Could the Steelers have three 1000-yard receivers in the 2023 season?

The Steelers addition of Broderick Jones and Darnell Washington should significantly improve their offensive line. We know Najee Harris benefits tremendously from that. However, so will Kenny Pickett. Which makes one wonder if he could do something Big Ben could never do.  

Ben Roethlisberger never had three receivers with 1,000 receiving yards in his career. Of course, Big Ben sometimes had a porous offensive line for a large portion of his career, at least until the Steelers signed Alejandro Villanueva. Now the Steelers have another large many protecting the blind side, but this time for Kenny Pickett, and he’s getting that protection early in his career.

That, in some way, improves the passing game. How much it improves is to be determined. Some of that depends on how well Kenny Pickett improves on his transition from a rookie to a 2nd-year player. If he does as expected, he has some talented receivers to feed. Possibly one of the best wide receiver corps on any NFL team.

How many teams have had three 1000-yard receivers

In the history of the NFL, only five teams have had three receivers with over 1,000 receiving yards. The first time was in 1980 with Kellen Winslow, John Jefferson, and Charlie Joiner. In 1989 Washington had Art Monk, Ricky Sanders, and Gary Clark. Atlanta achieved the feat in 1995 with Eric Metcalf, Terance Mathews, and Bert Emanuel.

In 2004 Peyton Manning and the Colts achieved this feat with the talented wide receivers Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, and Brandon Stokely. The last team to do it was Arizona, led by quarterback Kurt Warner in 2008. Larry Fitzgerald, Anquin Boldin, and Steve Breston all had 1,000 yards. Oddly only one of these teams made the Superbowl, and that was Arizona.

When you look at the Steelers receiving corps, it’s not bad. It has the potential to be really good. That makes a large assumption Matt Canada’s play-calling is more productive than last year. Assuming it is, which three receivers hit the 1000-yard mark?