The Pittsburgh Steelers revamped their quarterback room this offseason, adding Russell Wilson and Kyle Allen via free agency and Justin Fields via trade. However, they may not be done, as Aditi Kinkhabwala reported the team is doing its homework on quarterbacks, and during a pre-draft press conference today, Omar Khan said he won’t close the door on adding a quarterback.
“If you’re asking me, I don’t think it’s realistic that we’ll be taking a quarterback in Round 1,” Khan said, but added there’s a chance they add beyond the first round.
“There’s some good players there and I wouldn’t close the door on anything, if there’s an opportunity to improve that room, obviously we’ll look at it, but like you said, we have three guys on one-year deals and obviously we have to be open to it,” he said via the team’s YouTube channel.
Quarterbacks coach Tom Arth attended South Alabama’s Pro Day, where quarterback Carter Bradley worked out, and Bradley could be an option for the Steelers later in the draft. There are a number of quarterbacks who could go in the middle rounds as well, with Joe Milton III out of Tennessee, Tulane’s Michael Pratt and Western Kentucky’s Austin Reed also options beyond the top quarterbacks.
Khan also gave a hint to the widely expected idea that the team won’t pick up Justin Fields’ fifth-year option by mentioning that all three quarterbacks are on one-year deals, and with Russell Wilson turning 36 during the season and the team not quite sure if Fields can be the long-term guy, it makes sense to try and potentially find a developmental quarterback who can be a part of the room for the next few years. Even if that means keeping that player on the practice squad or having him compete with Allen for the QB3/emergency quarterback role, if the Steelers like someone enough, it might be worth taking him.
Quarterback doesn’t sound like it’ll be an early-round priority, and with holes at center, cornerback and wide receiver and a need at offensive tackle, the Steelers likely won’t address quarterback before any of those positions. But come the sixth round, it might be an option the team considers to see if it can find someone to develop into an option long-term, even if it’s just in a backup role. The Steelers are going to bring four quarterbacks to camp as they always do, and that fourth quarterback may just come through the draft as a pick instead of another veteran free agent or an undrafted free agent.
