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Pittsburgh Steelers: 3 reasons to be excited about the 2018 NFL Offseason

By Derek Snyder

HOUSTON, TX - DECEMBER 25: T.J. Watt #90 of the Pittsburgh Steelers during game action against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium on December 25, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX - DECEMBER 25: T.J. Watt #90 of the Pittsburgh Steelers during game action against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium on December 25, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /
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PITTSBURGH, PA – DECEMBER 31: JuJu Smith-Schuster #19 of the Pittsburgh Steelers waves to the crowd as he walks off the field at the conclusion of the Pittsburgh Steelers 28-24 win over the Cleveland Browns at Heinz Field on December 31, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA – DECEMBER 31: JuJu Smith-Schuster #19 of the Pittsburgh Steelers waves to the crowd as he walks off the field at the conclusion of the Pittsburgh Steelers 28-24 win over the Cleveland Browns at Heinz Field on December 31, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) /

3. Steelers 2017 rookies will get a full offseason of work

Believe it or not, the steps a rookie can take between his first and second seasons in the NFL are huge. Not to mention, with the Steelers hitting a few home-runs with their draft picks in 2017, JuJu Smith-Schuster and TJ Watt have a great opportunity to become Pro-Bowl caliber players in 2018.

We all knew that Smith-Schuster would bring a different dynamic to the Steelers offense this past season, but little did we know he would finish with nearly 1,000 receiving yards. As if that wasn’t impressive enough, he topped that off by recording seven touchdowns as well. With a full offseason of work with Ben Roethlisberger, the former USC superstar has a great opportunity to spread his wings and take off.

Related Story: Should Jimmy Graham be on the Steelers radar?

On the other side of the football, TJ Watt proved early-on in 2017 that he wasn’t going to ride on the coat-tail of his brother’s NFL career. Finishing his rookie season with 54 tackles, 5 tackles-for-loss and 7 sacks, Watt is a heavy favorite to remain the team’s starting outside linebacker for the indefinite future.

Again, with a full offseason of training, conditioning and growing in a professional football system, these two studs have a real opportunity to get that much better.

Needless to say, Watt and Smith-Schuster will be impact Steelers for a long, long time.

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