The Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2021 season is over, already eliminated from the postseason after suffering a 42-21 loss at the hands of Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. They just barely made the postseason with a 9-7-1 record and a little help from their friends.
This is an offseason of major change, with the retirement of Ben Roethlisberger, the possible retirement of general manager Kevin Colbert, and the decisions about the futures of many important players to be made, such as Joe Haden, Stephon Tuitt, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and others—some already decided, some not.
Aside from exploring their options at the quarterback position, the top global priority, once again, figures to be addressing the offensive line, which they did not do quite adequately enough a year ago. Dan Moore Jr. looks like he may have a future as a full-time starter, but Kendrick Green was clearly not ready. Chukwuma Okorafor was re-signed, but Trai Turner was not. James Daniels and Mason Cole were added in free agency.
These are the sorts of topics among many others that we have been exploring on a daily basis and will continue to do so. Football has become a year-round pastime and there is always a question to be asked. There is rarely a concrete answer, but this is your venue for exploring the topics we present through all their uncertainty.
Question: What is your reaction to the Steelers’ 2022 NFL Draft class?
As we do every year, it’s time to voice your thoughts on this year’s draft class, which wrapped up yesterday evening. The Steelers made seven selections without making any trades up or down, and slanted heavily to the offensive side.
They used their first-round selection to draft Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett, as you obviously already know. On Day 2, they found him a new wide receiver in George Pickens, adding defensive lineman DeMarvin Leal in the third round.
The final day of the draft saw them start out by doubling up at wide receiver with Calvin Austin III before taking H-back Connor Heyward, linebacker Mike Robinson, and then finishing off with a fourth quarterback on the roster, Chris Oladokun.
Quarterback and wide receiver were arguably the Steelers’ biggest needs in this draft, and they obviously went ahead and addressed both of them substantially. They also furthered their push toward youth along the defensive line, while adding some depth elsewhere.
Omitted was any help for the offensive line or the secondary, though they addressed both positions significantly in free agency, and the team acknowledged after the fact that their moves in the free-agent market did decrease their sense of pressure to address those areas. I would have liked to have seen them pick up a tackle, of course, but you can’t get everything in only seven picks.
I think the Steelers nailed Day 2, and Austin was a great add, as well. I’m looking for Pickett to prove me wrong. As for Heyward, it would have been nice to get him a round later, but the final two rounds are just teams throwing darts at the guys they want to sign as free agents. I do like the player; the only question is how he will be utilized.
