The Steelers Are Poised To Draft An Inside Linebacker – Here’s Why

The Pittsburgh Steelers are going to draft an inside linebacker. When and who, I can’t tell you. But based on history, inside linebackers coach Aaron Curry is going to have a rookie to work with this season. Curry has been a busy man during this Pro Day circuit, attending three Pro Days to scout inside linebackers. We spotted him at Ohio State for Tommy Eichenberg and Steele Chambers, Kentucky for Trevin Wallace, and North Carolina for Cedric Gray.

While this point is partially obvious, there is a strong correlation between Steelers’ positional coaches attending Pro Days and who the team drafts. The more time a coach takes to check out schools, the more likely Pittsburgh is to draft. Otherwise, it’s sort of a waste of time.

We can quantify it, too. We’ve been tracking Steelers’ Pro Day movements since 2017, getting better and more comprehensive each year, and that data can tell us plenty. Full disclosure, these lists shouldn’t be considered 100 percent complete, but I like to think we do as good a job as anyone spotting where Pittsburgh is putting their team.

Below is a list of all Steelers’ positional coaches from 2017 to 2023 (excluding the 2020 COVID year that shut down Pro Days barely one week in) who attended at least three Pro Days during that draft year — just as Curry has done in 2024. Listed next to each name is the number of schools they showed up at and if the team used a draft pick at that position. We also list the round. In total, we identified 15 coaches who fit that criteria.

The results? Of the 15 instances we can verify, 13 coaches got a drafted rookie at their position group. That’s 86.7 percent, a strong number. The only two exceptions came in 2022 with DB Coach Grady Brown and 2018 with ILB Coach Jerry Olsavsky.

Of the 13 who saw a new draft pick appear in their room, 10 of them get it within the first two days. But only three came in the first round, going back to the model of Mike Tomlin/general manager telling us where they go in the first round while the positional coaches are Day Two indicators. That same story played out in Omar Khan’s first year with Grady Brown at Penn State for Joey Porter Jr.

Also of note: There were six occasions in which a positional coach attended at least four Pro Days. And in five of those instances, the team drafted two players from their group, typically a first or second round pick and a sixth or seventh round selection.

History says the Steelers will use a pick on an inside linebacker. Based on the data and understanding team needs (we aren’t beholden to the numbers), a pick in the third or fourth round makes sense. And it aligns with where players like Eichenberg and Gray are projected to be drafted.

For 2024, what other coaches does this apply to? OL Coach Pat Meyer has attended three workouts, Oregon State, Oregon and Washington. He’s been racking up the frequent flier miles out west. Based on our information so far, those are the two who check that box. We’ll see if anything else gets added before the draft (and handling the Big 12 Pro Day puts us in some unchartered territory).

Obviously, the draft guarantees nothing. It’s fluid, making it unpredictable. But the tea leaves are clear. Even though the team signed Patrick Queen with Elandon Roberts, Cole Holcomb (whose injury recovery is unclear) and Mark Robinson returning, the Steelers are likely to round out their depth with another inside linebacker before April’s draft is finished.