And you thought mock draft season was over. Night 1 of the 2024 NFL Draft is in the books, the Pittsburgh Steelers made Washington OT Troy Fautanu their newest first-round pick, but things are just getting started. In a Pro Football Focus mock draft focused on the second day of the draft, Rounds 2 and 3, the Pittsburgh Steelers add talent. But not a center.
At No. 51 in the second round, the Steelers grab Michigan WR Roman Wilson. Authors John Kosko and Trevor Sikkema believe Wilson will replace what the team lost in WR Diontae Johnson when he was traded to the Carolina Panthers.
“The Steelers find a replacement for Diontae Johnson. Wilson brings NFL-level speed but also NFL-level determination at the catch point and when blocking.”
Wilson was a popular name in our Steelers Depot mock drafts, and it makes sense for the team to target the position in a receiver-deep draft. Despite trying an NFL record with seven receivers drafted in the first round, the class still offers several Steelers options. Wilson could top that list, breaking out in 2023 with 12 touchdowns despite playing in Michigan’s run-heavy offense. Though not the biggest receiver at 5106, 185 pounds, Wilson is athletic (4.39 40, 4.07 short shuttle, 6.89 three-cone) and an excellent route runner who gets himself open. He also displays good hands, body control, and effort as a blocker, traits on display during an excellent Senior Bowl week.
Wilson’s biggest concern is a lack of size and work predominantly from the slot for a Steelers team that needs help on the outside opposite George Pickens.
If not Wilson, other receiver options include Texas’ AD Mitchell, Georgia’s Ladd McConkey, and Western Kentucky’s Malachi Corley. Mitchell and McConkey could be off the board by the time the Steelers pick but Corley fits as a physical YAC player though he, like Wilson, primarily played in the slot and is a completely unrefined route runner.
In the third round, PFF has the Steelers focus on defense with both selections. LSU DL Maason Smith at No. 84 and Notre Dame CB Cam Hart at No. 98. It views Smith as a natural fit.
“Smith is a physically gifted prospect, but he will need to develop. He has to speed up his play — both in recognition and movements — to be more than a rotational player with plus size.”
Smith suffered a torn ACL in the 2022 opener, missing the rest of the season, and had a quiet 2023 campaign with 4.5 TFL and 2.5 sacks. But he has the frame at 6-5, 300 pounds with 35-inch arms that’s hard to find in the college ranks and brings pedigree from the SEC. LSU is also the only Pro Day DL Coach Karl Dunbar attended.
Hart would follow the mold of CBs Joey Porter Jr. and Cory Trice Jr. as a big and long outside corner.
“Hart brings ideal size to the outside cornerback spot. There are some natural movement concerns that come with a bigger body, but when he anticipates, he can play at a reliable level as a rotational cornerback.”
At the NFL Scouting Combine, Hart measured in at 6030, 202 pounds with 33-inch arms. Athletic to boot, he ran a 4.50 40, jumped 39.5 inches in the vert, and 10’10’ in the broad. But there will be questions about his change of direction, and he has a history of shoulder injuries, suffering at least three of them in college. Still, it’s a logical fit.
PFF’s mock draft, however, doesn’t give the Steelers a slot corner or a center, two pressing needs. Heading into Day 2, Pittsburgh still has two of the top three centers available in Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson and West Virginia’s Zach Frazier. In PFF’s mock, Frazier is first off the board at No. 47 to the New York Giants while Powers-Johnson slides past the Steelers’ second round pick to No. 58, selected by the Green Bay Packers. Georgia’s Sedrick Van Pran-Granger also comes off the board at No. 72 to the New York Jets.
