Steelers post-combine mock draft: Pittsburgh gets back to their roots

Steelers mock draft round 7: LB Shaka Heyward

It's not realistic to think that a long, athletic off-ball linebacker will be here at this point in the draft, but I do think the Steelers could have a strong interest in Shaka Heyward. The Duke linebacker is the first cousin of Cameron and Connor Heyward, so Pittsburgh might as well make it the trifecta.

Unsurprisingly, Pittsburgh had a formal visit with Heyward at the 2023 NFL Combine where he measured in at 6'3'' and 235 pounds with freakish 34'' arms. While his explosion and agility numbers were below average, Heyward ran an impressive 4.53 in the 40-yard dash.

Still, Heyward isn't considered a safe pick, as NFL Draft experts have him all over the map. Pro Football Focus, for example, has Heyward outside of their top 350 players while other outlets have him as high as the 190 range.

This will be the 237th overall selection for Pittsburgh, so it's not out of the realm of possibility, but if they have their hearts set on this particular linebacker, they would probably need to trade a future late-round pick to move up a bit for him.