With just four weeks until the 2023 NFL Draft, teams are shifting their focus from free agency to the biggest event of the NFL offseason. Mike Tomlin and Omar Khan have plenty more work to do on the Pro Day scouting trail as there are some big days coming up on the schedule for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
On Tuesday, we learned of a new player added to the list of prospects Pittsburgh seems to be interested in and the league made a fun rule change when it comes to NFL jersey numbers. Here's the latest Steelers news you need to know.
Steelers news:
Yesterday, Jon Sokoloff of WCBI News confirmed that the Pittsburgh Steelers are one of seven teams that have scheduled pre-draft visits with Mississippi State standout cornerback, Emmanuel Forbes. You may remember Forbes for being the lightest cornerback ever recorded at the NFL Combine (just 166 pounds), but he's so much more than that.
With 4.35 speed, long arms, and terrific ball skills, Forbes would likely be a first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft if he had more mass to his frame. The fact that the Steelers are using one of their 30 pre-draft visits on Forbes shows that there is clearly interest here. Forbes becomes the eighth player and second cornerback Pittsburgh has scheduled a pre-draft visit with prior to the 2023 NFL Draft.
More Steelers news:
On Tuesday, Steelers beat reporter Mark Kaboly of The Athletic joined The Pat McAfee Show to talk about the outlook of Pittsburgh's offense in 2023. Kaboly is urging offensive coordinator Matt Canada to open up the playbook and allow Pickett free range to control the offense.
"I wanna see this Steelers offense open it up a bit this year with Kenny Pickett"@MarkKaboly #FEELTHEBEAT #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/ILokqwTGS3
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) March 28, 2023
I think most fans would agree. Kaboly pointed to the impressive two-minute drives against the Ravens and Raiders that Pickett was able to mount late in the season that gave his team a fighting chance to crack the playoffs. Pittsburgh's offense averaged just 18.1 points per game last season, and with the controversial decision to bring back Canada, they need to take a significant step forward in 2023.
NFL news:
The league held its annual NFL owners meeting where coaches, owners, and executives get together to discuss rule changes for player safety and to better the game. Yesterday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reported that the NFL agreed to allow players to now wear 'number zero.' This is the first time that this jersey number will be permitted since 1973. Offensive linemen and defensive linemen will not be eligible to wear this number.