Tag: Steelers season

Steelers TE Connor Heyward ready to contribute on offense

The Steelers need to find ways to get Connor Heyward more involved on offense.

The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted tight end Connor Heyward not just because he was the younger brother of Cam Heyward but because he was an excellent tight end and running back at Michigan State.

But so far, through two seasons, Heyward hasn’t found a spot in the regular offense and has mainly impacted the team on special teams. Something Heyward wants to change this year.

“It’s hard to get hype for the game when you’re not playing as much offense or defense because growing up, that’s part of the game,” Heyward said. “Special teams is fun, but you want to be out there for offense and defense.”

We are cautiously optimistic that Heyward will have a breakout season in 2024 with new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith in charge. Heyward can operate out of the backfield, inline and in the slot which gives them plenty of ways to get him more involved in the rushing and passing game.

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Steelers LB T.J. Watt says for the first time in his career, he has ‘started to feel old’

Steelers LB T.J. Watt says for the first time in his career, he has ‘started to feel old’

For the past seven seasons, the centerpiece of the Pittsburgh Steelers defense has been edge defender T.J. Watt. In just seven seasons he’s established himself as the best pass rusher in franchise history, one of the best defensive players in the NFL and a near surefire Hall of Famer.

And now he’s old. At least that’s how Watt feels. Watt will turn 30 during the 2024 season.

“I feel old,” Watt said. “This is the first time in my career that I’ve started to feel old.”

“It’s weird. It’s very strange,” said Watt. “But it’s also kind of a check to understand that I don’t get to play this game forever. I understand that I’m not going to be able to play this game for 10 more years, so I need to be able to make each and every day count, each and every year count. I need to and do everything possible to bring another championship back to this city.”

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Steelers QB Russell Wilson gets big endorsement from NFL analyst Ryan Leaf

The Steelers season is going to depend on new starting quarterback Russell Wilson.

With all the changes the Pittsburgh Steelers have made this offseason, the success of this team really hinges on the play of the quarterback. This team is going to go exactly as far as Russell Wilson can take them.

NFL analyst and former No. 1 overall pick Ryan Leaf was on Up & Adams and told Kay Adams he believes Wilson still has a Super Bowl champion quarterback in him and to watch out for the Steelers.

Wilson led the Seattle Seahawks to consecutive Super Bowl appearances and went 1-1. The Seahawks blew out the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII and lost to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX.

The Steelers were at or near the bottom in nearly every passing stat in the NFL last season. This is why the front office completely gutted out the quarterback depth chart and hired new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.

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Will Steelers QB Justin Fields play in 2024?

Should the Steelers be responsible to get Justin Fields on the field this season?

The biggest project the Pittsburgh Steelers front office and coaching staff undertook this offseason was to rebuild the quarterback depth chart. Pittsburgh brought in both Russell Wilson and Justin Fields but by all accounts, the starting quarterback job currently belongs to Wilson and it will stay that way.

Both Fields and Wilson are playing on one-year contracts but joining the team from completely different points of view. Wilson is looking to go out on a high note in his stellar career and Fields is hoping to get a promising career back on track. Something that can’t happen if he’s not on the field in 2024.

This doesn’t feel very fair to Fields if the Steelers are going to bring him in, not let him on the field and then send him into free agency with no opportunity to improve. Cast your vote and tell us if you think the Steelers will find ways to get Fields into games this season or is he only playing if Wilson gets hurt?

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