There's nothing like getting a curveball pitched to us just when we least expected it. Heading into the weekend, we thought the Pittsburgh Steelers had finalized all of their 2023 pre-draft visits. A total of 32 names (that included two local players who don't count toward 30-visits) either met with or were scheduled to meet with Pittsburgh's brass.
Surprisingly, the past two days have come with some unforeseen shakeups, and fans are loving it. On Monday, the Steelers brought in Georgia OT Broderick Jones and Clemson DT Bryan Bresee for pre-draft visits. Just one day later, Pittsburgh followed this up with in-house visits of three more players.
ESPN's Brooke Pryor confirms that the Steelers met with QB Clayton Tune, OT Darnell Wright, and TE Darnell Washington on Tuesday.
Steelers hosted a quarterback among their pre-draft visitors today as the visits wind down.
— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) April 18, 2023
Three total: Houston QB Clayton Tune, Tennessee OT Darnell Wright and Georgia TE Darnell Washington
Of the three names listed, Tune was the only player they were expected to meet with. However, fans are loving the interest in Wright and Washington.
Steelers would love to have Wright and Washington
These are two players that fans will fall in love with. If the name of the game is bullying the guys in front of you, there might not be a better one-two pairing than Wright in Washington at pick 17 and pick 32, respectively.
Both players are about as powerful as they come at their respective positions. Darnell Wright, who was the right tackle at Tennessee, took a massive leap forward in 2022. His tape was outstanding and he had a remarkable game against Alabama's Will Anderson.
Meanwhile, Darnell Washington is a road-grading 'Y' tight end. The Georgia product has unmatched strength and catch radius at the tight end position. Though he wasn't extremely productive in college, he projects as a high-floor prospect due to his outstanding blocking with a very high ceiling if he can develop as a passer.
These two visits already have the Steelers fan base roaring with excitement on Twitter. Both are players that would prove to help an offense that averaged 18.1 points per game in 2022, and we know that Kenny Pickett could use all the help he can get.
Additionally, you could expect a vast improvement in efficiency on the ground next year if the Steelers were to go from Chukwuma Okrafor and Zach Gentry to Darnell Wright and Darnell Washington. If Washington was paired with Pat Freiermuth at tight end, Pittsburgh would never want to play anything but '12' personnel.
Obviously, we don't know if either one of these players will ultimately become a selection by the Pittsburgh Steelers on draft day, but their recent pre-draft visits suggest that the team is at least very interested in adding them to their roster. We will soon see how things unfold.