The Pittsburgh Steelers will select a record-breaking player in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft if Mike McCarthy can repeat what he did in Green Bay and Dallas.
Sure, that’s a lot to ask.
But his first draft pick in Green Bay became the Packers’ all-time leading tackler: Ohio State linebacker A.J. Hawk. In Dallas, McCarthy’s first draft choice was Oklahoma receiver CeeDee Lamb, who broke Cowboys single-season records for receptions and yards.
So, can McCarthy go 3 for 3 in his first year as Steelers coach?
He surely hopes to.
The draft is April 23-25 in Pittsburgh. The Steelers have 12 picks, starting with No. 21.
“I just think that first class is important when you’re building a program,” McCarthy said on the “Pat McAfee Show,” where Hawk in part of the cast.
The newly hired Steelers coach reflected on the Packers selecting Hawk fifth overall in 2006, calling that “a great draft pick.” He also recalled how Lamb “fell to us” in 2020 when the Cowboys drafted him 17th.
McCarthy wasn’t choosing those players by himself in Green Bay or Dallas, and he won’t be doing so in Pittsburgh either. With the Packers, he worked with general manager Ted Thompson, who won NFL Executive of the Year in 2007 and 2011. And, of course, in Dallas, owner Jerry Jones doubles as the de facto GM.
Certainly, McCarthy held influence.
He coached the Packers from 2006-18 and the Cowboys from 2020-24. Studying his previous 18 drafts as a head coach might provide some insight into his preferences with the Steelers.
1st-round tendencies
Rarely has a McCarthy-coached team used a first-round pick on an offensive skill-position player. In fact, Lamb in 2020 was the only one.
McCarthy’s teams often focused their early attention on the defensive side. Twelve of his 17 first-round picks played defense. In the rare occasions when they did choose an offensive player not named Lamb, it was always an offensive lineman.
Broken down by position, McCarthy’s teams used first-round picks on four defensive tackles, four offensive linemen, three linebackers, two defensive ends, two safeties, one cornerback and one wide receiver.
Those first rounders didn’t all become NFL icons, but there were more booms than busts.
Nine of the 17 got selected for at least one Pro Bowl. Lamb (five), linebackers Clay Matthews (six) and Micah Parsons (five), defensive lineman Kenny Clark (three), offensive lineman Tyler Smith (three) and cornerback Jaire Alexander (two) went to multiple Pro Bowls.
Finding value
It may be hard to believe, but McCarthy never used a first-round pick on a wide receiver during quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ tenure in Green Bay. The Packers, however, still found Rodgers some solid pass-catchers via the draft.
McCarthy and Co. had success drafting underrated options in Round 2. The list included Pro Bowl wideouts Greg Jennings, Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Davante Adams, all drafted in the second round.
The four combined for more than 28,000 yards on 2,176 receptions while wearing green-and-yellow jerseys. They scored 242 touchdowns, led by Adams with 73.
So, if the Steelers don’t take a receiver at pick 21, maybe keep an eye on 53.
At times, McCarthy’s Packers teams also waited until Day 2 or 3 to find a few future Pro Bowl offensive linemen. Tackles Josh Sitton (four Pro Bowls) and David Bakhtiari (three), guard T.J. Lang (two) and center Corey Linsley (one) were all drafted in the fourth round or later.
Quarterback keeper
Six times as a head coach, McCarthy selected a quarterback in the draft, yet none of those players became a franchise QB or even an established NFL starter.
To be fair, neither franchise really needed one. Rodgers already was on Green Bay’s roster when McCarthy got hired as coach, and Dak Prescott was the established starter in Dallas when McCarthy arrived there.
Of the six quarterbacks McCarthy drafted, LSU product Matt Flynn had the longest NFL career. A seventh-round pick in 2008, Flynn stuck around the league for 51 games over seven seasons with seven starts.
Interestingly, Flynn was the second quarterback drafted by the Packers that year. Louisville’s Brian Brohm was picked in the second round but landed on the practice squad after losing the backup job to Flynn.
The other Green Bay quarterbacks drafted by McCarthy were Ingle Martin (fifth round in 2006), B.J. Coleman (seventh round in 2012) and Brett Hundley (fifth round in 2015). Hundley started nine games for Green Bay.
Blocking their way was Rodgers, a 2005 first-round pick who arrived a year before McCarthy got hired. McCarthy was the offensive coordinator in San Francisco that year, when the 49ers used the No. 1 overall pick on quarterback Alex Smith instead of Rodgers.
In Dallas, McCarthy drafted only one quarterback: Pine-Richland graduate Ben DiNucci (seventh round in 2020). DiNucci started one game.
Outside the box
McCarthy and the Packers weren’t afraid to take players in some lesser-drafted positions during his years as coach. In various drafts, they selected a punter, kicker, fullback and even a long snapper.
The kicker became one of the NFL’s best. Mason Crosby played 16 of his 17 seasons with the Packers after they made him a sixth-round pick in 2007. He ranks 15th on the NFL’s all-time list with 400 career field goals.