One quarterback Steelers must avoid in the 2022 NFL Draft

The Pittsburgh Steelers seem likely to select a quarterback early in the 2022 NFL Draft, but here is one prospect they should avoid at all costs. 

The offseason we are entering into has a chance to be one of the most entertaining in Pittsburgh Steelers history. For the first time in 18 years, the team will be looking for its new face of the franchise at the quarterback position, and there are a number of directions Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert could go in 2022.

Recent speculation suggests that the Steelers will draft and replace Ben Roethlisberger through the NFL Draft (much like they have always done under the direction of the Rooney family in Pittsburgh). If this proves to be the case, there are numerous candidates they could have their eye on with the 20th overall pick.

During Senior Bowl week, Pittsburgh’s brass met with several of the top quarterback candidates for the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft, and they are rumored to have a lot of interest in Liberty’s Malik Willis. Sam Howell and Kenny Pickett are two other players who are clearly on their radar.

However, there’s one quarterback the Steelers need to avoid at all costs: Nevada QB Carson Strong.

Steelers must avoid Carson Strong

Many Steelers fans are still riding the Carson Strong hype train, but I never climbed about, to begin with. In many ways,s this reminds me of the infatuation many NFL Draft analysts and football fans had with Florida’s Kyle Trask early in the 2021 pre-draft process.

Like Trask, Strong is a big-bodied quarterback who increased his production each year in college and put up very impressive overall numbers. Both quarterbacks are pocket-passers who operate well in timing but have very limited functional mobility to move within the pocket and escaping to extend the play is just not in the cards for them.

While I do believe that Strong has a better overall arm than Trask coming out last year, his arm talent has been a bit overblown because of the downfield passing attack at Nevada. After watching him on a level playing field with other quarterbacks during Senior Bowl week, I was even less impressed with Strong than I thought I would be, and his arm looked very average compared to the group of QBs on hand.

When you consider the fact that Carson Strong has a concerning knee issue that could affect the longevity of his career, this isn’t even worth messing with. Even on a team with a terrific offensive line, Strong struggles with consistent ball placement and has no ability to make the first defender miss.

Though this draft class doesn’t have an elite quarterback prospect, they do have 3-4 guys with good tools to work with as developmental quarterbacks — quarterbacks who have a much better combination of arm talent, mobility, and overall playmaking ability.

It’s also worth considering that the Steelers had one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL last season. While this isn’t guaranteed to be the case again in 2022, Strong would look awful in Pittsburgh if asked to play anytime soon.

Carson Strong is probably going to get drafted sometime on day two, but as of now, I have a third-round grade on him. I genuinely believe this is a player the Pittsburgh Steelers should avoid at all costs in the 2022 NFL Draft.