Let’s mock the 2020 NFL draft: Steelers are on the clock

The Steelers need to round out the 2020 draft by selecting two players who can contribute

I know what you’re probably thinking:  With only one pick in each of the last two rounds of the draft, how can the Steelers assure themselves that the drafted players will become contributors? That’s a great question to which I will proffer this answer:  the Steelers have ‘struck gold’ in both the sixth and seventh rounds of the draft.

We all remember a wide receiver taken in the sixth round of the 2010 draft from Central Michigan who, arguably, became one of the greatest receivers in Steelers history.  We also remember, fondly, a DE from BYU who was taken in the seventh round of the 2002 draft.

Of course, the players about whom I speak are Antonio Brown and Brett Keisel.  Both Brown and Keisel were not only contributors to our efforts but were stalwarts on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, respectively.

So the Steelers can find two players who can and will become contributors if we draft wisely.  I see us possibly following a similar pattern in that we draft a receiver in the sixth round and a defensive lineman in the seventh round.

I also see us drafting an offensive lineman in the sixth round and defensive lineman in the seventh round.  I don’t see us taking a skill position player in either the sixth or the seventh round unless someone falls because of extenuating circumstances.