Steelers mock draft: Pittsburgh goes CB first before attacking OL

Round 3:

While many are scrambling to fill the center need early in the draft, the Steelers go another way in this class. More than likely a vested veteran will be signed on the cheap (here is to hoping the Bengals cut B.J. Finney) meaning the Steelers don’t have to reach for a center at 24. After the first wave of centers go, the team would be wise to target a mauler like Trey Hill in the third here.

Hill is the prototypical mauler that the team has missed along the inside in recent years. He plays with an immense amount of power as a run blocker, and his immense size makes it hard for him to get pushed around. His pass blocking isn’t as great, but he isn’t a bad pass blocker either. His biggest issue is with his overall athleticism and some injury concerns. His knees have been worked on already, and that isn’t great news coming from a 330-pound center.

That said, Hill should be a starter sooner rather than later at the NFL level. While he will never ascend into the upper echelon of starters due to his limited athleticism, he should be counted on as a consistent blocker for the majority of his career. He seems like a high floor and low ceiling as a starter, but for a third-round pick the team could do far worse than Hill.