There's a simple way to address the void in the middle of the field on offense. And, it could be ripe for the plucking in the NFL Draft this April.
Kenny Pickett had a fine rookie season, and it looks as though he should have strong career. He has the looks of an NFL starting quarterback and the Steelers should be very happy with where Pickett currently is in his young career.
However, like many/most signal callers very early in their career, Pickett greatly struggled in two areas of the field: In the red zone and between 10 and 20 yards down the field. Those are the most difficult throws on the field and where the truly elite quarterbacks consistently succeed. Youngsters struggle in those two areas of the field almost without exception.
Pickett completed 39.1% of his passes from within the 20-yard line in the red zone. He completed 38.1% from within the 10-yard line going into the end zone. Pickett threw 46 passes from 20 yards and in. The only quarterbacks that had a worse completion percentage on such throws had six or fewer attempts and were passers such as Gardner Minshew or Malik Willis that barely played in 2022.
Pickett was the worst red zone passer in the NFL last year amongst starters. He attempted 21 of these passes from within the 10-yard line, and of quarterbacks with that many of such attempts or more, only Matt Ryan, Jalen Hurts and Derek Carr had a worse completion percentage.
How about in that 10 to 20 yards downfield area? Well, it wasn’t pretty for Pickett -- who also wasn’t helped enough by the offensive scheme. Pickett completed 43.8% of these throws, and amazingly, attempted just 73 of such passes. The only passers in the NFL that attempted at least that number of such throws but for a worse completion percentage was Davis Mills.
How can the Steelers help both issues for Pickett? Add another talented tight end in this draft class.
As Mike Tomlin likes to say, "When you have red paint, you paint the barn red." Well, this exceptional tight end class is the red paint. Use it to the advantage of the second-year quarterback.
Great tight ends excel in the red zone as well as in the intermediate levels of the field. And, this draft class is loaded with potentially great tight ends and has immense depth at the position. While drafting a tight end with the 17th overall pick is probably unwise, at any point in this draft after that it should be something the Steelers strongly consider.
This draft class is loaded with quality prospects at the tight end position. Here are highlights of one, Darnell Washington from Georgia. He is immense with a rare body for the position, and Washington lit up the Combine with exceptional testing in the 40-yard dash and 10-yard splits. Of all the tight ends in attendance, Washington posted the best short shuttle time despite being 6-7 and 264 pounds, which is truly remarkable.
Here is taste of what Washington could bring to the Steelers and he is someone that should be considered with the 32nd overall selection:
This offense features an alarming lack of usage of in-breaking routes. The Steelers were at the top of the league in calling go routes, but they rarely attacked the middle of the field, especially with in-breakers of any kind. That must change.
Now, this isn’t a direct correlation to the tight end position, but it does apply. The use of play action is somewhat of a cheat code in the NFL. The Steelers used play action on just 76 of his 389 throws when using play action. That's only 17.1%. When factoring in every quarterback that attempted a pass last year, 66 passers used play action a higher percentage of the time. If we narrow that down to quarterbacks that were what we can call "true starters," Pickett comes in 33rd in terms of the percentage of throws off play action.
"True starters" is a broad term, as some teams had two such quarterbacks last year. For example, I counted both Marcus Mariota and Desmond Ridder from the Falcons. But, you get the idea. And as another frame of reference, Mitch Trubisky would be 29th. 19.5% of Trubisky’s pass attempts came off play action. Simply put, the Steelers don’t use nearly enough play action.
Why would a tight end matter in terms of play action usage? Well, if the Steelers are going to keep up with playing a lot of 12 Personnel (one running back, two tight ends) and running the football as a foundation of their offense, the obvious corollary would be an increased usage of play action -- at least one would think with the assumption of rational coaching. Many studies show that it is not imperative to have a great ground game to have an effective play action attack, but they do certainly complement one another.
Also, a talented tight end could really benefit from the usage of play action in this regard. By faking a handoff, that gives the tight end just a split second longer to get into the void created by linebackers taking a false step towards the line of scrimmage. With play action, a tight end can get in that soft spot behind the linebackers and in front of the safeties. Once again, that is likely to be in that 10-to-20-yard range down the field, and in the middle of the field as well.
But, aren’t the Steelers in good shape at the tight end position? Yes, they are, but why not be greedy and get even better considering how rich this draft class is?
Zach Gentry is a free agent. Gentry played 577 of a possible 1,161 snaps last year, which was the 11th-most of all Steelers offensive players. But, there also is a strong argument that Gentry is the least affective or dangerous player of those 11. He is somewhat of an overrated blocker and offers little as a receiver.
If the Steelers were to use a draft pick on an offensive tackle, they should consider more six offensive line sets for a handful of snaps per game to make up for and improve upon what Gentry brought as a blocker. Still, Gentry could also return on a team-friendly deal.
Connor Heyward deserves more playing time. But, Heyward and Gentry couldn’t be more different and about the only thing they have in common is that both report to the tight end meeting room and have a "TE" next to their name on their football card. Heyward is under six feet tall. Gentry is 6-foot-8. Heyward could be used more next year out of the backfield, especially if Derek Watt isn’t back, and is much more of a Kyle Juszczyk-type player than an inline NFL tight end. But, Heyward is very tantalizing as a matchup problem for opposing defenses, nonetheless.
Pat Freiermuth very well could have been the Steelers' best offensive player last year. And, he has yet to hit his prime. He has had durability issues though and adding a rookie tight end should in no way interfere with Freiermuth’s development or usage. In fact, it could open him up even more.
The best position in this upcoming draft is tight end. The Steelers' young quarterback needs help in the areas of the field in which top tight ends thrive. Sometimes, it is just that simple.
