Pittsburgh will be the center of the football universe when the NFL Draft takes place on the city’s North Shore this week.
The first round is set for Thursday, with rounds 2-3 on Friday and rounds 4-7 on Saturday.
The 2026 NFL Draft kicks off at 8 p.m. Thursday and will be broadcast on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network. It will also be live-streamed on NFL and the ESPN app.
In the past few weeks, TribLive sports writers Chris Harlan and Chris Adamski, with columnists Tim Benz, Mark Madden and Joe Starkey, have explored the Steelers’ needs and possibilities for the 2026 NFL Draft. They also looked at all the top players available at each position and put together who they think the Steelers will take.
For an deep dive into this year’s NFL Draft, keep reading:
Steelers’ picks
The Steelers have 12 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, beginning with the 21st overall in the first round. Here are the team’s picks:
• First round, 21st pick (21st overall)
• Second round, 21st pick (53rd overall)
• Third round, 12th pick (76th overall) (from Cowboys in George Pickens trade)
• Third round, 21st pick (85th overall)
• Third round, 35th pick (99th overall) (compensatory pick)
• Fourth round, 21st pick (121st overall)
• Fourth round, 35th pick (135th overall) (compensatory pick)
• Fifth round, 21st pick (161st overall)
• Sixth round, 35th pick (216th overall) (compensatory pick)
• Seventh round, 8th pick (224th overall) (from Patriots in Kyle Dugger trade)
• Seventh round, 14th pick (230th overall) (from Colts in Michael Pittman trade)
• Seventh round, 21st pick (237th overall)
Mock drafts
As the weeks have gone by, expert opinion has evolved on what position the Steelers might target:
April 10: Edge rusher emerges as possible 1st-round option for Steelers in latest mock drafts
April 4: Steelers target offensive tackles in latest multi-round mock drafts
March 27: Steelers shift attention to offensive line in latest mock drafts
March 6: Steelers targeting top wide receivers in latest mock drafts
Feb. 27: Mock drafts entering NFL Combine link Steelers with 1st-round receivers
Tim Benz’s columns
A month from the NFL Draft, Steelers’ approach to free agency crystalizes selection strategy
Offensive tackle has entered the Steelers’ draft chat … again
Benz and former pro/college scout Matt Williamson previewed the Steelers’ potential selections at a number of position groups:
Tim Benz’s NFL Draft preview: Steelers should feel the need … the need for speed in secondary
Tim Benz’s Steelers NFL Draft preview: An under-the-radar position of interest
Tim Benz’s Steelers NFL Draft preview: Yes, it makes sense to consider tackle in Round 1 … again
Tim Benz’s Steelers NFL Draft preview: Debating the best wide receiver options
Joe Starkey’s columns
Everything you ever (and maybe never) wanted to know about the 21st pick of the NFL Draft
Penn State guard Vega Ioane makes sens for Steelers; quarterback Drew Allar does not
Steelers should prioritize Nick Herbig, trade a starting edge rusher
Mailbag: Will Steelers take 1st-round game-breaker for 1st time in nearly 20 years?
The Steelers are Omar Khan’s show now. Is that a good thing?
Mark Madden’s columns
Steelers should target Drew Allar — and move on from Will Howard
Steelers’ draft history
Benz looked back at the Steelers’ draft history in their 25 years at Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium.
25 years of Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium drafts: The best Steelers pick from every class (2021-25)
25 years of Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium drafts: The best Steelers pick from every class (2016-20)
25 years of Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium drafts: The best Steelers pick from every class (2011-15)
25 years of Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium drafts: The best Steelers pick from every class (2006-10)
25 years of Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium drafts: The best Steelers pick from every class (2001-05)
Pittsburgh Steelers 1st-round draft pick history
Pittsburgh Steelers compensatory draft pick history
Position-by-position breakdown
Notre Dame teammates Jeremiyah Love, Jadarian Price projected as draft’s top 2 RBs
Jadarian Price and Jeremiyah Love starred at Notre Dame playing the same position for the past three seasons, so it only felt natural when each was invited to attend the NFL Combine earlier this offseason.
If there was any question that Love and Price formed one of the greatest running backs duos in college football history, consider that they are universally expected to be the top two running backs selected in the NFL Draft later this month in Pittsburgh.
Tight ends growing in stature in NFL, but only 1 projected to be taken in 1st round of draft
In the continually evolving, cat-and-mouse world of the NFL, tight ends are having their moment.
Tight ends have gradually been playing more snaps on whole in recent years as offensive coordinators go “big” in an effort to punch back against increasingly faster (re: smaller) defenses.
New Steelers coach McCarthy hoping to land ‘AFC North style’ QB as draft approaches
When new Steelers coach Mike McCarthy evaluates football’s most important position while his team is on the clock, he isn’t thinking about sunshine and warm temperatures.
“At the end of the day, the most important games are in December and January,” McCarthy said recently. “To be able to play in those games outdoors, it requires to play a certain way.”
The durability and team-first mentality of Clemson’s Blake Miller are just part of what has teams projecting him as a long-term NFL starter.
But Miller is not the only top offensive tackle in this draft class who proved to be a workhorse. Utah’s Spencer Fano started 36 of the first 37 games over his three college seasons, Francis Mauigoa started all 42 games Miami played over his three years there and Alabama’s Kadyn Proctor started all but two of his team’s games over his three college seasons.
Penn State’s Olaivavega Ioane at the head of this draft class among interior offensive linemen
Penn State guard Olaivavega Ioane might be one of the top prospects in the upcoming NFL Draft, but he’s just as in the dark about where he might end up as all the fans and other observers following the festivities coming up in Pittsburgh.
While that’s largely true of most draft prospects, Ioane seems to have more variance than most in regards to where he might be selected. Reputable national outlets range in projection for Ioane’s NFL home from a pick just inside the top 10 all the way down into the 20s.
Texas Tech’s David Bailey brings resume of production en route to top-5 draft selection
In making a case to be the No. 2 overall draft choice — and first with any degree of drama after Fernando Mendoza goes with the top pick — David Bailey needs to do no more than point to the stat sheet.
No one in the country had more sacks than Bailey, an edge defender from Texas Tech.
Judged college football’s best defensive player, Jacob Rodriguez fits Steelers profile at ILB
The Chuck Bednarik Award is annually given to the best defensive player in college football.
The past two times it’s been given to a true, off-ball (inside) linebacker, the Pittsburgh Steelers selected that player in the ensuing NFL Draft. Could they make it three in a row with Texas Tech’s Jacob Rodriguez?
Tennessee CB duo Jermod McCoy, Colton Hood each expected to go in 1st round of draft
Two players at the same position from the same school going in the first round of an NFL Draft is relatively rare. But in a sign of the times in this modern era of college football, Jermod McCoy and Colton Hood never played a game together for Tennessee.
Amid strong group of safeties, Oregon’s Dillon Thieneman stands out with preparation
Oregon’s Dillon Thieneman isn’t the highest-rated safety prospect available in the draft, but he is solidly among the top three of what is considered a deep position group with high-level talent at the top in Ohio State’s Caleb Downs, Thieneman and Toledo’s Emmanuel McNeil-Warren.
Top prospects
A look at the top prospects for this year’s NFL Draft:
David Bailey, Texas Tech linebacker
Rueben Bain Jr., Miami defensive end
Denzel Boston, Washington wide receiver
Omar Cooper Jr., Indiana wide receiver
Mansoor Delane, LSU cornerback
Caleb Downs, Ohio State safety
Keldric Faulk, Auburn defensive end
Monroe Freeling, Georgia offensive tackle
Colton Hood, Tennessee cornerback
Olaivavega Ioane, Penn State guard
Makai Lemon, USC wide receiver
Caleb Lomu, Utah offensive tackle
Francis Mauigoa, Miami offensive tackle
Jermod McCoy, Tennessee cornerback
Kayden McDonald, Ohio State defensive tackle
Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, Toledo safety
Blake Miller, Clemson offensive tackle
Kadyn Proctor, Alabama offensive tackle
Arvell Reese, Ohio State linebacker
Ty Simpson, Alabama quarterback
Carnell Tate, Ohio State wide receiver
Dillon Thieneman, Oregon safety
Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State wide receiver
Zion Young, Missouri defensive end
Steelers’ strategy
In the past weeks and months, Steelers officials provided some insight into what they’re looking for in this year’s draft:
Mike McCarthy brings stellar NFL Draft track record to Steelers war room
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.
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?
Mike McCarthy takes hands-on approach to draft, and Steelers are willing to take his input
Though they are in their first offseason together as the primary power brokers for the football operations of one of the NFL’s higher-profile franchises, this is not the first spring that Omar Khan and Mike McCarthy have been involved in the process of an NFL team’s draft.
Now the coach and general manager, respectively, of the Pittsburgh Steelers, McCarthy and Khan in 2000 served as offensive coordinator and in the front office of the New Orleans Saints.
The Steelers hold 12 picks in 7-round NFL draft. Can they use them all? Will they?
As things stand now, the Pittsburgh Steelers hold 12 selections in the seven-round NFL Draft they are set to host next month.
Is it tenable to add 12 drafted rookies to the roster?
Steelers open to drafting a quarterback — even if Aaron Rodgers returns
Via one means or another, the Steelers are making their rounds through the incoming draft class of quarterbacks.
One by one, be it at the combine or pro days or via official visits to their South Side facility, Steelers coaches and management are performing their due diligence at the sport’s most important position. Name a draft-eligible prospect, and there’s an excellent chance the Steelers have talked with him.
Steelers casting a wide net in investigating wide receivers to draft
During media availabilities Friday at the NFL Combine, among scores of WR prospects, several confirmed having formal or informal discussions with the Steelers.
That, of course, doesn’t guarantee that the Steelers will use their first- or second- or any of their projected three third-round picks on a wide receiver. But it is a signal that they are leaving no stone unturned in investigating that possibility.
Local connections
Players from Pitt and Penn State, as well as a Penn Hills graduate, are expected to be selected in the 2026 NFL Draft:
Former Pitt star Kyle Louis awaits NFL Draft, ready to embrace any role at next level
Kyle Louis possesses two years’ worth of game film and highlights at Pitt, he played in the Senior Bowl in February, went through the NFL Combine, interviewed with coaches and scouts across the league and partook in the Panthers’ pro day in mid-March.
The two-time All-ACC linebacker and 2024 All-American now awaits hearing his name called.
Converted DE Zane Durant from Penn State still plays with explosiveness as NFL Draft prospect
Twitchy and explosive aren’t often words used to describe defensive tackles. But then again, Zane Durant is not your typical defensive tackle. He enrolled at Penn State in 2022 as a defensive end weighing not much more than 250 pounds.
By the time he was a co-captain who started each of Penn State’s 12 regular-season games as a senior, Durant was a 297-pound defensive tackle. After measuring in at 6-foot-1, 290 pounds at the combine last week, Durant said he intends to play at 294 pounds in the NFL.
Penn Hills grad Jaden Dugger showing up on NFL Draft radar
Jaden Dugger put all of the effort in leading up to the NFL Draft. The Penn Hills graduate went to all the meetings. He grinded through all the workouts.
Dugger, who played collegiately at Georgetown and Louisiana, is projected as a Day 3 pick.
More
Even more draft coverage:
16 prospects will attend 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh
Presumed No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza won’t be attending the 2026 NFL Draft, but 16 other prospects will make the trip to Pittsburgh, the NFL announced Thursday.
From smoke-filled hotel rooms to a North Shore spectacle: How the NFL Draft evolved
Five decades ago, the NFL draft was held in early February, on a Tuesday and Wednesday instead of a three-day weekend extravaganza.
It was conducted in the morning in solitude, not in prime time with millions watching on TV. In fact, the draft wasn’t even televised.
Looking back at the 1st time Pittsburgh hosted the NFL Draft … nearly 80 years ago
In the 1948 draft, NFL owners sat inside the Steelers offices at the Fort Pitt Hotel and didn’t leave until they had conducted 32 rounds of picks. The process lasted 13 hours.
Ben Roethlisberger: Steelers should avoid early-round QBs in 2026 NFL Draft
Rather than search for their next quarterback early in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ all-time leading passer wants the team to prioritize other needs first.
“I think too many teams try and get a quarterback … and they build a team around a quarterback,” retired quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said in March. “I think that can work sometimes if the quarterback is a quote-unquote can’t-miss type quarterback. … I think those are a few and far between nowadays.”
Players getting paid in college has made evaluations easier for NFL teams weighing draft picks
Whereas in the past, most of the players selected in the NFL Draft were about to begin earning money for the first time, nowadays there are more than a few prospects hearing their names called who will end up taking a pay cut. Such is life in the era of name, image and likeness (NIL) in college athletics.
And though that phenomenon might make things somewhere on the spectrum of awkward to untenable for teams on the verge of handing out four-year contracts to the rookies they draft, in some sense that players are entering the NFL already with money is making things easier on the teams.
Tony Dorsett, Curtis Martin, Jimbo Covert among football legends announcing picks at NFL Draft
Football legends and Western Pennsylvania natives Tony Dorsett, Curtis Martin and Jimbo Covert are among three dozen retired or active players who will represent their franchises on Day 2 of the NFL Draft.
Mel Kiper Jr.: Plenty of position flexibility among offensive linemen in NFL Draft
Many of the top offensive tackles projected as early picks in next month’s draft have position flexibility, said ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr., meaning they, instead, could become an interior lineman at the NFL level.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. expresses fondness for Pittsburgh, excited for city to host NFL Draft
The longtime face of NFL Draft season is a big fan of the traveling roadshow approach used nowadays for the marquee offseason event.
“I can’t wait to be up in Pittsburgh,” said ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr., the most famous of the NFL draftniks.
Analyst: Draft not as strong at WR, but Steelers could pick 1
The upcoming NFL Draft offers plenty of help for teams in need of wide receivers, even if the class doesn’t feature an obvious breakout star.
ESPN analyst Jordan Reid said an unusually large number of receivers could come off the board in first three rounds. But in terms of high-end talent, Reid said this group of pass-catchers falls short of other recent drafts.
NFL Draft analyst: Trading picks might be right move for Steelers
As the owners of 12 draft picks, the Steelers can add premium players to the roster, but those newcomers might not all arrive in this April’s draft.
General manager Omar Khan could trade some picks, possibly to add a veteran player or additional selections in a deep 2027 draft, said NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah, a former college scout with the Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens and Philadelphia Eagles.
Fewer players from outside Power Four are being selected in NFL Draft
Just like Cinderella teams have become less of a factor at the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, fewer longshots are reaching the NFL Draft from small schools.