Tim Benz: Former Steelers nemesis offers high praise, big predictions for a specific player
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A former Pittsburgh Steelers-killer is all in on the Black and Gold for 2023. Also rookie tight end Darnell Washington is getting high praise from one of the best ever at his position.
All of that is coming from the same guy.
It’s former New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski.
Gronk, who played his final year of high school football at Woodland Hills, made a habit of torturing the Steelers during his 11-year NFL career. He appeared with Kay Adams on Wednesday’s edition of “Up and Adams” on FanDuel TV. She asked for a team that “no one is talking about that will prove people wrong” in 2023. Gronkowski pointed to Pittsburgh.
“They’ve had a winning record since Coach (Mike) Tomlin’s been there,” Gronkowski said. “They have a great defense. Their offense struggled last year. I think they’re gonna pick it up a bit. Their quarterback (Kenny Pickett), I think he is going to come through. He is going to be one of the better quarterbacks in the division this year.”
I wonder if Gronk meant “conference,” not “division,” since there are only four quarterbacks in the division. If Gronk really meant what he said, and if Pickett is going to be “one of the better QBs in the division,” then I guess that means at least two are going to be worse than him.
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And I can’t imagine one of those two is Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow. So I guess that means Gronk thinks Pickett is going to be better than both Deshaun Watson and Lamar Jackson.
That’s a bold prediction. But not as bold as what he had to say about Washington.
“I think he’s gonna have a great year, I would say he’s gonna put up around 600, 700 yards and help the offense gain some first downs, a couple touchdowns in the red zone,” Gronkowski opined.
Who's gonna prove people wrong?
Hype train in Motown
This team will be a solid 8-8-1
Why we should keep an eye on a certain team in FloridaWe go rapid fire with Gronk for his preseason predictions!
: @FanDuelTV | @heykayadams | @RobGronkowski pic.twitter.com/QvlK2U6xOC
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) August 16, 2023
Wow! Keep in mind Gronk himself — perhaps the best ever at the position — averaged 702 yards his last three seasons in the league. Washington had 774 yards total during his three years at Georgia.
So Gronkowski might be a bit out of his depth with those predictions. But if he is right, I’m sure the fan shops in the Strip District will be fresh out of “Mt. Warshington” T-shirts by Christmas.
For the record, Gronkowski had 695 yards over seven games in his career against the Steelers, catching 41 passes, eight for touchdowns.
The only thing I’d want to add to this conversation is that, are the Steelers really in the category of “no one is talking about them, but they’ll prove those people wrong”?
I don’t know who “those people” are. It sorta sounds like a straw man to me. After all, since the Steelers’ preseason victory over the Bucs, all I have been hearing is nonstop praise.
And very loudly at that.
Maybe no one in Gronk’s neighborhood is talking Steelers. But I feel like the club, especially since their 27-17 win in Tampa last Friday, has their entire global fan base bubbling.
LISTEN: Tim Benz and Steelers center Mason Cole talk about the Steelers upcoming season