. A Tennessee Titans linebacker broke up the one deep shot on Thursday Night Football. Is there any doubt that Pickens would have found a way in a combat catch situation to come down with that pass? He is limited to stick routes and go-balls in this offense. When they do throw him the ball over the middle, good things happen. If he stops getting upset, Steelers fans everywhere should start to worry.

The Clock Strikes Midnight On The Current Coaching Staff Very Soon

There is one inevitable, unescapable truth for the Steelers' current coaching staff. They are not running it back in 2024 short of a Super Bowl victory. The morning debate shows notwithstanding, Tomlin has done less with more for nearly a decade. He wasted the Killer Bs years, and Cam Heyward has never played in a championship game. The Steelers have not won a playoff game in Watt’s entire career, and there may be no defensive player more deserving of MVP consideration since Reggie White.

Tomlin’s coordinators, Teryl Austin and Canada, are awful. The Steelers have spent exorbitantly on defense and have nothing to show except a Defensive Player Of The Year for Watt. The city of Pittsburgh might consider having a parade at the end of Canada’s tenure, which should end after nine more regular season games. Tomlin is under contract through 2024, and for the first time in his tenure, an extension does not feel like a formality. 

Pickens and Pickett will get an opportunity in 2024 with a new play-caller. Tomlin and the Steelers chose to waste their potential for the first two seasons of their career, so there will be increased pressure to perform next season. The Steelers may have a history of being loyal to coaches, but fans of the black and gold have been calling for quarterback jobs since Terry Bradshaw was the number-one pick in the 1970 NFL Draft. It is why a delusional part of the fan base is remarkably loyal to Mason Rudolph. 

Tomlin is going to be the head coach in 2024. The Steelers have two choices at this point. Let his contract expire and move on, or save Tomlin from himself as Dan Rooney did for Chuck Noll. They are wasting Pickett, Pickens, Jaylen Warren, and a promising rookie draft class's immediate future. The NFL has forced teams to compete or rebuild much faster in the modern era. The Steelers have plenty of talent on the current roster, and the only question is, will it bloom in black and gold? 

What do you think, Steeler Nation? Will the Steelers find a way to maximize the talent they currently have on the roster, or are you buying the narrative that Tomlin is responsible for their overachieving? Let me know what you think. Please comment below or on my Twitter/X: @thebubbasq. 

#SteelerNation