In the year In 2023 NFL It’s still a few months away, but it’s never too early to look ahead. With free agency and NFL draft We now have more clarity on the makeup of all 32 rosters behind us. NFL teamsAnd if you share, maybe you can start some Fantasy football Research.
Journalists and fans spend this part of the season trying to get ahead of the storylines. If you are good at predicting the future, you can win good money at sportsbooks or dominate your fantasy league. Last season, we saw breakout campaigns from several players, including Geno Smith, Jalen Harts, Josh Jacobs, Tony Pollard and Talanoa Hufanga. In the year In 2022, each of these players was important to their teams. Which players will take the major steps in 2023?
Below, we break down seven NFL Players ready for a winning campaign.
The Steelers have now surpassed the streak of 19 consecutive seasons, one shy of tying the record. Super Bowl Era. However, it was a close call last year when Pittsburgh went 2-6 to finish 9-8. The Steelers had to win their last four games to get to nine wins!
Pickett’s 184.9 passing yards per game ranked No. 28 NFL And his seven passing touchdowns tied for No. 33. The numbers themselves aren’t impressive, but Pickett has shown plenty of potential in 2022. Pickett’s rookie campaign was a tale of two halves. After throwing eight in the first five games, he threw one interception in the last eight games. Perhaps his disintegration has already begun?
|
Passing TD-INT |
2-8 |
5-1 |
|
yards per attempt |
5.8 |
6.4 |
|
passing grade |
66.8 |
84.0 |
In Weeks 10-17, Pickett had three quarterbacks and four “game-winning drives.” In Pro Football Ref. The two bounced back to keep the Steelers in the win column in Weeks 16 and 17. Amazingly, Pickett answered the bell as a rookie late in the fourth quarter of the year.
With several additions on the offensive line and tools like Deonte Johnson, young George Pickins, Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington, Naje Harris and Jaylen Warren, Pickett is a strong candidate to make a big second-year leap.
It’s about time, isn’t it? In seven regular-season games for the Majors after being acquired at the trade deadline, Toney caught just 14 passes for 171 yards and two touchdowns, but in Super Bowl LVI wins with a touchdown reception, and then the long return inside Super Bowl History.
With JuJu Smith-Schuster gone, Toney is expected to be a consistent part of the offense in 2023. Chiefs general manager Brett Veach believes Toney will play him mostly as a utility player compared to a traditional WR1. A big role moving forward.
“We have high hopes for him. I mean, he was a first-round pick for a reason,” Veach said. “There’s a reason we traded for him and we felt he was a first-round talent and if he stays healthy and continues to have that chemistry with the coaching staff and Pat, I think he’s going to do a great job. I think the sky’s the limit.”
The Seahawks had arguably their best draft class last year, headlined by left tackle Charles Cross, running back Kenneth Walker and Defensive Rookie of the Year cornerback Tariq Wallen. However, right tackle Abraham Lucas should definitely be included among the big names.
Lucas started 16 games last season and played in 975 offensive snaps and allowed nine sacks. Scored 68.5 PFF. While allowing more sacks per snap than Cross, the left tackle had a lower PFF grade (63.7), and allowed 20 more pressures than Lucas. at SI.com.
Lucas could grow up to be a Pro Bowler. I expect him to have a clean and consistent campaign in 2023.
You could easily put Titans wideout Trellon Burks here, but I’m interested in Tennessee’s second-year tight end. Chig Okonkwo caught just 32 passes for 450 yards and three touchdowns in his rookie season, but he proved to be the versatile player many believed he could be out of Maryland. He ran driving routes out of the backfield from his fullback position, worked his way up the middle of the field and even took a screen pass 48 yards against the Chiefs.
Aside from being an exceptional playmaker, another reason Okonkwo makes this list is because of his wide receiver component in the Tennessee sub. If new offensive coordinator Tim Kelly wants to improve one of the worst passing attacks in the NFL, he’ll need to come up with a game plan for Okonkwo. Look for Okonkwo and Burks to be focal points of the Titans’ passing game in 2023.
The Eagles appear to have gotten a steal in Dean with a third-round pick, but that remains to be seen. He didn’t play a big role in his rookie season because of Kazir White and TJ Edwards, but both are now on different teams. Dean recorded 13 combined tackles and just one loss in 2022, but could be Philly’s starting middle linebacker this season.
He is a small player, but Dean shines in the best defense College football History in Georgia. He is a smart player who can both play downhill and hold his own in coverage. Dean in 2010 In 2023, a three-down playmaker could be a linebacker. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that he works with so many former college colleagues.
Owusu-Koramoa has 70 combined tackles, four passes defensed and two forced fumbles in 11 games in 2022. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that he’s an athletic specimen who can wear many different hats on defense. There are two reasons why I expect JOK to have his best season in 2023.
The Browns made more moves on the defensive line with Dalvin Tomlinson and Zadarius Smith, which should open things up for the linebackers. Also, the Browns made what I believe to be a good hire in defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz. Schwartz isn’t flashy at high speed, but he relies on his defensive linemen to create disruption and pressure on the quarterback. I think that’s good for Jock.
Here’s an interesting thing. With Samson Ebukam signed with the Indianapolis Colts and Charles Omenihu now with the Chiefs, the 49ers lost two of their top three starters from last year. That opens the door for Jackson, who had 14 combined tackles, six QB hits, eight passes defended, one interception and three sacks in 15 games played in his rookie season.
Jackson was aggressive, rushing the passer from the inside two-point stance against offensive guards, but he also gained fans by getting his hands in the dirt as a traditional defensive end. What stood out about Jackson was that two of his three sacks came after the quarterback got out of trouble with the first pass rusher. He did not give up on the game.
At the same time, it’s no secret that Jackson’s rookie season could have been better. He was placed on healthy inactives late in the year — including three regular season games in San Francisco.
“I think Drake has shown a lot of what he can be this year, but he has to get to what he can do,” 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said. Via the Niners Wire. “I thought he was close to that at the beginning of the year. He’s been around for a long time and I think he’s learned as a year, if you lose any power in this league, it’s going to be tough. And we had a good team. The Raiders and I think as the year goes on and towards the end, he It was too long for him and his body wasn’t ready for what we wanted.
While how Jackson finished his rookie season didn’t inspire optimism, how he started the year did. Again, Jackson will get the chance to start opposite Nick Bosa. He’s a special athlete, and if he finds that consistency under new defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, 2023 could be a big year for him.