Despite being the reigning Butkus Award winner and Bednarik Award winner at North Carolina State as the nation’s best linebacker and defender, Payton Wilson plummeted down draft boards due to medical red flags. That plummet stopped at No. 98 overall and the Pittsburgh Steelers Friday night in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Though he has two significant knee injuries in his career and a serious shoulder injury that hampered him in 2022, Wilson put together a dominant 2023 season. That wasn’t enough to keep him high on boards though. In fact, NFL Insider Ian Rapoport reported that 22 teams believe Wilson is a one-contract player.
That ended up being a benefit for the Steelers though, as Pittsburgh pounced at No. 98 overall and landed the intriguing linebacker, adding him to a position group that continues to undergo changes on the roster following the signing of Patrick Queen in free agency this offseason.
For Steelers’ defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, who spoke to reporters Friday night following the selection of Wilson at No. 98 overall, the medical isn’t something he is concerned with, instead leaving that up to the doctors. He focused on the tape and liked what he saw.
“I look at the tape that I see. I let the doctors handle all the medical stuff. My job is to grade the tape as a football player and what I think and how he helps our defense,” Austin said of Wilson, according to video via the Steelers’ YouTube page. “He brings some speed to our defense. He brings some physicality to our defense, the ability to cover guys, and so that’s what I look at.”
That’s certainly a fair stance from Austin. It’s not his job to assess the medicals. His job is to look at the tape, determine if it’s a fit and go from there.
If the doctors sign off on the medicals, then all is good.
That seems to be what happened for the Steelers when it comes to Wilson, which led to him becoming a member of the Black and Gold, joining a linebacker room that features the likes of Queen, Elandon Roberts, Cole Holcomb and Mark Robinson.
In that room, Wilson brings an intriguing skill set, according to Austin. He adds speed to the defense, which shows up on tape. He clocked a 4.43 40-yard dash at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis while adding a 9’11” broad jump and a 34.5-inch vertical, testing as an elite athlete.
He’s a tackling machine, one that racked up sacks at North Carolina State and profiles as that athletic linebacker for the Steelers, one that they have coveted at the position since Ryan Shazier.
