Pro Days for the 2021 NFL Draft have almost concluded. Just a handful of schools over the next week and they’re smaller programs or ones that don’t have obvious, first-round picks. Places Mike Tomlin and/or Kevin Colbert are unlikely to even attend.
And we know the history regarding their travels and first round draft picks. Since 2010, every single Steelers’ first-round pick has had one of those two key decision-makers in attendance. Assuming that precedent stays true, let’s begin to narrow down Pittsburgh’s options at #24.
Below is a list of all the Pro Days they’ve attended and the likely/possible first round picks who worked out. I’m starting out broad, including slam dunk Top 5/10 guys and borderline, late-first round picks, and then we’ll narrow things down further.
| School | Prospects |
|---|---|
| Clemson | RB Travis Etienne OT/OG Jackson Carman |
| Georgia | CB Eric Stokes CB Tyson Campbell EDGE Azeez Oljuari |
| Florida State | CB Asante Samuel Jr. |
| Alabama | QB Mac Jones RB Najee Harris C Landon Dickerson OT/OG Alex Leatherwood DL Christian Barmore CB Patrick Surtain WR DeVonta Smith |
| Penn State | TE Pat Freiermuth LB Micah Parsons EDGE Jayson Oweh |
| Michigan | OT Jalen Mayfield EDGE/DL Kwity Payne |
| Ohio State | QB Justin Fields OG Wyatt Davis ILB Baron Browning |
| Notre Dame | LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah OT Liam Eichenberg |
So that’s 23 names (I left off Trevor Lawrence because he had a separate workout that Tomlin/Colbert did not attend). Of course, some of those won’t become Steelers. Alabama CB Patrick Surtain will be long gone before the Steelers’ pick is in. And Clemson’s OT/OG Jackson Carman and Penn State TE Pat Freiermuth probably aren’t going in the Top 32. Alabama defensive linemen Christian Barmore is a potential first-round pick but not at a position of need for the Steelers. So let’s break this down to a more likely list.
| School | Prospects |
|---|---|
| Clemson | RB Travis Etienne |
| Georgia | CB Eric Stokes CB Tyson Campbell EDGE Azeez Oljuari |
| Florida State | CB Asante Samuel Jr. |
| Alabama | RB Najee Harris C Landon Dickerson OT/OG Alex Leatherwood |
| Penn State | LB Micah Parsons EDGE Jayson Oweh |
| Michigan | OT Jalen Mayfield |
| Ohio State | OG Wyatt Davis ILB Baron Browning |
| Notre Dame | LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah OT Liam Eichenberg |
So that’s narrowed the list down to 15. You could cut it down even more, chopping off Mayfield and Parsons (he may not be at 24 and if he is, has off-field concerns) but I’m intentionally keeping as big of an umbrella as realistically possible.
If I had to rank the order of who is most likely, I’d put it together a (rough) list of:
1. Najee Harris/RB Alabama
2. Travis Etienne/RB Clemson
3. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah/LB Notre Dame
4. Landon Dickerson/C Alabama
5. Asante Samuel Jr./CB Florida State
6. Alex Leatherwood/OT-OG Alabama
7. Baron Browning/ILB Ohio State
8. Azeez Oljuari/EDGE Georgia
9. Jayson Oweh/EDGE Penn State
10. Eric Stokes/CB Georgia
11. Jalen Mayfield/OT Michigan
12. Micah Parsons/ILB Penn State
13. Liam Eichenberg/OT Notre Dame
14. Tyson Campbell/CB Georgia
15. Wyatt Davis/OG Ohio State
Is it a guarantee the Steelers select a name from this list? Of course not. Nothing is certain. But if history is any indication, and it has been since 2010, this is your list of names to choose from.
