Entering the 2024 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers have one need on the roster that is more glaring than others. It’s not wide receiver, offensive tackle or even cornerback. It’s well-known that it’s the center position.
After releasing center Mason Cole in late February after two seasons with the Steelers, Pittsburgh under GM Omar Khan never addressed the position in the offseason, instead continuing to talk up the likes of Nate Herbig and Spencer Anderson as options at center.
But those two can’t be viewed as long-term options at the position, especially when Anderson had just five games at center in college and Herbig has just 49 career snaps at center in the NFL.
So, the attention turns to the 2024 NFL Draft, where the center class is quite remarkable compared to previous years with the likes of Duke’s Graham Barton, Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson and West Virginia’s Zach Frazier headlining the position.
For the Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac, who appeared on the 102.5 WDVE Morning Show with Randy Baumann Tuesday, the Steelers really like Barton out of Duke and really want to get a “top-flight center” in the draft to plug a major hole.
“The one position on the team where there’s no starter is center, and they need a center. And not just any center. They want to get a top-flight center, they want to get a Maurkice Pouncey,” Dulac said, according to audio via 102.5 WDVE. “I’m not sitting there saying they’re going to get a Maurkice Pouncey, but they want to get a guy who’s gonna anchor that line for 10 years. You’re not gonna find him in the third round and keep your fingers crossed that you’re gonna get a Mike Webster, who was a fifth-round pick.
“So that to me, I think that’s all part of it.”
The comments from Dulac aren’t all that surprising.
Barton has really started to gain steam as the potential pick at No. 20 overall for the Steelers, especially after new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith attended Duke Pro Day and the Steelers recently hosted Barton for a pre-draft visit to the Steelers’ South Side facility.
Though he hasn’t played center since his freshman season in 2020, playing 430 snaps, he tested like an elite athlete at the position, which opened some eyes.
There has been debate on whether he is a center, guard or tackle at the next level with his size, experience and athleticism, but according to Dulac, the Steelers view Barton as a center. At 6053 and 313 pounds, Barton certainly has the size to play the tackle position. However, with 32 7/8-inch arms, he’s probably better suited to play inside at guard or center instead of tackle.
So far, he’s fully embraced that move inside in the pre-draft process.
He’s a player whom Dulac believes the Steelers will select, too.
“I think they really like the kid from Duke, Graham Barton. I like him, too, to the point that yeah, he hasn’t played center on a regular basis since I think his freshman year. They like the kid from West Virginia too, but I don’t think the kid from West Virginia, I don’t think anybody thinks he’s a first-round pick,” Dulac said. “When you go back a couple years ago, Tyler Linderbaum was probably a higher-rated center than any of these three guys, and he lasted to number 25 to the Ravens.
“Teams typically don’t take centers in the first round. Of course, we saw the Steelers do it with Maurkice Pouncey, but if they really like him and they think he’s the type of player that merits that great, guess what? They’ll take him.”
Of course, there is some projection there with Barton and the center position since he was injured and couldn’t play the position at the Senior Bowl like he planned on doing. That projection causes some concerns considering the Steelers just tried that conversion a few years ago with Kendrick Green. It failed miserably, but Barton is a better athlete and player than Green.
We’ll find out in just a few days if Barton is a Steeler or not like Dulac believes.
