The Pittsburgh Steelers have shown quite a bit of interest in Texas wide receiver Adonai Mitchell during the pre-draft process. From a Pro Day visit from receivers coach Zach Azzanni to hosting Mitchell for a pre-draft visit at their South Side facility in Pittsburgh, the interest has been there in abundance.
At 6022, 205 pounds, Mitchell is considered one of the most talented receivers in a very deep wide receiver class in the 2024 NFL Draft.
After transferring from Georgia to Texas for the 2023 season, Mitchell put it all together, hauling in 55 receptions for 845 yards and 11 touchdowns. He then built on that with a terrific 2024 NFL Scouting Combine, measuring in with 32 3/8-inch arms while clocking a 4.34 in the 40-yard dash.
He later capped a great showing at the Combine with a 39-inch vertical leap and an 11’4″ broad jump, earning a 9.99 Relative Athletic Score from Kent Lee Platte. Mitchell’s Combine testing numbers ranked as the fifth-best ever out of 3,121 wide receivers to test from 1987 to 2024.
Despite the very clear physical traits and the production from the 2023 season, Mitchell has some major concerns surrounding him, at least according to some anonymous scouts who spoke to GoLongTD.com’s Bob McGinn, a former longtime Green Bay Packers beat writer.
In a piece highlighting the top pass catchers in the draft, McGinn has some scouts raising concerns about not only Mitchell’s maturity and coachability, but his health as well.
“He’s got Garrett Wilsonesque catch radius, athletic ability, body control. But he’s almost uncoachable,” one scout said of Mitchell, according to GoLongTD.com.
There is no denying Mitchell’s talent. He’s arguably the most talented player in the class at the receiver position outside of the big three. But he’s very raw overall, and based on McGinn’s reporting, there are character concerns there coming out of both Georgia and Texas regarding the young receiver.
Based on some comments from the anonymous scouts in McGinn’s piece, Mitchell is a Type 1 diabetic who reportedly doesn’t always take care of himself, leading to some changes in attitude and effort.
“Before you even get to the diabetic part, he’s kind of going to do it his way. He’s a little bit of a wild horse. You’ve got to see if you can harness him in. Then, once you do that, he doesn’t address the diabetic stuff in a mature way. He’s very much a boom-or-bust type guy,” one scout said to McGinn regarding Mitchell.
“You’re going to have to assign somebody to be next to him for his first few years because his issues are all about his diabetes and his blood sugar,” a second scout said to McGinn regarding Mitchell. “When his blood sugar’s off, he’s rude, he’s abrasive, he doesn’t pay attention in meetings. It’s why you get really, really shitty character reports coming out of Georgia and Texas.
“But when his stuff is normal, and they get him normal by lunch time, he’s out at practice high energy, best practice player, loves football.”
It’s important to remember that Mitchell is just 21 years old and doesn’t turn 22 until October. There is going to be a little bit of immaturity there. But the struggles with keeping his diabetes in check is a bit concerning when it comes to the talented receiver.
Of course, with a new receivers coach in Azzanni, who appears to be a no-nonsense guy who demands respect and gets the best out of his receivers, that might not be a problem were the pre-draft interest in Mitchell to pay off in his selection by the Steelers.
But after dealing with some maturity and attitude issues in recent years with the likes of Chase Claypool, Diontae Johnson and George Pickens, maybe it would be wise for the Steelers to avoid another potential headache all together, especially on the offensive side of the football. But then again, if they can harness the wild horse that is Mitchell, the Steelers could have an elite-level receiver on their roster yet again.
Mitchell has all the physical traits that the Steelers tend to love in receivers, with good size, physicality, the ability to play above the rim, and great athleticism. But as Steelers Depot’s Efram Geller noted in his scouting report of Mitchell for the site, he’s a bit sloppy as a route runner and needs to clean things up.
The Steelers have a glaring need at the receiver position opposite Pickens after trading Johnson this offseason to the Carolina Panthers. Veterans Van Jefferson and Quez Watkins were brought in via free agency to shore up depth, but the need for that high-end talent remains.
Mitchell has some red flags around him, based on McGinn’s reporting, but red flags haven’t stopped the Steelers from taking chances on talent before.
