Steelers mock draft: Pittsburgh ignores RB and OT until day three

Round 6

One thing to watch this offseason is what the Steelers do along the defensive line, as starting nose tackle Tyson Alualu and top backup defensive end Chris Wormley are pending free agents. The team will want to keep this group fresh and deep, so adding a player like Phidarian Mathis this late makes a lot of sense. He has prototypical size for a defensive end for the team and has good traits to build off of this late in the draft.

While he didn’t produce much on the talented Alabama defensive line until this year, he has shown to be a good run defender. That said, he has obvious flaws as a pass rusher given the fact that he only notched 1.5 sacks while in school. Karl Dunbar has worked well with the defensive line though, so if anyone can get something out of him, this will be the team to do it. At worst, he is a decent rotational piece though that can be relied upon to stop the run.

While it isn’t a foregone conclusion, odds are the Steelers end up losing JuJu Smith-Schuster to free agency this offseason. No matter your opinion on the player, the Steelers will be without a starting slot receiver if he leaves. While he wouldn’t be relied on to start right away, Marquez Stevenson would be a good fit to replace Smith-Schuster. The two players are opposites, but the Steelers could benefit from the speed that Stevenson would bring to the slot.

As well, the team could look to use him on sweeps in order to get the most out of his breakaway speed. Again, he wouldn’t be an instant starter, but he should see time with whomever the Steelers deem as their future slot receiver. While he would need to put on a little bit of weight as a pro, Stevenson could be a decent developmental option. He has the natural traits to succeed, and it would be up to the team to get the most out of him.