If the Pittsburgh Steelers have taught us something over the years when it comes to scouting, it's that their brass needs to show interest in their pro day in order to have a shot at being selected in the first round. This is a trend that has held true for over a decade, and with Mike Tomlin still heavily involved in the scouting process, we can't assume it will suddenly end with heads in the front office.
Unfortunately, this means that some prospects that fans really like will no longer be on the table with the 17th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. Here are four first-round prospects that the Pittsburgh Steelers have not expressed enough interest to draft in round one.
4. Christian Gonzalez, CB, Oregon
This first name on the list is really a moot point, but it's still worth mentioning. Christian Gonzalez has been my favorite cornerback in the 2023 draft class since before the college season ended. At over 6'1'' and nearly 200 pounds, Gonzalez has phenomenal movement skills and mirror ability at the CB position.
Gonzalez isn't a thumper in run defense, but he's well-rounded and is the best pure cover cornerback in the draft. Because of this, he's expected to go multiple spots ahead of the Steelers at pick 17. While landing Gonzalez has always been unlikely, a lack of homework on him doesn't help.
If Gonzalez happened to slip, it doesn't look like the Steelers would be interested as Pittsburgh only sent a scouting assistant out to see him. It's worth mentioning that Mike Tomlin and Omar Khan were at Clemson while this was going on. This never stood much of a shot, to begin with, but we can completely scratch his name off the list as even a longshot first-round option.