Potential draftees on the Steelers initial draft short list

Paris Johnson, Left Tackle, Ohio State

If the Steelers do make a move for Paris Johnson, it would be one most Steelers fans should embrace. With him on the list, it seems more unlikely the Steelers will target Peter Skoronski. Yet what not to like about Johnson?

According to his combined measurements, He’s 6’6 and 315 lbs and 36 1/8 inch arm length. Since the Steelers have Kenny Pickett, they might as well invest in protecting him while helping the run game become more dominant. Plus, the left tackle position has been an area of concern. It’s not like Dan Moore has had a stellar performance by any means. So the best way to help the offense is to put someone on the offensive line the size of a mountain.

Some of his strengths are he fires off the snap and can get a seal on his blocks. He demonstrates power and nastiness in the run game; he plays with a good wide base and can handle a bull rush. Plus, he has an impressive understanding of stunts and delayed blitzes.

His weaknesses are his lack of experience; he only played the tackle position for one year. He lunges into blocks impacting his balance, ducks his head going in blind, and needs to improve angles as he tends to allow rushers to beat him on the inside, and he is a better run blocker than a pass blocker. His best NFL comparison is Charles Cross, a player many hoped the Steelers would select last year in the first round.

If the Steelers do opt to target Johnson, they may need to trade up. Considering three of the first four picks may be quarterbacks, that means Johnson would probably go between the 5-10th pick. Considering the Steelers have pick 32 in their back pocket, swapping their 17th and 32 could be conceivable to trade up 10 spots could be very doable. Thus if Omar Kahn makes a draft day move, it will possibly be this specific scenario.