According to Bob Labriola the Pittsburgh Steelers will not use one of their first two picks to draft a quarterback in the 2018 NFL Draft.
“No, no, 1,000 times no,” Bob Labriola wrote in his most recent Q&A. “How does picking a quarterback ‘to develop’ for maybe three years from now help this team compete for a championship this season?”
It doesn’t. But that’s the issue the Pittsburgh Steelers are dealing with, and they need to think long-term with it, because winning a championship now means the chances of drafting the next quarterback next year is just as difficult.
Most draft classes aren’t going to present themselves with five first round quarterbacks. It’s rare to see a draft class these days have this much potential at the position, and allow a team late in the first the opportunity to draft one of them.
So, take advantage of it. The Steelers could be sitting at No. 28 and Mason Rudolph can be in their arms. No one’s around, he’s identical to your current Hall of Fame quarterback and he’s a mid first-round pick on an average draft year.
Taking him doesn’t help your Super Bowl chances for 2018, but it does for the future. This team is put together well enough to win this season with or without a beneficial first rounder. Adding a dynamic inside linebacker would help their cause, but it certainly doesn’t take them out of contention to not draft one early.
Waiting until next year or the year after that is taking a big chance. The standard in Pittsburgh is to be at the end of the draft order. If that’s the case, most times, you’re not going to find a quarterback worthy of being deemed a guaranteed franchise quarterback.
If Pittsburgh isn’t looking to be 100% sold on their next play caller, than waiting is justifiable. An open competition between whomever they draft next, Josh Dobbs and Landry Jones is fine and if that’s the direction they’re going in, wait on a quarterback.
If it’s not, they need to highly consider this draft as a blessing. Rudolph is a star, and is going to make some team very happy down the road. The Steelers could be that team, but again, it all depends on the direction they want to approach with their next starting QB.
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This just can’t be based on “win now.” That’s a thought process that’s going to keep a team like the Steelers in the dust three years from now. Looking for an open competition with a variety of potential starters is fine. But that should be the only reason they pass on a quarterback this year. Not because a third inside linebacker is going to make or break their 2018 season.