The Pittsburgh Steelers desperately need a quarterback. Here’s why Todd McShay has them trading up in his most recent NFL mock draft.
If you are part of the fan group hoping the Pittsburgh Steelers wait until the 2023 NFL Draft to get their quarterback, you may be disappointed this April. Most of the draft media would agree that the 2022 class isn’t particularly great when it comes to the quarterback position, but that might not stop Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert from picking their next franchise passer this year.
The Steelers made almost no effort to hide their interests in the quarterbacks on hand during Senior Bowl week. However, there was one player, in particular, they showed a high level of interest in, and NFL insiders were have been quick to point out this connection.
Recently, NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay of ESPN conducted his updated 2022 first-round mock draft. He had the Steelers aggressively going after Liberty quarterback, Malik Willis. Here’s what McShay had to say:
"Kevin Colbert has been with the Steelers for 22 seasons — and has been their GM since 2010 — and saw them draft Ben Roethlisberger in 2004. Now that Roethlisberger is retired and Colbert is stepping down, I think he’ll want to leave the organization in a good place for the future. It already has the defense and a run game, and it was even a playoff team this past season. But the AFC North has some excellent quarterbacks, and the Steelers need an answer under center to keep contending.My top QB, Willis has the strongest arm in the class and can create outside the pocket, making tough off-platform throws look easy. He’s still developing, and he threw 12 interceptions last season, but the Steelers can build the offense around this dynamic passer."
McShay doesn’t believe that Willis is going to make it to the 20th pick, and he thinks the Steelers could be proactive in getting the guy they have their sights set on this year. He has Pittsburgh giving up their second-round pick to move up to pick 17 to make sure they land Willis.
Willis mocked to Steelers is no surprise
If you have been following along closely since the 2021 NFL season ended, Malik Willis being mocked to the Steelers is hardly a surprise. In fact, I believed he’s probably been one of the most mocked players to a single team so far this offseason.
Last year, Najee Harris was highly mocked to Pittsburgh when the team made no effort to hide their interest in him, and it’s looking like there’s a decent chance the same scenario could play out for Willis in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Willis has a remarkable combination of arm talent and mobility — something that very few players in the NFL possess. However, he is miles away from being a day-one starter at the next level and he could really use a season to sit and learn behind a veteran QB.
The Liberty standout had a terrific 2020 season after transferring from Auburn, but he did not live up to lofty expectations in 2021 as he doubled his interceptions and made a lot of poor decisions with the football. NFL teams may also be concerned that he officially measured in at just a hair over 6-feet at the Senior Bowl.
Willis has the tools that are worth gambling on, but it’s going to come down to preference in this year’s draft class. There are plenty of QB-needy teams selecting ahead of Pittsburgh, but they could elect to go with a safer, more polished prospect at the quarterback position.
I don’t think anyone is going to argue that Willis doesn’t have the best traits at the position in this draft class, but he has a lot of refining that needs to happen before he sees an NFL field for a meaningful game. Regardless, there’s no denying that the Steelers have a strong interest in Willis, and I expect him to be heavily mocked to Pittsburgh throughout the offseason.