Handing Out Steelers End of Year Awards

Story by Yinzer Crazy Contributor Jayson Erwin. Follow him on Twitter @JaysonErwin2002

Well yinzers, the 2022-23 season has concluded for Pittsburgh. Lots of ups and downs this season; a slow start but a strong finish as they started 2-6 and post bye week, finished 7-2. Mike Tomlin's winning season record stays intact and the Steelers future looks bright for next year. With the right offseason, the Steelers could be very dangerous. But let's take a look back on the season one last time and give out some end of year awards for the elite players and moments from the season -- and even some honorable mentions.

Rookie of the Year Award:

WR George Pickens (HM: QB: Kenny Pickett)

Stats: 52 rec, 801 yards, 4 TD's

Some things never change as Pickens was my pick for rookie of the year award in the midseason awards article. Pickett is on the rise and looking like the franchise QB the Steelers needed but, as the kids say today, Pickens is HIM. He has made an incredible catch nearly every game he has played and has become a key part of the Steelers offense quickly. And with Diontae Johnson having a zero TD season, could Pickens be the #1 guy next year? Mr. GP, formerly known as NFL YoungBoy, will have an interesting 2023.

Offensive MVP Award:

RB Najee Harris (HM: TE Pat Freiermuth)

Stats: 272 carries, 1034 yards, 7 TD's

Okay, maybe some things change. Freiermuth was initially listed as the offensive MVP for me midseason. At that point, Harris had 361 yards rushing in 8 games. After the bye, Harris went off! 6 games later, he was already over that amount of yards. And by the end of the season, two straight 1000+ yard seasons. All this happened after the article was published, coincidence...? I think not. But the team of Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren solidified the run game and got it back to the elite form Steeler fans were looking since the start of the season. With the offensive line only getting better, so can Najee. Can't wait for next season when Harris stiff arms another guy to the second dimension!

Defensive MVP:

FS Minkah Fitzpatrick (HM: OLB Alex Highsmith)

Stats: 96 tackles, 6 INT, 1 TD

While TJ and Highsmith keep the pressure on QBs, Minkah is there to make sure it's a no-fly zone. Since Fitz was traded to the Steel City, the defense was never the same again. And neither were the careers of other quarterbacks. He was the only Pittsburgh Steeler to be named a 1st-Team All-Pro this season. A tackling machine, an incredible talent, and a smash mouth style of play, Fitzpatrick always kept the secondary in check the whole year. And a fun fact! Fitzpatrick caught Joe Burrow's first touchdown of the year. He really is a team player!

Most Improved Award:

OLB Alex Highsmith (HM: QB Kenny Pickett)

Stats: 63 tackles, 14.5 sacks, 5 forced fumbles

Highsmith has always been looked at as good, but this year he's shown he is truly special. Top 10 in sacks, tied for #1 in forced fumbles, and just being an elite outside linebacker the Steelers have been searching since the departure of Bud Dupree. Last year, he only had 6 sacks. He hasn't gotten a ton of attention considering his other half, TJ Watt, is always killing it on the other side but now Highsmith has arrived and is now deserving of a lot of credit for keeping the defense competitive.

Play of the Year Award:

The Block (HM: Game winner vs. Baltimore)

While the game winning catch by Najee Harris vs. Baltimore was a better play overall, this was more of a series of events leading up to this moment and the events afterwards that made this game absolutely insane! So week 1, Bengals vs. Steelers. Everyone knows what happened so I'll keep it brief. After a long offensive struggle by Cincinnati, they found themselves needing a touchdown to tie and a chip shot kick afterwards would win it. The Bengals would get a touchdown and tie the game up and the kick afterwards would win them the game. McPherson, who only missed two extra-point kicks last year, was looking to win the game. Snap? Good. Spot? Middle. Kick? BLOCKED! Minkah Fitzpatrick! An incredible play to keep the Steelers alive! After this, the game got crazier somehow! A missed chip shot from McPherson to win it, a doink by Steelers kicker Chris Boswell to try and win it, a technicality rule that knocked the Bengals out of field goal range to try and win it, and then just when a tie seemed imminent, a huge play by Freiermuth put the Steelers in field goal range and they finally won the game! An incredible series all because of a blocked extra point by Fitzpatrick!

Hopefully next year we can hand out some actual hardware!