Have you heard that the Pittsburgh Steelers are interested in drafting a quarterback later this month? I believe I may have seen that written somewhat on the internet. Sounds plausible, when you think about it. The team has merely heavily scouted all of the major quarterback prospects, dined with them before their Pro Days, and brought them to Pittsburgh for pre-draft visits. Their head coach also said they’re targeting a quarterback.
But which quarterback will they end up taking? It’s partly based on how strong they feel the class is. If there is only one quarterback they really see as having the potential to be the future of their organization, then they could be aggressive in trying to acquire him.
Alternatively, if they see a group of potential franchise quarterbacks, they could be much more willing to stand pat and let the board come to them. If so, then that opens things up for some other names to come into the picture.
Matt Miller of ESPN believes that the Steelers and the New Orleans Saints are the two teams to watch as options to draft Bearcats quarterback Desmond Ridder, for example, noting that in an Insider article that was posted late last week.
Ridder hasn’t spent a lot of time in people’s top three quarterbacks lists, though lately there has been an increased buzz about him. I’ve even seen mock drafts from serious draft analysts having him go inside the top 10, to the Atlanta Falcons, for example.
As always, it only takes one team to fall in love with a player in order for that player to be drafted higher than expected. But I believe that the majority of analysis agrees that Malik Willis, Kenny Pickett, and Sam Howell are the three quarterbacks most likely to be taken first.
As I’ve stated previously, I don’t consider myself a big believer in Ridder, because I see specific weaknesses in his situational performances that I don’t trust to count on improving once he gets to the next level and receives NFL coaching. So I wouldn’t be particularly ecstatic if the Steelers draft him 1st or 53rd.
It wouldn’t shock me, though, if the Steelers happen to like him enough to draft him. I think he does have the general qualities that they have talked about looking for in a quarterback for the past couple of years, at least.
