Steelers Biggest Turkeys: 4 players I'm not thankful for in 2023
- Chandon Sullivan doesn't deserve to sit at the table
- Chukwuma Okorafor doesn't get the job done at all
- Levi Wallace continues to make fans suffer
- Kenny Pickett has the worst long-term outlook for this team
By Andrew Falce
Steelers Biggest Turkey #3: Chukwuma Okorafor
The Chukwuma Okorafor saga in Pittsburgh has been a weird one. Taken as a developmental player in the third round, things looked grim when he couldn’t land a starting role over Zach Banner. Injuries eventually allowed him onto the field, and he has become the standard of what a slightly below-average tackle looks like in the NFL.
His play has naturally progressed since entering the league, but he seems to have capped out as a very steady option for a team. You aren’t going to get a lot of variance in his play. He won’t have stretches of horrible play, but he also lacks the dominance you would want in a tackle.
The reason he gets on this list is due to his salary. He is currently on his second contract, and tackles, even middling ones, aren’t cheap. He has an average salary of close to ten million a season and a cap hit of over 13 million this season. That is a lot of money invested in a player who struggles to be average as a blocker.
His comments during the Jaguars game seemingly sent him to the bench. The strong play of rookie Broderick Jones will likely keep him there. Thankfully, his contract is easy to get out of, so the team won’t be stuck with him past this season. That said, the return on investment hasn’t been great and his play has never been better than average.