The Pittsburgh Steelers have six picks in the upcoming NFL draft, including No. 21 in the first round. Coming off a 10-7 season, they have some notable holes on their roster, including at quarterback where they currently have Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson populating their depth chart while they wait for Aaron Rodgers to sort out his personal life.
Could the Steelers move up to take a quarterback or wait and see who falls to the middle rounds? Or will they try to replace someone like Najee Harris, who they took No. 24 in the 2021 draft? According to ESPN's Matt Miller, those are both distinct possibilities.
According to Miller, the Steelers are one of the few teams who might consider trading into the top ten, but that's only if they're dead set on a QB. Per ESPN:
Unless the Steelers get antsy and trade up for a quarterback, it's very difficult for a team to find value in moving up this year. The question that I think about is, "Who would a team be trading up to get?" There simply aren't enough blue-chip prospects at money positions in this class worth paying high draft capital to land.
Kenny Pickett, who the Steelers took with the No. 22 pick in 2022 just won a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles as the backup to Jalen Hurts. He was the only quarterback taken in the first round that year.
Miller also noted that running back has been a particular focus for Pittsburgh heading into the draft:
The Pittsburgh Steelers have done a ton of work on this talented running back group, according to scouting sources. Pittsburgh lost starter Najee Harris in free agency and returns Jaylen Warren, but the expectation around the league is the team will draft a running back. Pittsburgh doesn't have a second-round pick after trading it for wide receiver DK Metcalf, so this could be a Round 3 or Round 4 target.
The Steelers sound like they could be one of the most interesting teams to watch next week.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ESPN Insider on Steelers NFL Draft Plan for Quarterback and Running Back.
