The Steelers found their franchise quarterback at pick 20, but these five players would have been better picks for the team.
In a relatively surprising move, the Steelers had their pick of the quarterback class as no one went before their selection. It was shocking when Kenny Pickett got the nod, as his hype seemed to have cooled over the pre-draft season.
While he makes some sense here, there were other options that the team could have gone with instead. With so much talent still on the board, here are the five players that the Steelers should have selected instead of Pickett.
Steelers missed out on Cine
A player that made a lot of sense for the Steelers given their interest in the Georgia pro day as well as their long-term need at safety, Lewis Cine was a capable player who could have developed this season behind Terrell Edmunds.
Cine has all of the traits you want in a capable strong safety. Add in his coverage and hard-hitting nature and adding him would have been a strong move.
While a quarterback is obviously a more valuable position, Pickett has some limitations in terms of what he can become. Cine, on the other hand, needs to develop a bit, but he can eventually develop into a top safety. He has a high ceiling and could have made this defense elite. Cine paired with Minkah Fitzpatrick would have been a strong pairing for a solid secondary going forward.
Steelers missed out on Lloyd
A dark horse candidate given the disappointing play of Devin Bush, Devin Lloyd has everything you want in a linebacker. He has great size, good speed, and can serve as an effective coverage and run stopper. Lloyd was one of the most dynamic defenders in college football last season as he was flying around Utah’s defense making plays.
What really makes his game a lot of fun to watch is that he excels at covering players. Similar to a Fred Warner, Lloyd is great at dropping into zone coverage or following tight ends in man coverage. He can also blitz well, making him a versatile three-down linebacker in the pros. A defense can use him in a variety of ways and odds are he will be an impact playmaker from day one.
The Steelers don’t have an immediate need at linebacker right now, but with their starting two options essentially on one-year deals, having Lloyd would have made a lot of sense. Grabbing a quarterback for the defense instead of a mediocre quarterback on offense would have been a far better use of their resources.
Steelers missed out on Hill
Another secondary member that would have made a lot of sense, Daxton Hill is the definition of a chess piece for a defense. While not the biggest defensive back, he hits hard and excels in coverage situations. He doesn’t do a great job of playing in the box, but the versatility he brings on deep passing plays and the ability to cover the slot would have been a boost for this defense.
With Edmunds back this season, Hill would have likely been the third safety for the team his rookie season and could have covered the slot in certain situations. Long-term, he would likely slide in as an interchangeable safety partner to Fitzpatrick. He has Tyrann Mathieu vibes due to this versatility, and it was something this defense was lacking all of last season.
Again, I’m not trying to devalue a quarterback, as it is the most important position on the field by a wide margin. That said, Hill has the potential to fill a variety of roles along this defense and based on his coverage skills, excel at filling those areas. He is a perfect fit for a modern defense that needs to be able to switch up attacks at any moment. This defense really could have used him.
Steelers missed out on Booth
Andrew Booth has for the longest time been the forgotten cornerback in this draft class. While his game lacks the flash of some of the top picks in this class, he has the prototypical size and ball skills to be a great starter in this league. With the team all over Clemson’s pro day, odds are they were there to see him.
While the Steelers don’t have an immediate need for a cornerback, they are also lacking some star power in their defensive back depth chart. Ahkello Witherspoon and Levi Wallace are fine starters, but both are on short-term deals and neither have ever been truly elite starters to this point. Booth could have rotated in year one and he has the chance to be a game-changer at some point in his career.
One could argue that in this league having some capable cornerbacks to stop a pass-happy offense is needed. The Steelers will likely be fine for now with the crew they have assembled but let’s not kid ourselves. Booths has the makings of a star cornerback in this league and adding him would have helped shore up an average secondary.
Steelers missed out on Willis
Though there was no clear top quarterback in this draft class, most seemed to fall into two categories of thought. Pickett was the safe pro-ready option whose ceiling wasn’t immense but should develop into an average starter. Malik Willis, on the other hand, was the boom-or-bust prospect with a high ceiling but would need a lot of work in the pros to reach his potential ceiling.
With Mitch Trubisky locked into starting due to his contract, the Steelers had time to let a quarterback develop some. They won’t need Pickett to play this year by any means, but with him already pro-ready his development likely won’t be that huge. The team had time on their side when picking a quarterback, and it just seems like an oversight to have taken Pickett.
To be clear, both of these quarterbacks have their flaws and issues. Willis has a floor well below Pickett, but he has the traits to become an elite player in time if he were developed properly. The same can’t be said about Pickett in my opinion. The team opted for the safer playing with the far worse ceiling. I think it’s a move they will regret down the road.
The Steelers seemingly found their guy in Pickett in this draft. While he has some decent traits, there were better names and fits for this team on the board. While it wasn’t a disaster by any means, the team would have been better off selecting one of these five players instead.