Steelers Daily Links: 2022 Re-Draft; Leftwich Candidate at ND

What would happen if NFL teams got another crack at the 2022 NFL Draft?

ESPN attempted to answer that by re-drafted the year-old selection with their NFL Nation reporters. George Pickens went to the Baltimore Ravens at 14th overall and Kenny Pickett landed with the New Orleans Saints at No. 16.

“(Kyle) Hamilton was a solid pick who shook off early struggles and finished strong. He concluded the season with five passes defended and 46 total tackles. But imagine Lamar Jackson lofting touchdown passes to Pickens in the end zone,” Jamison Hensley wrote. “Pickens’ elite pass-catching ability — he led all rookies in yards per reception (15.4) — is tough to pass on because he provides much-needed playmaking ability on the outside.”

Katherine Terrell wrote, “With Chris Olave off the board, (New Orleans) could use the first of their two picks on a quarterback instead of starting over for the third straight year. Pickett’s numbers aren’t great — seven touchdown passes, nine interceptions — but he and the Pittsburgh offense improved down the stretch.”

Instead of Pickens and Pickett, the Steelers got cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. and wide receiver Rashid Shaheed instead.

🏉 93.7 The Fan: Former Steelers offensive tackle Max Starks threw shade at Ben Roethlisberger for the Steelers’ loss to the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XLV. “I think we were trying to make sure that guys had opportunities for bigger trophies at the end,” Starks said when asked about why they didn’t stick with the running game. “I’ll just leave it at that.” Many people point to Rashard Mendenhall’s fumble at the beginning of the fourth quarter as the big play that ended any Steelers momentum, but Starks says it was a perfect hit and the ball was going to pop out. Starks thinks Roethlisberger’s three interceptions played a bigger role in the loss. “If you take one less pick away from that game, we’re talking about seven-time Super Bowl champions instead of just six-time,” Starks said.

🏉 Brian Flores, who was named the Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator on Monday, withdrew from the Arizona Cardinals head coaching search, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston. Several league sources emphasized how many potential head coaching jobs will be open in 2024 and was a consideration for Flores. 

🏉 Terry Bradshaw told Tom Rock of Newsday at the Super Bowl that his former FOX colleague Sean Payton didn’t want to go to the Cardinals because of Kyler Murray. Murray’s work ethic and preparation have been heavily criticized in the past. Bradshaw also said Russell Wilson didn’t have anything to do with Payton joining the Denver Broncos.

Bradshaw also said he doesn’t know Russell Wilson at all, but he’s heard not good things. Bradshaw doesn’t want to jump on the anti-Wilson bandwagon, however. “Listen to Sean Payton. He had a guy your size that was smart and ran that offense,” Bradshaw said at the Super Bowl in Phoenix. “And if you’ll study this offense under Payton, he’ll take you to that level you want to be at.“

🏉 NFL analyst Ross Tucker told Andrew Fillipponi at Super Bowl media row that he doesn’t see much of a difference between Kenny Pickett and Joe Burrow. “Why can’t Kenny Pickett be Joe Burrow? It’s not like Joe Burrow is anymore physically gifted than Kenny Pickett,” Tucker said.

🏉 Former Steelers center and Florida product Maurkice Pouncey joined The Gator Collective on Tuesday. “Gator fans let’s build a National Title again. Enough is Enough!” Pouncey tweeted. The Gator Collective is a fan club that connects athletes with fans while allowing the athletes to earn compensation for their name, image, and likeness.

🏉 24/7 Sports: Former Steelers quarterback and Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich reached out to Notre Dame about their vacant offensive coordinator position last week. He and Marcus Freeman have stayed in contact as Leftwich remains a serious candidate for the job.

🏉 A new study has revealed that Washington D.C. is the territory in America most obsessed with fantasy football. The research by odds comparison experts Sidelines.io analyzed the monthly search volume for ‘Fantasy Football’ as well as other related keywords. Pennsylvania came in at sixth on the list. “Pennsylvania is home to the Eagles and the Steelers, there is a huge football culture in Pennsylvania and so Fantasy Football is sure to be a fan favorite,” Sidelines.io wrote. “There are 118,500 searches per month, the highest number in the top 10. However, Pennsylvania has a much higher population of 13 million, so per 1,000 people this works out at 9.05 searches.”

🏉 USA Today: Nate Davis recently ranked all 56 Super Bowls. The Steelers eight Super Bowl games ranked as the following — Super Bowl XLIII (5), Super Bowl XLV (12), Super Bowl XIII (13), Super Bowl X (16), Super Bowl XIV (19), Super Bowl XXX (25), Super Bowl XL (35), Super Bowl IX (39).

🏉 Tuesday marked the 17th anniversary of the Steelers Super Bowl XL parade in Downtown Pittsburgh. It was the Steelers first Super Bowl title since the 1970s dynasty era.

On this day in 2006, we held the SB XL parade 🎉 pic.twitter.com/hpIiuf7tFo

— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) February 7, 2023

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AROUND THE NETWORK

Pittsburgh Sports Now: Pitt obliterated Louisville for its biggest conference win since 1988. The Panthers moved into a tie for first place in the ACC. Louisville coach Kenny Payne said he thinks they can play deep into March.

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Bryan Rust scored late and Kris Letang got the overtime winner as the Penguins snatched away two improbable points from the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche.

West Virginia Sports Now: Former NFL quarterback and Super Bowl champion Jeff Hostetler has been named to the WVU Hall of Fame.

Nittany Sports Now: Miles Sanders‘ NFL success with the Philadelphia Eagles has come as no surprise to Penn State head coach James Franklin.

Pittsburgh Baseball Now: What the Pirates end up doing at second base might be the most interesting storyline of spring training.