A month out from the NFL Draft, the Steelers’ approach to free agency has prevented the franchise from needing to reach and get desperate on the big stage in Pittsburgh on April 23.

Well, except for quarterback if they potentially get stiffed by Aaron Rodgers. But let’s worry about that later.

That’s not to say the Steelers don’t have any holes on their roster. They do. Plenty of them, even beyond the perpetual concern at quarterback. Although none of them are so severe that general manager Omar Khan may have to leave a superior player on the board to reach for a lesser prospect at a position that’s too thin to begin 2026.

The front office’s measured approach to free agency is the reason for that. Jamel Dean should be a capable starter at cornerback opposite Joey Porter Jr. Running back Rico Dowdle offsets the departure of Kenneth Gainwell and might even prove to be an upgrade. Michael Pittman Jr. was a much-needed veteran addition that can be a starter in the wide receiver room, and Jaquan Brisker (plus the return from injury of DeShon Elliott) should allow Jalen Ramsey to move away from being a full-time safety.

Even the second wave of free agency provided answers to specific needs. If the reported signing of Brock Hoffman comes to fruition, the Steelers now have an option at left guard to replace Isaac Seumalo besides just Spencer Anderson. Sebastian Joseph-Day was a necessary depth signing along the defensive line.

You probably aren’t going to see a lot of Pro Bowl nominations coming from this free agent crop. But the collective might allow the Steelers to go after the best available prospect on the board, even if it’s one who doesn’t have to come in and start this year.

Unless it’s a wide receiver.

If the Steelers do take a first-round wide receiver, or even a second-rounder at that position, that player better be prepared to contribute heavily right away because new head coach Mike McCarthy likes to deploy three wide receivers so frequently.

At this point, you probably can cross off the following positions from the Steelers first-round target list: running back, tight end, outside linebacker and center.

Quarterback, too, if Rodgers signs before the draft, or if they honestly feel the 42-year-old is committed to re-signing sometime in the spring.

Based on all the assets they’ve thrown at the secondary in free agency in addition to Brisker and Dean (retaining Asante Samuel and adding Darnell Savage), I’d argue the secondary now can wait until at least Day 2 as well, but the Steelers may feel differently if they think the right safety or cornerback is on the board.

I was fully welcoming the prospect of being happily bored to death by the Steelers taking Penn State guard Vega Ioane at No. 21. But assuming Hofman’s long-awaited contract becomes official, using a first-rounder on a guard (even a really good one such as Ioane) with other needs still present might not be the best resource allocation.

Offensive tackle is very much in question, given Broderick Jones’ neck injury and Dylan Cook’s limited sample size as a starter. Both starters at inside linebacker, Payton Wilson and Patrick Queen, are slated to return, but based on last year’s results, the Steelers can do better there. More quality bodies are still needed along the defensive line, and, perhaps most importantly, the Steelers absolutely cannot consider themselves done at wide receiver.

Everything I’ve been able to glean since the legal tampering period opened two weeks ago leads me to believe that the Steelers’ approach to free agency was dictated by what they thought they wanted to attack in the draft after the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

You can look at it one of two ways:

• The Steelers threw a lot of UFA cash at running back, safety, corner and the interior of the trenches because they weren’t wild about what they saw at the combine from those positions.

• The Steelers loved the depth at offensive tackle, receiver and ILB at the combine and knew those were the positions they wanted to draft, so don’t bother paying for players at those positions in free agency.

Either way, how the club navigated free agency has allowed it to be flexible when the curtain rises on Pittsburgh’s big night a month from now.

Yet, in a way, it also feels like we’ve come full circle to where wide receiver is still the most glaring need to address (again, Rodgers’ decision aside) at pick No 21. That’s despite the addition of Pittman from Indianapolis.

Featured Local Businesses

More local businesses

ESPN.com has five receivers rated in its top 23 picks: Carnell Tate (No. 11; Ohio State), Jordyn Tyson (No. 12; Arizona State), Makai Lemon (No. 13; USC), Denzel Boston (No. 19; Washington) and Omar Cooper (No. 23; Indiana).

The website places three more receivers in its top 40: (Germine Bernard, No. 33 Alabama), Zachariah Branch (No. 39; Georgia) and KC Concepcion (No. 40; Texas A&M). So there appear to be plenty of options, even if there is a run on wide receivers early in the first round.

I certainly understand where some Steelers are coming from when they say the organization can’t just take any wide receiver. They’ve got to take the right wide receiver.

Yeah. I get it. Agreed.

That said, given what McCarthy usually wants to do with wide receivers, that spot on the depth chart still appears barren enough that simply avoiding the wrong wide receiver might be good enough.

Thankfully, though, based on what the Steelers have done over the last two weeks, they shouldn’t feel pressed into potentially making that mistake.

Listen: Tim Benz and Chris Adamski discuss the Steelers’ offseason in advance of April’s draft