At the end of every NFL Draft, anyone who covers the Steelers puts together a recap of the franchise’s selections.
I like who the Steelers picked. I advocated for a defensive lineman in Round 1. That’s what they did by drafting Oregon’s Derrick Harmon. Then the team added on by grabbing Iowa’s Yahya Black in Round 5.
I wanted fellow Hawkeye running back Kaleb Johnson in Round 3. That happened, too. Getting Ohio State’s Jack Sawyer on the edge in Round 4 was unexpected. But he was an excellent college player and could be good to incubate depending on what happens with T.J. Watt’s contract.
JACK SAWYER SCOOP-AND-SCORE ????
Ohio State is one step closer to advancing to the national championship! pic.twitter.com/BPoV5FBRGZ
— ESPN (@espn) January 11, 2025
Ohio State sixth-rounder Will Howard fills the role of at least a fourth quarterback for training camp (with some more upside). Linebacker Carson Bruener and defensive back Donte Kent could be special teamers from the seventh round.
Here at “Breakfast With Benz,” though, we take on the additional burden of talking about who the organization didn’t get. We bear the brunt of your ire for reminding you of how many holes the franchise still needs to patch for the immediate (and sometimes long-term) future.
Usually, that list includes the likes of an extra tight end here, a third receiver there, and perhaps another inside linebacker in a pear tree.
But this year’s “What the Steelers didn’t get in the draft” column takes on a very different tone … for very obvious reasons.
WHAT THE STEELERS DIDN’T GET IN THE DRAFT
Any definitive word on Aaron Rodgers: The Steelers did leave draft weekend with a quarterback: Will Howard out of Ohio State in the sixth round.
“Look back at his resume, the way he’s wired,” offensive coordinator Arthur Smith said. “His maturity level, what he accomplished this year, going from Kansas State and then stepping into that role at Ohio State and winning the national championship — those are things you see him do on the actual tape. He takes out some of the guesswork about his mental toughness.”
However, Howard will likely just provide depth and be a developmental project this year, assuming Aaron Rodgers actually signs his contract and he and Mason Rudolph stay healthy.
Granted, those are big assumptions.
On Friday, Steelers owner Art Rooney II addressed the Rodgers situation on Steelers Nation Radio saying, “We’re still getting the same signals we have been getting recently that he does want to come here. I do think we may get word soon.”
That’s not much of an update.
Based on how the Steelers handled their draft approach, though, the franchise is either assuming Rodgers is coming at some point, or they are comfortable with the idea of Rudolph being the Week 1 starter.
That’s something that was rarely the case during his first five years with the Steelers.
Any clarity on George Pickens’ situation: The demonstrative wide receiver is up for a potential contract extension. He’ll likely be asking for close to the $33 million per year that DK Metcalf just got in an extension from the Steelers that corresponded with his trade from Seattle.
If the Steelers don’t want to give that kind of money to Pickens, expect him to hold out, hold in, or report and just generally be a disgruntled employee until he gets his money or gets traded.
The Steelers can either sign Pickens, wait until after the 2025 season to franchise tag him, try to deal with him unsigned, or engineer a trade before training camp begins, during the preseason or any time before the midseason trade deadline.
None of those options strike me as particularly good.
Pittsburgh’s front office did not use Pickens as trade collateral to pick up any extra selections in this year’s draft or next year’s. The club also didn’t address wide receiver at all in the draft.
Trade rumors involving Dallas and Green Bay kicked up in the days leading into the draft. They never materialized. Instead, the Packers took two receivers: first-rounder Matthew Golden (Texas) and third-rounder Savion Williams (TCU).
The Cowboys, meanwhile, didn’t take a receiver.
A second-round pick: The Steelers traded this year’s second-round pick for Metcalf. In advance of the draft, general manager Omar Khan seemed at peace with the understanding that it may be hard for the Steelers to get back into the top 64 picks and recover that lost selection.
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“We gave up a second for DK, and I’m so excited that we did that. Having him here is great,” Khan said. “When you get to the draft, you get excited about a lot of players. I wish I had 50 picks because there are a lot of good players out there.”
That sort of rationalization drove me nuts when Steelers fans tried to apply it to the 2020 draft by counting Minkah Fitzpatrick as the No. 1 pick.
Sorry, but you can’t do that.
Fitzpatrick spent 14 games on the 2019 team that went 8-8 and failed to make the playoffs. The 2020 Steelers simply didn’t have a first-round pick. At least Metcalf is a 2025 offseason acquisition to improve upon last year’s club.
Khan’s rationale makes a little more sense in that context.
But it sure would’ve been nice to have a quality player within the top 64 picks who would’ve allowed them to address one of the holes we’ll discuss soon. There was no splashy “Khan artist” move to make that happen. The club didn’t pick up a seventh selection until a trade down in the fifth round Saturday that allowed them to acquire No. 226 in the seventh round. That became Kent, a cornerback out of Central Michigan.
Simply put, you have to give up something to get something.
A pass catcher of consequence: Metcalf, Pickens (for now) and tight end Pat Freiermuth should be a good enough trio of pass catchers to start the year.
At one point or another, unfortunately, depth will be tested and the Steelers still have no idea what they have in Roman Wilson at wide receiver. Plus, if we are looking ahead to next year, not only is Pickens a potential free agent, butsois Calvin Austin.
“You’d love to get X, Y and Z. Sometimes you do, sometimes you don’t,” Khan said. “The way it worked out this year, it really worked out good for us. We had the opportunity to trade for DK. We were all in on that.”
After Freiermuth, the Steelers only got 31 catches for 280 yards and three touchdowns from other tight ends, despite how many times we saw them in multiple sets.
Yet the Steelers didn’t draft a receiver or a tight end.
A likely No.3 outside cornerback: Kent was the only draft choice used on a member of the secondary.
“He has a Swiss Army Knife skill set,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “He’s capable of playing inside and out. He also added to his resume this year by proving to be a very capable punt returner.”
Joey Porter Jr. and Darius Slay will be the two starting outside cornerbacks. That’s a decent place to start. Brandin Echols and Beanie Bishop can handle things inside.
However, the backup job to Slay and Porter is anything but a done deal. Cory Trice continues to be an interesting prospect but is often hurt. James Pierre is good on special teams but not someone you want to rely on as a starter if Slay or Porter go down for a while.
If a second-rounder had been in play, perhaps the Steelers could’ve taken a running back there (Kaleb Johnson or someone else), and grabbed a corner prospect at No. 83. Or vice-versa. But that wasn’t possible for the reasons listed above.