The arrival of spring brings longer days and longer mock drafts.
ESPN, CBS Sports and NFL.com were among the outlets this week that projected multiple rounds of the upcoming NFL Draft. The three-day event is April 23-25.
The consensus among draft analysts nowadays had the Steelers choosing an offensive lineman at pick 21. But there was no consensus on who that lineman might be.
Here is a look at the latest mocks with the draft less than a month away.
Mel Kiper Jr./Matt Miller/Jordan Reid/Field Yates, ESPN
Pick: Olaivavega Ioane, G, Penn State
Updated:Thursday
The four ESPN analysts alternated picks for their three-round mock.
Kiper was tasked with deciding the Steelers’ first-round selection at 21. The dean of draft gurus settled on Ioane, the player he also targeted for the Steelers in his individual mock draft last month. The Steelers have an opening at guard after Isaac Seumalo left in free agency.
Kiper called Ioane “a powerful people mover who hasn’t allowed a sack since 2023.”
Second and third rounds
53. Chris Brazzell II, WR, Tennessee (Kiper pick)
76. A.J. Haulcy, S, LSU (Yates pick)
85. Drew Allar, QB, Penn State (Kiper pick)
99. Darrell Jackson Jr., DT, Florida State (Reid pick)
Josh Edwards, CBS Sports
Pick: Kadyn Proctor, OT, Alabama
Updated:Thursday
Edwards’ mock draft predicted all seven rounds. He viewed the 6-foot-7, 352-pound Proctor as a replacement for Steelers left tackle Broderick Jones, a 2023 first-round pick still recovering from a season-ending neck injury. Jones has one year left on his rookie contract.
“As it stands, the Steelers address a glaring need at offensive tackle,” Edwards said.
Second and third rounds
53. D’Angelo Ponds, CB, Indiana
76. Garrett Nussmeier, QB, LSU
85. Kyle Louis, LB, Pitt
99. De’Zhaun Stribling, WR, Ole Miss
Matt Miller, ESPN
Pick: Kadyn Proctor, OT, Alabama
Updated:Monday
Miller also published his own seven-round mock draft, and Jones won’t want to read it either. Miller chose the mammoth Alabama tackle, saying Jones “hasn’t played like a first rounder, giving the Steelers room to draft a replacement.”
Second and third rounds
53. Garrett Nussmeier, QB, LSU
76. Gennings Dunker, G, Iowa
85. Tyler Onyedim, DT, Texas A&M
99. Chris Brazzell II, WR, Tennessee
Chad Reuter, NFL.com
Pick: Blake Miller, OT, Clemson
Updated:Friday
Another mock draft and another potential replacement at tackle. Reuter noted that Steelers general manager Omar Khan “gave a rosier account of Broderick Jones’ potential return from injury” at the owners meeting, but the NFL.com analyst added an offensive tackle anyway.
Since Miller plays right tackle, Reuter projected that Troy Fautanu could switch to left tackle or guard.
Second and third rounds
53. Zachariah Branch, WR, Georgia
76. Carson Beck, QB, Miami (Fla.)
85. Harold Perkins, LB, LSU
99. Bud Clark, S., TCU
Nick Shook, NFL.com
Pick: Monroe Freeling, OT, Georgia
Updated:Thursday
Shook also used the 21st pick to choose Jones’ potential successor, suggesting that Jones “could be facing a prove-it year in 2026.” Shook selected the 6-foot-7, 315-pound Freeling, who coincidentally hails from the Jones’ alma mater.
“Replacing one Georgia tackle with another might feel like flying too close to the sun,” Shook wrote, “but Freeling is the best remaining OT available … .”
Lance Zierlein, NFL.com
Pick: Omar Cooper Jr., WR, Indiana
Updated:Tuesday
Zierlein gives the Steelers someone other than an offensive lineman in his one-round mock draft.
He envisions them using the 21st pick on a “dynamic option” at receiver to group with DK Metcalf and the newly acquired Michael Pittman Jr. The top three receivers — Ohio State’s Carnell Tate, USC’s Makai Lemon and Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson — all go within the first 13 picks, so Zierlein tabs Cooper for the Steelers.