Steelers news: GM speaks on trade-up for Jones, rookie jersey numbers, and more

It's already been a full week since the start of the 2023 NFL Draft, but Pittsburgh Steelers fans are still riding the high of their impressive draft haul this year. The league's top NFL experts couldn't find enough kind things to say about Omar Khan and what he was able to do with his seven draft choices in this first draft as general manager.

Now the real fun begins. As we plunge head-first into the game film and predict the roles of Pittsburgh's rookie class, an NFL GM speaks up on the Steelers trade-up for Broderick Jones and the rookie class chooses their jersey numbers.

Steelers news:

Apparently, NFL executives are well aware of the disdain Patriots general manager and head coach, Bill Belichick, has for the New York Jets. In fact, they believe that this is the reason why the Pittsburgh Steelers were able to trade up three spots in the first round without it costing very much at all.

An NFL general manager laughed at this move, as he believes that Belichick was trying to stick it to the Jets by allowing the Steelers to poach Georgia OT Broderick Jones one pick before they were on the clock. Here's what the anonymous GM had to say to Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post:

"“They should have had to give up a [third-round pick] and not a four to move up there. Belichick did it just to [expletive] the Jets. He sold low because he knew the Steelers were going to take the kid the Jets wanted to take.”"

- Anonymous NFL general manager

A different NFL personnel executive had something similar to say about Belichick's decision to allow Pittsburgh to trade up ahead of New York, per the Washington Post:

"“Bill will try to screw them over any chance he gets. He knew exactly what he was doing.”"

- Anonymous NFL personnel executive

The Jets ultimately went with a player they really liked in Iowa State pass-rusher, Will McDonald, just one selection after the Steelers landed Broderick Jones in the trade-up. Some have suggested that McDonald is the player they wanted all along, but if they were eyeing Jones, they had to have been irritated with this move.

More Steelers news:

In other Steelers news, Pittsburgh's rookie class has officially picked their jersey numbers now that they are members of the team. Here's what each player will be wearing in 2023:

• OT Broderick Jones: #77
• CB Joey Porter Jr.: #24
• DL Keeanu Benton: #95
• TE Darnell Washington: #80
• LB Nick Herbig: #51
• CB Cory Trice Jr.: #27
• OL Spencer Anderson: #74

Broderick Jones will wear number '77' to honor his former Georgia teammate who was killed in a car crash. Ike Taylor initially broke the news on a podcast that Joey Porter Jr. will wear number '24' out of respect for 'Uncle Ike'. Taylor and Joey Porter Sr. played together in Pittsburgh during the 2000s.

NFL news:

Recently, we learned why Ohio State OT Dawand Jones fell all the way to Cleveland in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. According to Albert Breer, Jones's pre-draft process 'went as sideways as possible', and he told teams that his dream is to play in the NBA; not the NFL.

The fact that Jones may not love football is certainly a little concerning (as are questions surrounding his playing weight). Jones was a player the Pittsburgh Steelers were heavily eyeing during the pre-draft process, but he ultimately fell in the draft for these reasons.