The Steelers had some great returns on their 2021 draft class, and here is one thing each of these players needs to improve upon in their second season.
The Steelers had one of the more productive rookie draft classes last year. While no one lit the league on fire, they found steady production from almost all of their picks. That said, this class still has a lot of issues to work on, especially if some of these names want to be more than just middling backups. Here is one score issue each of the Steelers 2021 draft class should work on in their second year.
Steelers Harvin
Issue: Consistency
It was a frustrating year, to say the least, for rookie punter Pressley Harvin. Despite having a lot of college success and quickly becoming a fan favorite due to his build, Harvin had a wildly inconsistent year as a rookie. Some of his punts looked elite, as his big leg was evident and as a result, opposing offenses were pinned. Other punts were disastrous shanks and resulted in an easy path to points for other teams.
While his competition in camp isn’t that stiff, he is essentially competing with any other punter that will get cut once rosters are trimmed. If he wants to secure his spot, he has to get more consistent punting the ball. Yes, that is a broad issue, but if he can’t regularly deliver good punts, he won’t be worth rostering.
Sure, when Harvin delivers a great punt, you know it. His leg strength is incredible, and his placement can be close to elite at times as well. When every other punt is miserable though, you aren’t worth keeping around. If he can cut down on his bad punts and become more consistent though, the team may have a good punter to field for a while.