Seven NFL players poised for a breakout season in 2023: Kenny Pickett and Kadarius Toney headline the list

2023 NFL The season is still a few months away, but it’s never too early to look forward. Free agency and the The NFL Draft Now that that’s behind us, we have more clarity on the 32-man roster makeup NFL teamsAnd if you participate, you may have started a few Fantasy Football Research.

Journalists and fans try to keep this part of the contemporary world ahead of storylines. If you’re good at predicting the future, you can win some good money at sportsbooks or dominate your fantasy league. Last season, we saw breakout campaigns from several players, including Geno Smith, Jalen Hurts, Josh Jacobs, Tony Pollard and Talanoa Hufanga. Each of these players will be crucial to their teams in 2022. Which players will step forward in 2023?

Below, we’ll break down the seven NFL Players poised for a breakout campaign.

The Steelers have now gone 19 seasons without a loss, one shy of tying the record. Super Bowl Era. It was a close call last year as Pittsburgh went from 2-6 to 9-8. The Steelers need to win their last four games to get to nine!

Pickett’s 184.9 passing yards per game ranked 28th. NFL And his seven passing touchdowns tied for 33rd. The numbers aren’t impressive, but Pickett showed plenty of potential in 2022. Pickett’s innovative campaign is a tale of two halves. He threw just one interception in his final eight games after throwing eight in his first five games. Perhaps his breakout has already begun?

In Weeks 10-17, Pickett had three fourth-quarter comebacks and four “game-winning drives.” For pro football reference. Two had back-to-back touchdowns to keep the Steelers in the win column in Weeks 16 and 17. Pickett’s response as a freshman in the fourth quarter late in the year is impressive.

With several additions and weapons on the offensive line such as Deonte Johnson, a young George Pickens, Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington, Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, Pickett is a candidate to make a big improvement in year two.

It’s time, right? Toney caught just 14 passes for 171 yards and two touchdowns in seven regular-season games, but he played for the Chiefs after being acquired at the trade deadline. Super Bowl LVII hit with a touchdown reception, then a very long punt return Super Bowl History.

In the absence of JuJu Smith-Schuster, Toney is expected to be a consistent part of the offense in 2023. Although he’s often seen as a gadget player compared to a traditional WR1, Chiefs General Manager Brett Veach believes Toney will play. A key role going forward.

“We have a lot of faith in him. He was a first-round pick for a reason,” Veech said. “There’s a reason we traded for him and we felt he was a first-round talent, and I think if he stays healthy and continues to build that chemistry with the coaching staff and with the bat, I think he does a great job. , I think the sky’s the limit for him.”

The Seahawks had a great draft class last year, and it was led by left tackle Charles Cross, followed by Kenneth Walker and defensive rookie of the year cornerback Tarik Woolen. However, right tackle Abraham Lucas certainly deserves to be included among those big names.

Lucas started all 16 games played last season and allowed nine sacks on 975 snaps played per PFF. He earned a 68.5 PFF grade. While he allowed more sacks per second than Gross, the left tackle had the lowest PFF grade (63.7) and allowed 20 more pressures than Lucas. to SI.com.

Lucas could develop into a Pro Bowler. I expect him to have a clean, balanced campaign in 2023.

You could easily put Titans wideout Traylon Burks here, but I’m interested in the second-year tight end from Tennessee. Chick Okonkwo caught just 32 passes for 450 yards and three touchdowns in his freshman season, but he proved to be the versatile player many believed he could be coming out of Maryland. He ran wheel routes out of the backfield from the fullback position, worked the middle of the field and caught a 48-yard screen pass against the Chiefs.

Aside from being a special playmaker, another reason Okonkwo made this list is because of Tennessee’s subpar wide receiving corps. New offensive coordinator Tim Kelly needs to game-plan with Okonkwo in mind if he wants to improve the worst offense in the NFL. Look for Okonkwo and Burks to be focal points in the passing game for the Titans in 2023.

It looks like the Eagles got a steal in Dean, who was picked in the third round, but that remains to be seen. He didn’t play a major role in his rookie season because of Kysir White and DJ Edwards, but both are on different teams now. Dean recorded 13 combined tackles and one tackle for a loss in 2022, but could be Philly’s starting middle linebacker this season.

He’s a small player, but Dean shines in great defense College football History in Georgia. He’s a smart player who can play downhill and hold his own in coverage. Dean could be a three-down playmaking linebacker in 2023. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that he’s working with several former college teammates.

Owusu-Koramova took a step back in 2022 with 70 combined tackles, four passes defensed and two forced fumbles in 11 games played. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that he’s an athletic model who can wear many different hats on defense. There are two reasons why I expect JOK to have its best season in 2023.

The Browns added Dalvin Tomlinson and Ja’Darius Smith to the defensive line, which should open things up for the linebackers. Additionally, I believe the Browns made a good hire as defensive coordinator in Jim Schwartz. Schwartz doesn’t explode with speed, but relies on his defensive line to disrupt and pressure quarterbacks. I think this is good for JOK.

Here’s a fun one. The 49ers lost two of their three leading tacklers from last year as Samson Ebugam signed with the Indianapolis Colts, while Charles Omenihu is now with the Chiefs. That opens the door for Jackson, who has 14 combined tackles, six QB hits, eight passes defensed, one interception and three sacks in 15 games with zero starts.

Jackson aggressively rushes against guards who attack the passer from a two-point stance. What stood out about Jackson was that two of his three sacks came after the quarterback got out of trouble with an early pursuer. He never gave up on drama.

At the same time, it’s no secret that Jackson’s freshman season could have been better. He was rendered a healthy inactive the rest of the year — including San Francisco’s three postseason contests.

“I think Drake showed a lot this year of what he can be, but he’s got to get to what he can be,” 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said. Via Niners Wire. “I thought he was close to it at the beginning of the year. It’s been a long season and I think he’s learned as the year goes on, if you lose any power in this league, it’s going to be tough. And we had a decent group. The rushers and I think, by the end of the year, Eventually, it got too long for him and his body wasn’t ready to do what we needed.”

While how Jackson finished his freshman season didn’t inspire confidence, how he started the year did. Again, Jackson is going to get a chance to pair up with Nick Bosa. He’s a special athlete, and if he finds that consistency under new defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, 2023 could be a big year for him.