Pittsburgh Steelers fans are already banging the table for general manager Omar Khan to bolster the team's roster before the November 10 NFL trade deadline. In recent days, we witnessed the Seattle Seahawks trade for All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson, while the San Francisco 49ers took advantage of the Colts with a trade for defensive tackle DeForest Buckner.
But one thing the Steelers simply cannot afford to do is follow the Chicago Bears' trade blueprint before the deadline.
On Thursday, the Bears traded for Tennessee Titans All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons. However, to say this trade cost them an arm and a leg is hardly hyperbole. In their deal to secure one of the league's best defensive linemen, the Bears forked out a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 first-round pick, and a 2027 fourth-round pick, while sending a 2028 fifth-rounder to Tennessee.
Talk about a kings ransom.
The Pittsburgh Steelers can't fall into the Chicago Bears' Jeffery Simmons trade trap
Let's get something straight: Simmons is an outstanding football player. The gifted defensive tackle has consistently been one of the best players in the league at his position since his second NFL season in 2020. But it's nearly impossible to justify giving up this type of draft capital for a single defender.
And recent history would concur.
Just before the start of the season last year, the Green Bay Packers surrendered a similar haul of draft picks for Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons. The All-Pro pass rusher was excellent, but he didn't make the Packers' defense elite before his injury.
Parsons suited up from Week 1 to Week 15, and during this span, the Packers' defense ranked ninth in EPA per play, 25th in success rate, sixth in dropback EPA, and 25th in rush EPA, per RBSDM Stats. Meanwhile, Green Bay was 19th last year in DVOA defense, per FTN Fantasy. Ironically, the Packers had a better defense DVOA in 2024, before the Parsons trade.
That's not the only example.
At the 2025 trade deadline, the Indianapolis Colts traded a pair of first-round picks and wide receiver Adonai Mitchell for cornerback Sauce Gardner. Indianapolis was naive enough to believe they were competitors, but one year later, they are selling everything but the kitchen sink before the 2026 trade deadline.
And the jury is still out on the LA Rams' Myles Garrett trade, though, ironically, the Cleveland Browns have the better record right now.
While the Jeffery Simmons trade critics will go away if the Bears make a Super Bowl appearance or a deep playoff push, surrendering multiple first-round picks has proven time and again to be too much for one player.
Yes, the Steelers could give up two first-round picks to get an elite player—maybe a Garrett Wilson or Chris Olave-type who could really help improve their defense. However, this creates an ever-fleeting window, and if the Steelers don't produce results right away, it will ripple for years to come.
And if we're being completely honest with ourselves, the Steelers are more than just one player away from competing for a championship.
If the goal is to get back to winning Super Bowls, Omar Khan and assistant GM Andy Weidl need to keep building their roster the right way—from the ground up by drafting and developing players. With no quarterback of the future in sight, the last thing the Steelers can afford to do is follow the Bears' trade blueprint.
I'm not opposed to Khan improving the Pittsburgh Steelers' roster at the deadline; no one should be. But if it comes at a cost anything close to what we just saw the Chicago Bears give up for Jeffery Simmons, they should be all out.
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