The Steelers would have been more successful if they decided to take these players in the draft rather than their original selections.
The Steelers are one of the most consistent franchises in the NFL. They have been able to stay competitive for the most part since the dynasty began in the 1970s. There were some dark times in the 80s, but the team did compete. They finally became Super Bowl contenders again throughout the 90s, 2000s, and 2010s.
The draft is where this team has built its team and developed through time. Adding players through this part of the offseason is the preferred method by this franchise. It has been a common denominator that leads to the results made on the football field.
No matter how good a draft class is, there might be some players that continue to separate themselves from the pack. These Hall of Fame prospects could be huge misses if your team decides to go in another direction. Those misses have happened for the black and gold and will happen again in the future.
These draft options that the team passed over are tough to look back on. It will always lead to people wondering what would happen if this certain player got to play for this team? That answer will never be answered, but it is hard to stomach some players that Pittsburgh did select over them.
Many will remember some other draft takes that could have landed on this list. There have been many misses, especially in the later rounds of the draft. This team is mostly successful throughout the draft process, but they are not impervious to mistakes.
Steelers pass on George Kittle for Josh Dobbs in the 2017 NFL Draft
George Kittle has become one of the top tight ends in the NFL since entering the league out of Iowa. The Steelers needed answers at tight end during the 2017 NFL Draft, despite having some veterans on the club. There was no real number one option for the offense to deploy.
Kittle was not expected to become what he is now, but looking back on things, this was a miss. The team could have used their fourth-round selection (number 135 overall) on this Iowa product but decided to go in another direction. It would have cemented the position for years to come, despite it taking away the possibility of Pat Freiermuth being a possibility in the 2021 draft.
There could have been a world where the club decided to get this player and maybe he does not work out as well in Pittsburgh. He is now a top-five tight end in the NFL and has been consistent in his production when he is healthy. Now you may have forgotten who the team selected with the 135th pick in 2017, lets’s remind you.
Josh Dobbs was the fourth-round selection in 2017 with the expectation to come in and compete for the backup spot behind Ben Roethlisberger. He did not do much in the NFL to this point besides starting a couple of quarters in a game. Dobbs has not amounted to the level of player that Kittle did, and this was a big miss by the team.
Steelers pass on Joe Montana twice in the 1979 NFL Draft
It is tough to imagine Joe Montana in anything other than a San Francisco 49ers jersey, despite him playing for the Kansas City Chiefs for a little. He had such a storied career and many thought of him as the greatest until Tom Brady showed up. He led the 49ers to one of the best dynasties that the NFL has ever seen during the 80s and early 90s.
Some might not know but Montana grew up in the Pittsburgh area. He graduated high school at Ringgold before moving on to Notre Dame for his college career. The Steelers did not really imagine needing a quarterback in 1979, but Terry Bradshaw was getting older and was about to retire in four years.
The team just came off a Super Bowl win and was ready to go on another run. They were not thinking about the next signal-caller for the Black and Gold’s offense. They passed on Montana twice before he was selected with the last pick in the third round.
Getting someone like Montana and allowing him to sit behind Bradshaw until he retired would have been amazing. Handing the baton from one Hall of Fame quarterback to another would have been special. That would have led to a much more successful decade of football in the 80s than what reality actually brought the team.
Steelers chose Artie burns over Xavien Howard in the 2016 NFL Draft
Heading into the 2016 NFL Draft, the Steelers really liked William Jackson III. That was their target at cornerback, but the Cincinnati Bengals selected him one pick before they got a chance to. They seemed to scramble at that time and picked Artie Burns with their first-round selection.
Many were shocked by this as Burns did not have a first-round grade on this corner coming out of Miami. He was seen as raw and someone that could have turned into something with time. That never panned out and Burns is regarded as one of the biggest busts in the recent history of the Steelers.
The toughest part about this was the team reached for a need and still did not get any clarity on the cornerback spot. They could have reached for another player in that draft class and got a turnover machine. Xavien Howard was not selected until the second round but should have been in consideration for the Steelers rather than Burns.
Howard has been one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL since he was drafted by the Dolphins in 2016. The number of interceptions and turnovers that he causes against opposing offenses is something special. This was a bad draft for Pittsburgh, not just Burns, but most of this class didn’t pan out.
Steelers pass up on Tom Brady five times in the 2000 NFL Draft
Tom Brady in a Steelers uniform is something that might seem revolting for some fans, but it could have happened. The early 2000s before Ben Roethlisberger were unsteady times as the quarterback play was continuously up and down. The team was still contenders and seemed just a little further away from taking the next step.
Most people know that Brady went in the sixth round to the New England Patriots and the rest is history. Pittsburgh could have changed their entire makeup of the franchise and got Brady before the Patriots did. That would have propelled the Black and Gold to at least a couple of Super Bowls and perhaps a dynasty like New England just accomplished.
The Steelers needed to add a quarterback to their roster in 2000 and they did that in the fifth round. They could have chosen Brady, but they went with Tee Martin out of Tennessee instead. Martin did not last long in the NFL, only sticking around until 2004. Martin is currently a coach for the Baltimore Ravens.
Many should wonder, what if? This scenario could have been a huge success for the franchise. They could have gotten the best quarterback to ever play in the league and win a couple more Super Bowls. Fans despise this player, but they would have loved him if he were selected over Martin in 2000.
Steelers chose Gabe Rivera instead of Dan Marino in the 1983 NFL Draft
This is considered the biggest draft blunder in franchise history for the Steelers. It was 1983 and the team needed a new quarterback after Terry Bradshaw retired. They selected Mark Malone in the first round of the 1980 draft and seemed primed to give him every opportunity to start at quarterback.
Although Malone was not the full-time starter, he got a lot of starts since Bradshaw was injured throughout his final seasons of play. He did not do well during those starts and should have been considered a backup. A search for another successor is something that Chuck Noll and the team should have been desperately looking for.
Dan Marino was a local guy that many fans loved for years. He played at Central Catholic before creating a great program with the Pitt Panthers. Many expected him to go in the first round, especially to the Steelers if he was still available.
The draft came around in 1983 and Marino was still sitting there when the Black and Gold selected. It was a shocker that the team passed on him and chose Gabe Rivera instead. Marino would go on to have a Hall of Fame career with the Miami Dolphins, while Rivera would have a tragic car accident and cut his professional career short. Many still wonder what Marino could have done with the Steelers, perhaps they would have another Super Bowl or two.
The Steelers have been one of the most successful franchises in recent history, but they made some mistakes. These draft decisions altered how much more winning they could’ve done.