Steelers announce 2023 team captains
While winning individual awards, and being recognized by the media as a great player is nice, there is no higher honor in football than being named a team captain, especially if you play for the Pittsburgh Steelers. And with week one here, the Steelers have named four players as their leaders for 2023. That includes […]
While winning individual awards, and being recognized by the media as a great player is nice, there is no higher honor in football than being named a team captain, especially if you play for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
And with week one here, the Steelers have named four players as their leaders for 2023.
That includes Kenny Pickett, who just made history:
Not only is Kenny Pickett the lone offensive captain, it is also the earliest any Steelers QB has been named team captain in franchise history under Coach T. In only his second year and first year as a starter, Pickett has achieved a level of appreciation that even future Hall of Famer Ben Roethlisberger couldn't manage at that point in his career.
"Big Ben" wasn't named a captain until 2008, meaning Pickett achieved that same status in half the time seeing Ben was drafted in 2004.
And while it may seem trivial and won't mean much if he doesn't produce, it shows the respect he has commanded from the locker room so early in his career, seeing as the captains are voted on by the players on the team.
Coach Tomlin sees things similarly:
"The leadership displayed…it can be reflected by our captain voting," said Coach T. "I am proud of the group this group selected."
As for the others, it comes as no surprise that the heart and soul of the defense (and team in general) by way of T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward were named captains.
As for Killebrew, the Steelers always honor special teams with a captain, and Killebrew exemplifies excellence within a unit that I expect to be sound fundamentally in 2023.
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Featured image via: © Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
