Like Cinderella and the glass slipper, each team is going into the NFL draft looking for prospects who fit their roster just right. From style of play to scheme fits, the Steelers have until April 25 to find their perfect match.
According to ESPN’s Matt Bowen, that perfect fit is Jackson Powers-Johnson. In a recent article, Bowen broke down his favorite team fits for the top 20 prospects in the 2024 NFL Draft, pairing Powers-Johnson with the Steelers.
“The Steelers will feature a run-heavy attack with play-action elements under new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith,” Bowen wrote. “That’s a fit for Powers-Johnson, given his strength at the point of attack, instincts at the snap and the toughness he would bring to the middle of the Pittsburgh offensive line.
“Powers-Johnson is quick to identify stunts and close down interior pass-rushing lanes, plus he can combo/climb to create daylight in Smith’s zone run game. He played center, left guard, right guard and right tackle at Oregon, and that versatility will help his value.”
Powers-Johnson profiles as one of the top center prospects in the class along with Duke’s Graham Barton and West Virginia’s Zach Frazier.
As Bowen wrote, he plays with overwhelming strength and a fast get-off, which was on full display at the Senior Bowl. Smith’s zone run-heavy system would certainly profile as a fit for Powers-Johnson, especially given his experience with the zone run game at Oregon.
Outside of the scheme and play-style fit, he’s also at a position of need for Pittsburgh. With Mason Cole out the door and career backup guard Nate Herbig as the team’s only option as the starter, Powers-Johnosn would fill a desperate need for the team.
Notably, Bowen writes that the realistic spot that the Steelers could draft Powers-Johnson would be at 20, their first pick of the draft. Based on a recent report from The Athletic’s Mark Kaboly, the team is not interested in picking a center that early.
“I’ve been told that they don’t want to take a center in the first round,” said Kaboly on 93.7 The Fan. “Now that changes if everything’s gone and that’s still the best guy available there, but they’d much rather get their center in the second round or potentially third round.”
Does that mean Powers-Johnson is off the table for them? Potentially not.
According to ESPN’s Matt Miller, the league may be lower on Powers-Johnson than the consensus media.
“In talking to scouts over the past two weeks, it sounds like teams are not as high on Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson as the media consensus,” Miller wrote. “The feedback I’ve received from teams is that while he might go in the first round, it’s unlikely that he would be selected in the top 25 picks based on where teams are ranking him.”
Based on Miller’s feedback it seems like Powers-Johnson at 20 might be a bit of a reach. Still based on his intangibles and fit, don’t be surprised if the Oregon center somehow finds himself in Black and Gold.
