For full player rankings (redraft/dynasty), eight printable cheat sheets, season projections, player analytics, and much more, join Fantasy Consigliere today. And if you find these write-ups helpful, we would recommend purchasing our 2024 fantasy football draft guide on Amazon to get our full thoughts and rankings all in one place—if you are on the fence, check out the free sample before purchasing.
Player Outlooks (2024)
QB Russell Wilson: Sean Payton and the Broncos were eager to move on from Wilson this offseason, but Pittsburgh signed him to be their starting quarterback, and there were enough vintage flashes and late-game magic to believe he can thrive in a new situation. Although trouble finding a successor to Matt Ryan doomed new Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith in Atlanta, he revived Ryan Tannehill’s career with the Titans in 2019/2020—coordinating him to a 55:13 touchdown-interception ratio across 28 games. He is a low-end QB2 option with the position being strong, but Wilson could have fantasy success if he runs more and George Pickens makes a Year 3 leap.
QB Justin Fields: With Russell Wilson as the overwhelming favorite to start for the Steelers, the fantasy appeal for Fields is limited to being a rare quarterback handcuff. That said, if he does see time (whether due to injury or performance), Fields will be in a system that fits him well under Arthur Smith, and head coach Mike Tomlin would probably encourage the former first-round pick to make things happen as a runner—which is what made him such a dominant fantasy option a couple of seasons ago.
RB Najee Harris: Since an outstanding rookie campaign in which he totaled 1,667 yards and ten touchdowns, Harris has seen his touch total, yardage total, and receiving production decrease in back-to-back seasons—and he’s now playing for a new deal after the Steelers surprisingly declined his fifth-year option. The presence of Jaylen Warren has been the primary reason for Najee’s declining numbers, but he’s still been solid in terms of overall production while being a model of durability with zero missed games since entering the league. Based on the talent in a contract year, we like Najee’s value as a borderline top-20 option.
RB Jaylen Warren: The gap between Najee Harris and Warren in the rankings could be closer after both finished as low-end RB2 options in 2023, but the 1B option in the backfield is more of a FLEX for us—largely due to the confidence in Harris leading the way. Also, Cordarrelle Patterson might eat into his role some, so Warren will need to remain highly efficient while dealing with inconsistency (even last year, he had just five games with double-digit fantasy points).
RB Cordarrelle Patterson: Patterson has experience with Arthur Smith from their time together in Atlanta, and his production before the team drafted Bijan Robinson is notable with 1,166 total yards and 11 total touchdowns in 2021, and 817 total yards and eight total touchdowns in 2022. The veteran is at least a name to watch, though he’ll be more valuable as a kick returner with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren healthy.
WR George Pickens: Pickens went for a combined 50.1 fantasy points in Week 16 and Week 17 of last season, and he’s primed for a featured role—and monster production if the quarterback play is improved—with Diontae Johnson traded to the Panthers. Remember, Courtland Sutton broke out with a career-best ten touchdowns with Russell Wilson under center in Denver, and Pickens is an ideal stylistic fit for the former Super Bowl-winning quarterback’s game. Consider him an upside WR2.
WR Van Jefferson: The depth chart behind Pickens is the question mark for Pittsburgh, but Jefferson could have the nod as the No. 2 with the most proven success at the NFL level (802 yards with the Rams in 2021) and at least some familiarity with Arthur Smith’s system after being traded to Atlanta last season. On the other hand, Jefferson will be pushed by a couple of younger players, and he only caught 12 passes in 12 games with the Falcons.
WR Roman Wilson: Opinions on Wilson in the pre-draft process were split with some highlighting him as a potential first-round pick—but we were a little lower on him as our No. 83 overall prospect (nearly exactly where he was selected by the Steelers, at No. 84 overall). However, we do like his fit as a tough, compact, and reliable slot weapon next to George Pickens, and Wilson probably has the highest likelihood of strong fantasy value behind him on the depth chart.
WR Calvin Austin III: Austin was called the leader of the room by Roman Wilson last month, and he has as good of a shot as anyone to emerge in 2023. As a rookie, Austin caught 17 passes for 180 yards and one touchdown, and the efficiency wasn’t what Pittsburgh would have hoped for (10.6 yards per reception; 6.0 yards per target)—so the position battle will certainly be one to keep an eye on for the next several weeks.
WRs Quez Watkins and Scotty Miller: Adding field-stretchers was clearly a priority for the Steelers this offseason, and both Watkins and Miller have shined in the past—but have been less productive over the past couple of seasons. Watkins’ best season came in 2021 when he averaged 10.4 yards per target (with 647 receiving yards), and it’s easy to imagine him being able to run under Russell Wilson’s deep ball… though predicting the weeks that will occur is the tough part.
TE Pat Freiermuth: Some jokingly expressed concern about Freiermuth saying he’s taking on the Kyle Pitts role in Arthur Smith’s offense because of the lack of production—considering his talent level—that Pitts had, but Pittsburgh will provide better quarterback play than Atlanta did, and targets will be up for grabs behind George Pickens. As a rookie, Freiermuth was an impressive threat in scoring territory with seven touchdowns, and he began his career with 60+ receptions in back-to-back seasons before injuries hit and production fell off in 2023. He’s more of a TE2, but Freiermuth finding the end zone more frequently is his path back to the TE1 ranks.
TE Darnell Washington: Washington is a devastating blocker that already played a healthy 48% of the offensive snaps for Pittsburgh as a rookie, but it resulted in just seven receptions (on ten targets) for 61 yards—and he’s still stuck behind Pat Freiermuth. We are extremely high on his talent level at six-foot-seven, so maybe the lack of an established No. 2 wideout can allow Washington to be a bigger part of the passing attack, including around the end zone.
TE Connor Heyward: Heyward is an extremely useful real-life player for the Steelers, but he’s caught 35 passes in 34 games to begin his career, and his skillset is expected to again make him a versatile weapon rather than a pass-catching maven. In the event of an injury to Pat Freiermuth, we would expect Darnell Washington to step up as the top guy.
Other Notes
Best IDP value: S DeShon Elliott
Veteran cornerback Donte Jackson is another name to consider with plenty of targets expected to come his way across from Joey Porter Jr., but we have always liked Elliott—who has made 80+ tackles in all three NFL seasons with double-digit games played. He also knows the AFC North brand of football after beginning his career in Baltimore, and Elliott should be the middle of the action alongside Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Stat to know (via draft guide)
George Pickens ranked first in the NFL in yards per reception (18.1) last season; in Arthur Smith’s offense with the Titans, A.J. Brown began his career averaging 17.4 yards per reception across two seasons.