Although the Pittsburgh Steelers are saying they are committed to QB Kenny Pickett, if general manager Omar Khan has the chance to upgrade at quarterback without giving up much he should take it. This year’s quarterback class is looked at very highly and if a quarterback drops to Pittsburgh pick 20, Khan should strongly consider it.
One quarterback whose draft stock is all over the place is Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy, and CBS Sports writer Jordan Dajani believes he would be a great fit for Pittsburgh, ranking the Steelers as the third best fit for McCarthy.
“The hiring of Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator makes me think McCarthy could be a good fit in Pittsburgh,” wrote Dajani. “Some view Smith as an offensive coach who couldn’t get the most out of his top weapons in Atlanta, but what we do know about Smith is that he can build a legitimate rushing attack…McCarthy benefitted from a good defense and a rushing attack — which Pittsburgh will surely have with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren. Getting to throw the ball to playmakers like George Pickens, Diontae Johnson and Pat Freiermuth would be fun, too.”
At Michigan, McCarthy was sheltered a bit due to the Wolverines great rushing attack. This led McCarthy to not have to be Superman and take a backseat to Michigan’s ground game. In fact, in a game against Penn State this past season McCarthy thew only eight passes as the Wolverines won 24-15.
This doesn’t mean McCarthy can’t throw the ball though. He ended his junior season throwing for 2,991 yards 22 touchdowns and only four interceptions as he led Michigan to a National Championship victory. Despite not throwing the ball a ton this past season, McCarthy still averaged nine yards per attempt and had a quarterback rating of 167.4.
Given McCarthy’s success in a run first offense, he would fit well with Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith whose offense is run first. McCarthy has proven he can be wildly successful in this type of offense and has proven to be a a threat in the run game as well which makes life difficult for defenses. Last season McCarthy ran for 202 yards and scoring three rushing touchdowns.
The big question is if McCarthy will even drop to pick 20. Quarterbacks are a hot commodity and even though there are question marks around McCarthy given he mostly took a back seat to Michigan’s run game teams are willing to take chances on quarterbacks given their importance. If he does drop to 20, Khan and head coach Mike Tomlin will have to give a long hard look at McCarthy and seriously consider him.
