6 takeaways for the Steelers after the 2020 NFL Combine

The Pittsburgh Steelers will look to improve their team via the NFL Draft this April. Here are six things we learned after the 2020 NFL Combine.

The 2020 NFL Combine is now over and, believe it or not, we have a slightly better idea for Pittsburgh’s plans this April. While the Steelers aren’t going to come right out and tell us who they are interested in, we can look at drafting trends under Mike Tomlin as a way to learn more about the players they like.

Though there is no perfect science to it, we can look at the players Pittsburgh met with at the NFL Combine and make educated guesses as to who they might be interested in this April. Here are six takeaways from the Combine this year:

Tight end may not be high on Pittsburgh’s radar

Tight end has been perhaps the most frequently mocked position to the Steelers in the second round this year. However, Pittsburgh may not have as much interest as the general public. According to Walter Football’s Draft Prospect Visit Tracker, the Steelers met with just one tight end at the Combine this year – Missouri’s Albert Okwuegbunam. This isn’t enough to make us believe they are as sold on a tight end as many would have thought.

Very few running backs fit the thresholds the Steelers look for

Running back is another position that has often been mocked to the Steelers early in the draft this year. While players like Jonathan Taylor and Zack Moss fit the profile of the players Pittsburgh typically drafts (5’10” or taller and 215 pounds or more), there are many running backs this year that fall short of those thresholds.

However, that’s not to say that the Steelers don’t have an interest in some of the bigger backs. They had personal meetings with Cam Akers and Zack Moss at the Combine.

Steelers show a surprising amount of interest in defensive backs

To the surprise of many, Pittsburgh used four of their twelve total Combine visits to meet with defensive backs this past weekend. However, they weren’t just a bunch of late-round prospects either. Two of the cornerbacks the Steelers met with (Jaylon Johnson and Cameron Dantzler) are projected to go on day two of the draft.

Pittsburgh met with just one wide receiver

Despite incredibly poor depth at the position after their top three players, it was remarkable that the Steelers chose to meet with just one wide receiver at the NFL Combine – TCU’s Jalen Reagor. Though he tested poorly in the 3-cone and 20-yard shuttle, Reagor is very unlikely to fall to the Steelers in the second round. Their lack of interest in meeting with receivers makes me think they may not look that direction early in the NFL Draft this April.

The Steelers meet with two edge defenders

It looks like Bud Dupree is going to be handed the franchise tag this year. But even with that security, it didn’t detur the Steelers from meeting with a pair of day two edge rushers in Curtis Weaver and Josh Uche at the NFL Combine. Even if Dupree signs a long-term deal, this is something that could be on their radar.

Gifted group of wide receivers at the Combine

Several positions were thoroughly impressive this year at the Combine, but wide receiver may be the most gifted group of all. Though Pittsburgh will miss out on top talents like CeeDee Lamb, Jerry Jeudy, and Henry Ruggs, there will be plenty of talented receivers on the board in rounds two and three. They may want to take advantage of that.

The NFL Combine doesn’t tell the whole story, and it should never be the sole means of evaluating NFL talent. However, we were able to get a little better feel for which players may be on Pittsburgh’s radar this April.