Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle, Chukwuma "Chuks" Okorafor signed a $29.2 million contract before the 2022 season. While his performance had been somewhat inconsistent, he seemed to be improving as did the whole offensive line. The evidence was in the fact that the Steelers' running back committee of Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren were able to help Pittsburgh start moving the ball down the field. Then Okorafor found himself benched with a rookie starting in his place. Now, with the Steelers season over, Okorafor shared his regrets about this year with the media.
Okorafor was benched before the Week 9 game against the Tennessee Titans. In typical Steelers fashion, Head Coach Mike Tomlin was very tight-lipped about the benching, saying only that it was a "disciplinary issue." But fans know that is more than they usually get from Tomlin, who always plays his cards close to his vest. For him to call it "significant" was very telling of how seriously he took it. It was clear to fans that it wasn't about performance, so the reason seemed murky. This led to the rookie, Broderick Jones, starting in Okorafor's place, something fans were thrilled to hear.
Steelers' Chukwuma Okorafor Shared His 2023 Regrets
Frankly, it sounded like Okorafor was just venting the same way fans had been over the terrible play-calling of former Offensive Coordinator Matt Canada. Canada was promoted to the job after the Steelers chose not to renew the contract of Randy Fichtner at the end of the 2020 season. Most experts agreed that Canada was woefully unprepared for the job.
Okorafor hasn't seen much in the way of action since Jones took over for him. Now, he is expressing his frustration with how this season panned out in a video shared on X by Pittsburgh Post-Gazette sports reporter, Chris Adamski.
"If I knew that was gonna be the case [getting benched], I probably wouldn't have chosen to come back, but at that point, there was nothing I could do about that. It is kind of what happened. I don't know what to say about that," lamented Okorafor.
When asked about the 2024 season and if he is hoping to return to the Steelers, Okorafor shared that it is not entirely up to him.
"I have no clue what's gonna happen next year. It is up to me, my agent, and the guys (looks upward, as if to indicate the front office)."
The Steelers are definitely going to be facing a situation with their salary cap and looking hard at which players it makes sense to keep, and which it doesn't. It is hard to imagine them keeping Okorafor on the roster when the duo of Jones and Dan Moore Jr. improved over the season. However, it is not unusual for Tomlin to allow the rookies time to develop on the bench before throwing them into the lion's den. We saw a similar plan unfold with second-round pick Joey Porter Jr. who was given a starting spot because of injuries, after several weeks of easing himself slowly into the game.
While it would probably be unfair to call Okorafor (who was a third-round selection in 2018) a bust, it is clear that better linemen are out there, especially when you consider the savings they will earn by releasing him before the start of the 2024 season. It just seems like a no-brainer.
More must-reads: