While the 2021 draft is still far away, keeping tabs on some potential Steelers picks is vital if the team wants to continue its established success
Mock drafts in general are a futile thing, as projecting what specific players the Steelers will draft is a difficult task. So much goes into the pre-draft process that an arm-chair GM doesn’t experience that goes into deciding who gets drafted. As well, this early on, college football hasn’t been played, underclassmen haven’t declared, and the Steelers haven’t even seen their roster play yet.
All of that said, here is my attempt in futility. Again, the goals of a mock draft this early out isn’t to nail the pick perfectly, it’s more to see what positions the Steelers could potentially be targeting in 2021. As always, the Steelers will have fluctuating needs, and considering how far out we are from the draft, a few things will need to be considered before continuing.
In-house, the Steelers lock up the 30th pick in the draft after losing to the eventual Super Bowl champion Buffalo Bills in the championship game. Ben Roethlisberger is hungry and says that while 2021 may be his last year, he wants another ring. More so, the Steelers retain Cameron Heyward, Zach Banner, and Cameron Sutton on extensions while JuJu Smith-Schuster comes back on the franchise tag. Any other pending free agent ends up signing elsewhere.
As well, the Steelers release Vance McDonald and Vince Williams to free up some cap space. In terms of free agents brought in, the Steelers ink Marlon Mack and John Johnson to deals to add depth to both RB and SS. Finally, the Steelers net 9 picks in the draft, with one pick in rounds 1-3, two picks in the 4th (one is a projected comp pick), two in the 6th (one projected comp), and two in the 7th round.
With all of this assumed, here is my way too early 2021 Steelers mock draft.