Before entering NFL Combine Week, the biggest needs of the Pittsburgh Steelers were easy to figure out. Because of their struggles on offense and their inability to stop the run late in the season. Everyone is pointing at the wide receiver and defensive line positions in Round 1. However, nothing is more important than the quarterback position in the NFL, and, well... the Steelers don't have one.
General manager Omar Khan reiterated Art Rooney II's words when he said the Steelers are aiming to retain either Russell Wilson or Justin Fields. But this is only a short-term fix to a long-term problem. Most expect the Steelers to live in the moment and build a roster to compete for the 2025 season—kicking the can down the road at the QB position for at least one more year.
However, their recent NFL Combine meetings suggest this may not be the case.
One day after it was reported that the Steelers were meeting with Texas quarterback and former number one overall recruit Quinn Ewers, The Sick Podcast reports that Pittsburgh recently met with Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart.
Mississippi QB Jaxson Dart has met with #Steelers and “had a lot of fun making relationships with them”#thesickpodcast pic.twitter.com/uqXrk4buIv
— The Sick Podcast - Steelers Crazy! (@sickpodsteelers) February 28, 2025
"Yeah, the Steelers have been great. Coach [Arthur] Smith, coach [Mike] Tomlin," Dart told the media at the NFL Combine. "I think they are great coaches, elite at what they do. They've had a ton of success everywhere they've been, especially for coach Tomlin to be able to sustain that success is extremely impressive. So I had a lot of fun making a relationship with them."
Pittsburgh Steelers could throw a 'dart' at Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart in the NFL Draft
While it still feels more likely than not that the Pittsburgh Steelers will wait until Day 3 of the 2025 NFL Draft to select a quarterback, Jaxson Dart is one QB who could potentially change their mind. At 6'2'' and 226 pounds with excellent college production in the SEC and plus tools, Dart checks nearly every box the team looks for at the position.
However, there have been whispers that Dart could fly up draft boards as we near the NFL Draft, and some prominent draft experts have even slotted the Ole Miss quarterback late in the first round.
When it's all said and done, Dart feels more likely to be a Day 2 draft choice. Sadly, history tells us that selecting a quarterback in the second and third rounds is a poor investment. Based on my study on quarterbacks taken on Day 2 over the past decade, only one (Jalen Hurts) developed into a franchise quarterback.
The next-best names on the list were players like Jacoby Brissett and Mason Rudolph (which is a testament to how many misses there have been at QB on Day 2.
The Steelers are unlikely to find their future franchise quarterback in the 2025 draft, but that may not stop Omar Khan and company from trying. This team is desperate to find their future QB, and Jaxson Dart at least has the tools and upside to gamble on in the NFL Draft this year.