Ian Cummings of Pro Football Network released his latest seven-round mock draft, and the Pittsburgh Steelers moved up from their original first-round selection at No. 20 to No. 17 to select Alabama OT J.C. Latham.
In the mock trade, the Steelers acquired No. 17 and a 2025 sixth-round pick in exchange for No. 20 overall, No. 84 overall and a 2025 fourth-round pick.
Selecting Latham, who played 874 snaps at right tackle in both 2022 and 2023 at Alabama, would allow the Steelers to move Broderick Jones back to his natural left tackle position. Selecting him at No. 17 would also jump the Cincinnati Bengals, who are likely going to be in the market for offensive line help, who are picking at No. 18.
Jonathan Heitritter compared Latham to Tristan Wirfs of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in his scouting report.
“He may not have the same freaky athleticism, but Latham does share plenty of similarities to Tampa Bay Buccaneers OT Tristan Wirfs, who also was a battle-tested right tackle coming out of Iowa who also had a thick, dense frame that was made for plowing big holes in the running game. Like Latham, Wirfs was a capable pass protector for his big body, having the footwork to set the pocket and mirror pass rushers as a steady presence on the offensive line.”
The Steelers went back to the offensive line well in the second round, taking OG Christian Haynes out of UConn. Cummings writes that Pittsburgh would move him to center in this scenario, which would be an incredibly risky proposition as Haynes didn’t take any snaps at center in college. Given that the Steelers already tried to turn a guard into a center with Kendrick Green with limited success, that feels like an unlikely proposition, even if Haynes might be a talented prospect.
With the Steelers trading their third-round pick to Jacksonville in the original trade-up scenario, they didn’t pick again until No. 119, where they selected Oregon CB Khyree Jackson and then selected Wake Forest S Malik Mustapha with their second fourth-round pick right after at No. 120.
Jackson fits the mold for what Pittsburgh has been looking for at cornerback, as he’s listed at 6’3 and 195 pounds. A transfer from Alabama, Jackson had three interceptions for Oregon in 2023 and added five tackles for a loss. A team captain in 2023, Mustapha has less than ideal size as he’s listed at just 5’10, but he is an athletic freak who has solid ball skills.
The Steelers then doubled down at cornerback with the selection of Florida State’s Jarrian Jones, who is coming off a three interception season in 2023 for the Seminoles. He also has 12 career passes defensed. Pittsburgh’s draft was finished off with the selection of WR Devaughn Vele, who had 98 receptions for 1,288 yards and eight touchdowns over the last two seasons, and at 6’4 has good size for Pittsburgh to work with.
It’s an interesting potential scenario, one that addresses their needs along the offensive line by adding a right tackle in Latham and a potential center option. Haynes is a risky pick to transition to center though, and the blow of trading a third is softened just a little bit by having two fourth-round picks. They also hit on an intriguing cornerback with ideal size in Jackson while addressing their need at wide receiver with a late-round project in Vele.
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Steelers double up on cornerback for the second year in a row, especially if they go offensive tackle and center in the first two rounds. Overall, it’s a pretty solid mock and it’s interesting to see how the entire thing could play out in a seven-round scenario.
