Buy Or Sell: The 20th overall pick is too early to draft a center for the Steelers.
Explanation: The Steelers once drafted C Maurkice Pouncey with the 18th overall pick. Other centers occasionally go that high as well. There may not be another player at 20 who is better at his position than a center because of that. Still, positional value is important, and center may be better suited for free agency than drafting Jackson Powers-Johnson.
Buy:
We don’t even know that Jackson Powers-Johnson ends up as a first-round draft pick, let alone the Steelers’. Many things will happen in the next month and a half or more that alters draft stocks. The big factor is free agency, and the Steelers like to use it to plug holes.
They have a big hole at center, but this is a good crop of free agents with which to address the position. A free-agent center and a first-round right tackle complete your offensive line better than taking the reverse approach. They already kicked the tires on Mitch Morse, indicating they likely want to continue looking.
Not a lot separates Powers-Johnson from likely second-round picks like Zach Frazier. Their interest in Frazier may even indicate that they recognize the relative value. The Steelers may not have the opportunity to draft Powers-Johnson where they feel most comfortable with his value. I don’t see them trading back this year, even if many want them to.
Sell:
There are few things in the world that people unnecessarily overcomplicate than the NFL Draft. The purpose of the draft is to acquire talent. When you do redraft exercises outside of quarterbacks and specialists, you don’t really care about the position. If you draft a really good center 20th overall, it’s worth it. How many really good centers are there? Fewer than 32, that’s for sure.
It’s certainly plausible that the board could break this year in such a way that Powers-Johnson is the pick that makes the most sense. Obsessing over positional value like it’s a point total you add up to “win” the draft loses the big picture. Get the talented players you need for your roster and leave the rest up to the nerds.
With the Steelers’ 2023 season in the rearview mirror following a disappointing year that came up short in the playoffs once again, it’s time to start asking more questions. Questions about the team’s future in 2024 and beyond. Questions about The Standard.
The rookie class of a year ago was on the whole impressive, but they need to step up into staple starters in 2024. And they likely need a strong influx of talent in both free agency and in the 2024 NFL draft yet again. In addition to a revisitation of the coaching staff.
These sorts of uncertainties are what I will look to address in our Buy or Sell series. In each installment, I will introduce a topic statement and weigh some of the arguments for either buying it (meaning that you agree with it or expect it to be true) or selling it (meaning you disagree with it or expect it to be false).
