Re-evaluating Pittsburgh Steelers biggest positions of need in the new year

The Pittsburgh Steelers will have plenty of needs to fill in the new year, but here are their biggest areas of weakness as 2023 kicks off.

Pittsburgh Steelers fans have some positive things to look forward to. Minkah Fitzpatrick and T.J. Watt are in the primes of their careers and both could have some of their best football ahead of them. Meanwhile, players like George Pickens, Pat Freiermuth, and Alex Highsmith show tremendous promise as cornerstone pieces to this franchise.

Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of players to get excited about after the handful of guys near the top. General manager Omar Khan and assistant Andy Weidl are going to have their hands full trying to fill some of Pittsburgh’s biggest areas of need in 2023.

The following isn’t a ranking of the most important positions that must be addressed. Rather, the biggest positional needs are based on who is under contract and the holes Pittsburgh is projected to have. Here are the five biggest positions the Steelers must address in the new year.

5. Steelers desperate for competent edge defender depth

I have no doubt that T.J. Watt will return to form in 2023 after a pectoral injury, arthroscopic knee surgery, and a rib injury plagued his 2022 season. His running mate at the position, Alex Highsmith, is coming off a career year this season. These two should make for a lethal combination next season… that is, assuming they stay healthy.

With how much the Steelers have invested into their edge defenders, it’s insane that they weren’t willing to take out a bigger insurance policy in the event of an injury. Malik Reed was pretty lousy this season filling in for Watt. There isn’t a single backup edge defender that fans should feel good about coming in for a series, let alone if Watt or Highsmith were to get injured. This must be addressed in 2023 either through free agency or the NFL Draft.