The Steelers have undergone more turnover in the past two years than they're accustomed to seeing.
From coaching staff changes to the obvious move away from Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback after nearly two decades, the Steelers of 2022 don't much look like the team that was ready to prepare for training camp in 2020. Remember, of the 90 players on the current roster, just 20 have even been to a training camp at Saint Vincent College, even though the team was last there in 2019. That's a lot of turnover.
How much?
Well, consider that of the 25 players on this list, only 11 have been with the Steelers three seasons or longer.
So, what does the hierarchy of the team look like heading into 2022?
Who are this team's top players?
Let's take a look at the top 25:
1. T.J. Watt -- A three-time finalist for NFL Defensive Player of the Year and 2021 winner of the award, Watt would be the best player on all but a handful of teams.
2. Cam Heyward -- Heyward is the best defensive tackle in the NFL not named Aaron Donald.
3. Minkah Fitzpatrick -- One of the top safeties in the NFL, he's now the highest-paid player at the position in the league. Fitzpatrick was asked to do more early last season and his numbers suffered. But he played things more traditionally in the second half and was much better.
4. Diontae Johnson -- The Steelers have had four wide receivers in team history catch 100 passes -- Hines Ward, Antonio Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Johnson. Many were upset that Smith-Schuster was allowed to leave. And yet some seem willing to just let Johnson walk away after this season. It boggles my mind. Johnson is the superior player.
5. Najee Harris -- A workhorse running back whom the offense will be run through in 2022. Durability matters, and Harris showed last season that he's very durable. Now, the Steelers need more explosiveness out of him.
6. Mitch Trubisky -- Quarterbacks get special status on lists such as this. In the grand scheme of things, Trubisky might not be the team's sixth-best player. But he's probably right up there with Watt in terms of overall value. The Steelers need him to live up to this ranking -- or even higher.
7. James Daniels -- Call me crazy, but Daniels is going to be a very valuable member of this team. I've still been unable to figure out why the Bears would allow a talented and young offensive lineman to walk out the door.
8. Pat Freiermuth -- The second-year tight end is ready to make his mark on the NFL. He's already teetering on the edge of being a top-10 player in the NFL at the position. He should place himself solidly in that range this season.
9. Larry Ogunjobi -- Yes, Ogunjobi belongs this high on this list. His value comes in the fact that he'll push the rest of the defensive linemen not named Heyward down a rung when it comes to playing time. Think of it this way, if Stephon Tuitt was still on the team, he would be higher up here. I expect Ogunjobi to play 60 to 70 percent of the defensive snaps.
10. Myles Jack -- Expect Jack to be the Steelers' every-down linebacker. That makes him quite important. That's four free agent signings in the top 10 on this team.
11. Dan Moore -- The second-year left tackle was OK in 2021. The Steelers need him to take a step forward in 2022 holding down the blind side.
12. Chuks Okorafor -- Yes, Okorafor belongs this high, as well. Offensive tackles are valuable pieces and Okorafor is still young and improving. If something happened to Moore, he also would likely kick over to the left side, increasing his value.
13. Chris Boswell -- Boswell is a top-5 placekicker in the NFL. In fact, it's noteworthy when he misses a field goal.
14. Cam Sutton -- Sutton can play inside in the slot and also will be one of the team's starting outside corners in the base defense. He's also a glue piece as a smart guy who knows the defense inside and out.
15. Chase Claypool -- Claypool's overall numbers -- other than touchdowns -- were almost identical in his second year to those he posted in his rookie season. It used to be that it took wide receivers three years to get it. He could be on that kind of career track.
16. Alex Highsmith -- It's Year Three for Highsmith, as well. He's made it known he thinks he can be a double-digit sack player. If that happens, like Claypool, he could climb much higher on this list.
17. Kevin Dotson -- I expect Dotson to win the starting left guard spot -- if he can stay healthy. Believe it or not, Kendrick Green has more career starts under his belt than Dotson.
18. Tyson Alualu -- Some might be surprised to see Alualu this low on this list, especially after the Steelers' issues stopping the run in 2021. But with the addition of Ogunjobi, I expect Alualu to play about 40 percent of the snaps. He's important, but it's tough to rank a player who will play only two of every five snaps higher.
19. Terrell Edmunds -- The addition of Damontae Kazee pushes Edmunds lower on this list, not because Kazee will beat Edmunds out for the strong safety spot, but because the Steelers now have better depth at safety than they have had in years.
20. Levi Wallace -- Another free agent signing, Wallace is solid if unspectacular. I believe he'll win the starting job in the base over Witherspoon. But Wallace is a much more physical player. The Steelers' depth at this position is better than a lot of fans give the team credit. Essentially, Wallace simply replaced Joe Haden.
21. Mason Cole -- As a person, Cole is a welcome addition to this locker room. He seems like an intelligent, funny guy. As a player? We'll see. But the bar was set pretty low last season at center.
22. Devin Bush -- Yeah, I know. Bush didn't play well last season. If he pushes himself higher on the team's top-25, that's a good thing.
23. Ahkello Witherspoon -- Even if Witherspoon doesn't start in the base 3-4, he'll wind up playing a lot in the team's nickel and dime defenses. The Steelers were in those formations about 75 percent of the time a year ago. There was some ball luck for him last season, but his coverage skills were solid, too.
24. George Pickens -- The team's second-round pick should make an immediate impact as the No. 3 receiver. He's got a lot of talent.
25. Zach Gentry -- If the Steelers are going to run the ball better in 2021, Gentry could be a big factor. He's remade himself as an above-average blocker at the position.
