Oregon C Jackson Powers-Johnson has garnered a lot of attention from those who cover the Pittsburgh Steelers. The dots are easy to connect, beginning with the fact that they don’t have a starting center, sans Mason Cole. Steelers coaches saw him up close both at the Senior Bowl and the NFL Scouting Combine.
As we trudge on nearer to the 2024 NFL Draft, Powers-Johnson is beginning to feel like “that” Steelers pick. We’ve had them before. Cameron Heyward. Najee Harris. James Conner. Maurkice Pouncey. Less successfully, Jarvis Jones. These players landing in Pittsburgh surprised nobody.
Add Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to the list of those who sound as though they expect it. Or at least, strongly believe it’s as likely an outcome as any. He alluded to it several times throughout his latest chat session.
“I haven’t ruled out the first pick being an OL, maybe and perhaps most likely even a center”, he wrote at one point asked about the possibility of the Steelers using each of their first two picks on linemen. Later asked who he sees the Steelers drafting in the first round, he wrote, “Center”, while also allowing for a skill player.
Later on, one reader questioned the value of using a first-round pick on a center, over a higher-priority position. He responded that there “aren’t that many” stud centers, such as Powers-Johnson, adding, “if there’s a really good one in the draft, and there is, get him”.
Let’s be honest. That sounds like the Steelers. You can slap Mike Tomlin or Omar Khan’s name on that quote and pass the smell test. After all, Tomlin has drafted two running backs and a center in the first round before.
Oh, and it’s not just about the center position generally. It’s about Jackson Powers-Johnson. When asked in which direction things are pointing at the position, he said it’s pointing toward Oregon. In other words, to Powers-Johnson, the Oregon alumnus.
Some question if he possesses the athletic profile the Steelers historically value at center. But they also value athleticism at guard and Isaac Seumalo doesn’t fit that mold. Cole certainly tricked nobody into believing he was Dermontti Dawson.
I tend to agree with the idea that the Steelers drafting Powers-Johnson with the 20th-overall pick is extremely plausible. If he is on the board when they are on the clock, I don’t know how many other players are higher on their board at that time relative to need.
That said, he’s far from the only first-round option nor the only center option. They can find talented centers in the second and third rounds as well, possibly even the fourth. Powers-Johnson may even fall out of the first round for all we know. Draft conversations lay on shifting sands at this time of year. What felt obvious in January or February could sound absurd by late April. Remember really early mock drafts with Thaddeus Moss in the first round? Things take time to crystalize, and there’s still time this offseason.
