Steelers mock draft: Pittsburgh puts the focus back on the trenches

Steelers mock draft round 7: Keaontay Ingram

Running back, USC, 6’0”, 221 lbs.

This pick is an attempt to prolong Najee Harris’ career. The 381 touch workload he was asked to carry in his rookie season isn’t sustainable. They have to cut down his snap count. The Steelers need a good, dependable backup for Harris like Benny Snell and Kallen Ballage were supposed to be but are not.

Ingram was a 4-star recruit who chose Texas over offers from LSU and USC. That didn’t seem to be the best decision. Instead of being a feature back, Ingram became part of a running back by committee. Then, with the ascent of Bijan Robinson, he decided to transfer to USC. He quickly became the bell cow there and was en route to his first 1000+ yard season before he got sidelined by an upper-body injury.

Ingram has a lot of traits the Steelers like. He’s a physical runner who can drag the pile forward. He has patience and vision in picking his openings. He shows good short-area quickness and change of direction. Due to the way his college career has gone he has low tread wear. Ingram’s a dependable receiver out the backfield and could be lined up in the slot.

While he’s a willing blocker he wasn’t called on much for those duties, so his technique needs some work. In 10 games in 2021, he rushed 156 times for 911 yards at 5.8 yards per carry with 5 TDs. He added 22 receptions for 154 yards for 7.0 yards each.

Ingram had an 87.3 PFF overall grade with a 91.6 grade for his running landing him in 4th place in the nation and above all 2022 prospects except Dameon Pierce and Zach Charbonnet. At the Combine, his 34.5 vertical and 10’-2” broad landed him in 6th place among RBs.