Though the Pittsburgh Steelers have changed the “rules” of the game with an active offseason, if their draft history remains the same, it doesn’t appear an LSU wide receiver is on the table in Round 1. In fact, it’s looking like the team won’t draft any receiver with the 20th overall selection.
LSU held its Pro Day Wednesday, a big event with a long list of talented prospects. QB Jayden Daniels headlined the list, as did his top wide receivers, Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. Nabers stole the show, running a 4.35 40, jumping 42 inches in the vertical, and jumping a 10’9″ broad jump.
Mike Tomlin, Omar Khan, Arthur Smith, and WRs Coach Zach Azzanni? They weren’t there to see it. Senior Bowl Director Jim Nagy tweeted a list of the key members attending yesterday’s session. Over 125 NFL personnel attended. But the Steelers’ presence was light.
The NFL owners meetings were wrapping up, but that didn’t prevent six head coaches and six general managers from making the short trip from Orlando to Baton Rouge. Perhaps Tomlin had an obligation with the Competition Committee, of which he’s a member, but it seems their business was taken care of early in the week. But it wouldn’t have prevented Khan and certainly not Azzanni from showing up.
The only major Steelers personnel who attended were Assistant GM Andy Weidl and DL Coach Karl Dunbar, the latter on hand for the Tigers’ trio of draft-eligible defensive linemen, led by Maason Smith. Ike Taylor also attended, working out S Andre Sam’, a later-round candidate who won’t have bearing on the receiver discussion. Weidl’s presence is notable, but he is not one of the team’s final decision-makers.
Those who read the site know the history. It’s the Steelers Depot bumper sticker. Every Pittsburgh first-round pick since at least 2010 has had Mike Tomlin and/or the general manager (Kevin Colbert or Khan) personally attend the prospect’s Pro Day workout. Is that a rule they must follow in 2024? Of course not. But it’s something they clearly value. Until that tradition breaks, I’ll still follow it.
Not sending Azzanni or Arthur Smith is also telling. While the team got to know someone like Thomas at the NFL Scouting Combine, conducting a formal interview with him, it’s still only an 18-minute session. You don’t learn a ton from it. Given that the Steelers had no significant offensive or executive personnel at the Pro Day, it’s hard to believe they’re strongly considering Thomas to be their first-round selection. He’s a talented player full of upside and would not be a bad choice if he was the Steelers’ guy. But the information no longer points in that direction.
Weidl’s attendance doesn’t counter-balance everything else. He did attend Penn State’s Pro Day last year and the Steelers took CB Joey Porter Jr. at the top of the second round. But that still wasn’t the first round, and the team also sent its coordinator (Teryl Austin) and positional coach (Grady Brown) as additional overlap with Tomlin and Khan absent. That wasn’t the case at LSU, pushing the trend away from a guy like Thomas.
Nor is it trending towards any receiver. Though they may dream about Rome Odunze, and there is a glaring need for the position, Day 2 seems far more likely for when the team addresses it. The Steelers’ pre-draft visit list certainly indicates that. So far, we know they’ve brought in three receivers (there could be others, but this is the reported list): Florida’s Ricky Pearsall, Western Kentucky’s Malachi Corley, and South Carolina’s Xavier Legette. All likely to be second- or third-round picks. This follows the Steelers’ operating procedure, drafting a slew of second- and third-round wide receivers since 2000, with just two in the first round.
Steelers’ First-Round Wide Receiver Selections
Plaxico Burress – 2000 (8th overall)
Santonio Holmes – 2006 (25th overall)
Steelers- Second/Third-Round Wide Receiver Selections
Antwaan Randle El – 2002 (second round)
Willie Reid – 2006 (third round)
Limas Sweed – 2008 (second round)
Mike Wallace – 2009 (third round)
Emmanuel Sanders – 2010 (third round)
Markus Wheaton – 2013 (third round)
Sammie Coates – 2015 (third round)
JuJu Smith-Schuster – 2017 (second round)
James Washington – 2018 (second round)
Diontae Johnson – 2019 (third round)
Chase Claypool – 2020 (second round)
George Pickens – 2022 (second round)
Of course, the Steelers have had a larger pool on Day 2 selections than first-rounders. But even on a relative basis, Pittsburgh has drafted a receiver in the first round 8.7 percent of the time (two of 23 selections) since 2000. They’ve one in the second or third 23.5 percent of the time (12 of 51), nearly three times the rate.
Of the pre-draft visits we know about, the first-round candidates are offensive tackles. The team brought in Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga and Georgia’s Amarius Mims. Tomlin and Khan have attended Georgia, Clemson, Michigan, and Alabama Pro Days. Those schools offer first-round offensive tackles (Mims at Georgia, JC Latham at Alabama) and Day 2 receivers (Ladd McConkey at Georgia, Roman Wilson at Michigan).
There are also some Day 1 corners who should be considered like Nate Wiggins, Terrion Arnold, and Kool-Aid McKinstry, but Donte Jackson’s acquisition in the Diontae Johnson deal makes outside corner a little less likely in the first round.
If not receiver and if not corner, where could Pittsburgh go? Offensive line, center or tackle. The team’s lack of commitment to move Broderick Jones over from right to left tackle has been frustrating but tackle very much seems to be in play. If you had to pick one name as the leader in the clubhouse, it’s Mims. He checks all the boxes. But he won’t be the only candidate on our short list once Pro Days wrap up at the end of the month.
Receiver will be addressed. Sooner than later. But expect it on Friday night, not Thursday.
