The Pittsburgh Steelers have needs all across their roster entering the 2026 offseason. Fans are focused on how Omar Khan and Mike McCarthy are going to fix the wide receiver and cornerback positions while eventually finding a long-term solution at quarterback.
But we can't ignore the conversions potentially going on behind closed doors at the offensive tackle position.
When the Steelers drafted offensive tackles in the first round in back-to-back years in 2023 and 2024, fans hoped that Pittsburgh had its bookend tackles of the future. Sadly, that might not be the case. While Troy Fautanu shows promise as the team's right tackle, starting left tackle Broderick Jones has had a rough go early in his NFL career.
After three seasons, Jones hasn't been able to string more than just a few respectable performances together at a time. To make things much worse, the 14th overall pick in 2023 suffered a season-ending neck injury in 2025. The severity of his injury and what it means for his football future is still unknown to the public.
Now there's an avenue for the Steelers to replace Jones in the most ironic way possible—by spending another first-round pick on a Georgia offensive tackle.
The Pittsburgh Steelers could replace Broderick Jones with Georgia OT Monroe Freeling
With so many pressing needs, offensive tackle hardly feels like the top priority. And for what it's worth, Dylan Cook did a respectable job filling in for Jones late in the 2025 season. But if the Steelers are looking to turn the page on Broderick with a long-term option with excellent upside—and not a 28-year-old with five games of NFL experience—they could do so with fellow Georgia Bulldog, Monroe Freeling.
Listed at 6'6 1/4'' and 315 pounds by Draft Scout, Freeling has a prototype size profile for the offensive tackle position and excellent athletic traits to boot. Freeling declared for the NFL Draft after his junior season, so he doesn't have the biggest body of work, but the traits and upside are undeniable.
In 2025, Freeling earned a PFF pass block grade of 85.7 on the season. His proficiency in pass protection is something new head coach Mike McCarthy will value in an offensive tackle.
What makes this most interesting is that Freeling continues to fly up draft boards. NFL expert Dane Brugler, who recently released his updated top 100 prospects ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft, had Freeling pegged as his 21st overall player in the class. Ironically, the Steelers have the 21st overall selection this year.
Brugler isn't the only one who thinks that way. On Marcus Mosher's early NFL draft expert consensus board—which averages the rankings of the top experts around the league—Freeling is the 23rd overall player. This is right in the range of where the Steelers are slated to make their selection.
For Jones, nothing has gone right during his tenure in Pittsburgh. From getting bounced around from left to right tackle (and back to left again) to struggling with penalties and consistency, it's been a rough go. Now he's dealing with a severe neck injury and is entering a contract year.
Offensive tackle is a sneaky-big need for the Steelers, and replacing Broderick Jones with another Georgia offensive tackle would be the most diabolical move imaginable by Pittsburgh's front office.