5 reasons to be excited about the 2023 Steelers

#3: The Maturation of the Steelers Young Offensive Playmakers is Rapid

One thing that sort of gets lost in the shuffle when looking at the Pittsburgh Steelers offense is just how young it is.

Allen Robinson III is the oldest player at 30 years old, and he's a new addition. Carrying over from last year, the oldest starting player would be center Mason Cole at 27. Diontae Johnson is the oldest skill player other than Robinson at 27, a few months younger than Cole.

Harris, Warren, Pat Freiermuth, George Pickens - these are all young players still on their rookie contracts. While they've all been responsible for exciting plays and have consistently grown year over year, the maturation of their play has been a wait in progress. While Pickens and Warren enter year two, Harris and Freiermuth have to take the next step in leadership and become gamewreckers on the field. Johnson is going to be looked at as an offensive veteran to lead the skill players.

The good news is, it looks like all of these skill players are ready to take that next step and play much closer to their potential. On-field maturation is a difficult thing to measure, but it shows itself in clutch situations and by displaying consistency throughout the season. So whether this point holds true may remain to be seen. But the consistency from these players in the preseason lends to the belief that these guys are ready.