Are the Steelers top-3 NFL Draft options all quarterbacks?

Steelers No. 3 option: QB Sam Howell

If both Willis and Pickett are off the board when pick 20 rolls around (which seems like a very strong probability), I can see a very real scenario in which Sam Howell becomes the player to take in the first round for the Steelers. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised to later learn that he was a guy they were higher on than most all along.

Whether you are a fan of Howell or not, there’s no denying that he checks nearly every box the Steelers look for in a first-round pick. He’s an uber-productive underclassman with good traits and athletic skills. Howell was one of the better QB prospects to come out of high school in recent years, and for two years straight, NFL Draft analysts talked about him as a possible first overall pick in the draft.

After a down year as a junior in 2021, that clearly isn’t going to happen, but he could find himself in the back half of the first round on draft day. Remember, nobody thought Terrell Edmunds was going to be on Pittsburgh’s draft radar as early as he was, but he was a box-checker — just like Howell. I think it’s entirely possible that Howell could be the next player in line if Willis and Pickett are off the board.

I certainly don’t want the Pittsburgh Steelers to lock themselves into drafting a quarterback in 2022, but this would hardly be the first time they have done something like this. I think Colbert would like to go out with a bang, and we know that QB is very likely to be the first pick in the NFL Draft.