The majority of the player acquisitions for the Pittsburgh Steelers is over. The 90 man roster is largely set, save for one potential 41 year old quarterback who for the time being will remain nameless. This is a good time to take a look at the overall talent on the roster, and determine the top 10 Steelers heading into the 2025 season:
10. Pat Freiermuth
Not the biggest Pat Freiermuth fan in the world here. He has limited athleticism, combined with being a well below average blocker. Freiermuth is an above average receiving tight end however. He narrowly breaks our Steelers top 10 for this season.
9. Minkah Fitzpatrick
This really saddens me to have Minkah Fitzpatrick this far down the list, but his drop off in play is significant. Fitzpatrick only has one interception in the last two years. What was once a highly impactful part of the Steelers defense, has now become largely invisible. Minkah is about to turn 29, and may never regain his dominant form.
8. Alex Highsmith
There are times where Alex Highsmith plays like a top three player on this roster. Those times aren’t consistent enough however. A big knock on Highsmith is he tends to struggle without TJ Watt in the lineup. Having said that, he is a extremely solid number two edge rusher, good enough for eighth on this list.
7. Cam Heyward
I know what you’re thinking, this is way too low for arguably the best player on defense in 2024! While it is true, at some point Father Time has to catch up with him. Expect a solid 2025, but a notch or two below what we saw in 2024.
6. Jaylen Warren
Jaylen Warren has been the best back on the team since the day he joined the roster. That may change with the addition of Kaleb Johnson, but for now he’s clearly a top 10 player on this roster.
5. Deshon Elliot
You could make the argument that DeShon Elliot was a top three player on the Steelers defense in 2024. This is by far Omar Khan’s best free agent signing, and it’s not close. Omar Khan being named Steelers GM brings more questions than answers
4. Zach Frazier
Zach Frazier had a terrific rookie season, and looks to be on pace to be the next great Steelers center. A Pro Bowl season is in his very near future.
3. Chris Boswell
There is a very good argument that Chris Boswell is the best kicker in the NFL. It’s scary to think where this team would have been without him the last five years. Not the greatest sign for a roster when a kicker is top three player, but here we are.
2. DK Metcalf
DK Metcalf hasn’t played a down for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and he’s already the second best player on the roster. Metcalf is a size/speed freak who will add excitement to the Steelers pedestrian offense.
1. TJ Watt
TJ Watt had a tremendous season in 2024 despite the sack numbers being lower than expected. The days of high-teen sacks are probably over, but Watt is still a well above average edge rusher. He is also far and away the best player on this roster.
Check out the latest episode of the Steelers Sanctuary Podcast on our YouTube channel to see all the members top tens here: https://www.youtube.com/live/xIs1S3-Wxb0?si=Jbo_gWL_zkGHBHPe