Pittsburgh Steelers proving they know how to draft in the opening rounds

T.J. Watt and JuJu Smith-Schuster were wins for the Pittsburgh Steelers. But 2018 proved this team knows how to find the hidden gem in a field of potential.

The opening two rounds of the NFL draft can go one of two ways. You can either find yourself a Jarvis Jones or a Le’Veon Bell. The Pittsburgh Steelers have been known for their successful drafts, but the last two years have been exceptionally better than most NFL teams.

Pittsburgh’s philosophy when entering the draft never seems to be find the position of need. Instead, they enter with a group of players in mind and determine which one they feel has the highest potential.

Last year, they could’ve went in a number of directions – inside linebacker, safety, corner, tight end, or quarterback. Instead, they chose T.J. Watt. An outside linebacker out of Wisconsin who’s brother is currently the best defensive end in football. So, you’d believe that his younger brother has a pretty high ceiling.

52 tackles and seven sacks later, it’s pretty easy to see the Steelers knew what they were talking about. Moving on from James Harrison to take on a late first-round outside linebacker was gutsy, but Pittsburgh knew what they were doing when the decision was made.

This year has been no different. Terrell Edmunds was considered the biggest reach of the first-round. A safety out of Virginia Tech who never met the potential of his brother, and many considered to be a mid-round pick.

On top of all of it, Pittsburgh already had two starting safeties. Really, the need of Edmunds wasn’t high and no one could understand why the Steelers decided to take a player they could’ve sat on until the second-round.

Today, two games through the preseason, we see why. Edmunds needs to improve in consistency when in coverage, but as a playmaker, he has everything this team needs. He can play all over the field, and will fill in for safety, slot corner and inside linebacker.

Not many players in this draft fill all three voids Pittsburgh needed to fill.

He won’t earn a starting job in 2018, but with a year of learning and gradually filling a position, Edmunds is going to be a superstar at a young age. Just like his first-round counterpart the year before.

Pittsburgh wasn’t finished in the opening round. The last two years, they have gone from a receiving core of Antonio Brown, Eli Rogers and Sammie Coates to Antonio Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster and James Washington. A group many consider one of the best in the league.

Last year, you could see why selecting Smith-Schuster in the second-round was acceptable. Coates’ career was never going to turn out to be what Pittsburgh had hoped for, and this offense was a solid wideout group away from being possibly the NFL’s best.

Adding Smith-Schuster to a mix of Antonio Brown and a returning Martavis Bryant was exactly what the offense needed to maximize their potential.

Then, Bryant didn’t turn out to be what his instagram videos said he was. The former Clemson star had all the possibilities of being a superstar in this league. His rookie season, he showed flashes that made it seem like he was out to be the next stud of Pittsburgh’s receiving game.

2017 showed that wasn’t true. A year away from football was too long to stay consistent, and although his career isn’t over, he wasn’t meeting the expectations set forth by the Steelers.

So, they moved him for a third-round pick that turned into the team’s next franchise quarterback (hopefully). In return, they filled the position with a player who has been everything he was advertised to be – James Washington.

The Oklahoma State wideout is the most impressive member of the Steelers roster halfway through the preseason. He’s quick, runs incredible routes and has the strongest hands in Pittsburgh. A combination that has secured his place on this team.

It’s just another win for the Steelers in something they’ve proven comes easy to them. Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert have a draft resume that would compete with any in the NFL. These last two years are just another example of why they’ve had so much success throughout their careers.

Pittsburgh has four players that will one day be some of the best the league has to offer. All of which people mocked. Something Tomlin and Colbert don’t concern themselves with, and we can now see why.