The Pittsburgh Steelers have a chance to reshape their future roster, but here is the biggest mistake they could make in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Whether they want to admit they are or not, the Pittsburgh Steelers are in the midst of a transition phase — the biggest one we’ve seen in decades, in fact. Not only are they moving forward with a new quarterback at the helm following Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement, but they will also have a new general manager soon.
Though Pittsburgh doesn’t have a surplus of draft capital to work with, there’s a lot riding on the 2022 NFL Draft, and getting their first pick wrong during this transition period could be catastrophic.
From everything we have seen this offseason, all signs are pointing to the Steelers selecting a quarterback with their top draft choice in 2022. While the door is still cracked open for possibly selecting a player at a different position in the first round (maybe defensive back), their numerous Pro Day meetings, dinner meetings, and in-house visits strongly suggest they will pick a QB.
NFL Draft analysts have varying opinions about who the best quarterbacks are this year, and I’ve seen the top five prospects ordered in every way possible. Over dozens of hours of film study and research, I’ve come to the conclusion that each of the top-five quarterbacks has second-round grades, according to my grading scale.
Because of this, the biggest mistake the Pittsburgh Steelers could make in the 2022 NFL Draft is trading up for a quarterback.
Trading up for a QB would be Steelers biggest mistake
In most years, I wouldn’t have an issue with the Steelers trading up in order to find their franchise quarterback. However, the situation is very different in 2022.
Most draft analysts believe the top quarterback prospects are Liberty’s Malik Willis and Pittsburgh’s Kenny Pickett. Many of them also believe that these two quarterbacks are going to be top-10 picks this year.
My top QB, however, is Ole Miss’ Matt Corral. I think he has the best blend of traits plus upside and he’s already very accurate and precise from the pocket. Based on my grading, if the Steelers traded up into the top-10 picks for a quarterback, they would be doing so for a player who I don’t even have graded as the top prospect this year.
Trading up for Kenny Pickett would be particularly infuriating to me. Pickett is my QB4 this year, and I would hate to spend an additional elite draft capital to get a QB that I believe has limited upside at the next level.
In addition, trading up and packaging multiple first-round picks for one of these quarterbacks would make it much harder for Mike Tomlin and the team to move on from him if he’s not the ‘franchise’ guy. With so many resources tied into a QB, the Steelers may give him his entire rookie contract and then some to prove his worth… even if we can tell that he’s not the answer.
I really would prefer that the Steelers pass on a quarterback altogether this year, but that doesn’t seem likely. In an unspectacular QB class, the biggest mistake Pittsburgh could make is trading up for a QB in the 2022 NFL Draft.