Steelers need to take NFL Combine with a grain of salt

The Steelers have some decisions to make at certain positions.  Will the combine offer some help?

The Steelers, like every team, have decisions to make at certain positions.  While we will discuss those positions, we will not necessarily discuss individual players.  Here’s why:  We do not have a first-round pick or a fifth-round pick in the upcoming draft because of the Minkah Fitzpatrick trade.

I am not complaining, by the way, as I believe Fitzpatrick’s play in 2019 was worth the picks, but the fact remains we do not currently have the aforementioned picks.  We also do not currently have a third-round pick as that was part of the 2019 draft-day trade for Devin Bush.

Again, I am not complaining as Bush played well in his rookie season, but, again, the fact remains that the Steelers do not currently have a third-round pick. So without a first-round pick and third-round pick, talking about specific players who probably will not be available when we pick is an exercise in futility, in my opinion.

One of the positions the Steelers have to make a decision about is QB, the most important position on the team.  Hopefully, ‘Big Ben’ will fully recover from the injury that derailed his 2019 campaign, but we still need to figure out if we have an heir apparent currently on the roster.  Honestly, I do not see us taking a QB with our first pick, which will not come until the second round.

If the Steelers truly believe that Mason Rudolph is the heir apparent to ‘Big Ben’, there’s no need to reach for a QB in this draft.  If; however, the Steelers believe Rudolph could use some competition or is not the heir apparent, the only QB I would draft, if he’s there in the later rounds, is Nate Stanley, QB out of Iowa.

Why?  Well, for me, it’s very simple: Stanley is about the only QB who played in a pro-style offense who might drop to us in the later rounds.  This is where the ‘grain of salt’ comes into play.  The combine will allow the draft-eligible QB’s to throw passes unencumbered to receivers who will also be unencumbered.

If the Steelers are thinking about drafting a QB, they have to draft a QB who can fit the system. A QB who never took a snap from center, for example, may not be the best fit.  Some QB needy teams will mortgage the future to trade up to draft a QB just because he had a good showing at the combine.  The Steelers need to avoid that and look at the tape on Stanley or any other QB they may have the radar.

Let’s continue looking at some positions the Steelers may be targeting.