On the heels of the 2024 NFL Draft, another draft with several value picks for the Pittsburgh Steelers, I was left with a question. How did their perceived “steals” (getting players later than many expected) stack up to the rest of the NFL?
The goal of this article was to come up with a number I’ll call “pick value.” I used the average of Steelers Depot draft grades, NFL Mock Draft Database’s Big Board, with personal grades breaking any ties. Then I took each player’s actual pick number and subtracted his ranking to get the pick value number.
The final result I will present is the average of each team’s entire draft class. This won’t credit excellent players who were selected where they were expected to be drafted, for example Caleb Williams at first overall, but hopefully I’ve made the goal of this view clear. Here are the results:
Right away, these measures give a sense of the great value the Pittsburgh Steelers acquired in the 2024 draft, ranking third best among their peers. The team has made a habit of selecting this way, ranking fourth in my 2023 pick value article.
The strongest pick value for Pittsburgh was North Carolina State linebacker Payton Wilson, who received an 8.2 Steelers Depot draft grade, and was selected 98th at the end of the third round. Injury concerns bumped him down, but our Melanie Friedlander provided comfort moving forward in her recent entrance physical study on him. The talent is immense, with Mock Draft Database (and others) projecting him to go much earlier.
Second-best for the Steelers was Michigan wide receiver Roman Wilson, with an 8.1 Steelers Depot draft grade, and also available later than expected in the third round at 84th overall. Both Wilsons were projected to go in the second-round range, re-emphasizing the goal of this article, and giving comparative context around the league.
There were two other Steelers picks with positive numbers, but to a lesser extent. The third-best pick value was Iowa defensive lineman Logan Lee, one of the team’s two sixth-round selections, at pick 178. He had a 6.0 Steelers Depot draft grade, with our Tom Mead nailing the projected round on him in the linked report, compared to Mock Draft Database expecting him to last late into the seventh round.
The final positive pick value number came in the second round, with the selection of West Virginia center Zach Frazier at 51 overall. He had an 8.1 Steelers Depot draft grade, with our team and mock drafts expecting him to go early second round as the pre-draft process unfolded. The Steelers were admirably patient in the 2024 draft, particularly considering the huge need at center. Luckily the board was kind to them in the second round and throughout the draft.
First-round selection and Washington offensive tackle Troy Fautanu landed right at expectation in the pick value measures at 20th overall, though many (including Pittsburgh) were surprised he was available where the Steelers happily got him. He had an 8.5 Steelers Depot draft grade, and also refreshing was their commitment to replenishing the offensive line.
And they weren’t done, selecting another trench player on offense in South Dakota State guard Mason McCormick. He is the first of two with negative pick value numbers, but just six picks off using these metrics. He had a 7.2 Steelers Depot draft grade, and our Joe Clark nailed the round projection.
The lowest pick value was the Steelers final selection, Texas cornerback Ryan Watts at pick number 195 in the sixth round. He had a 6.7 Steelers Depot Draft Grade and was a late seventh-round projection, per Mock Draft Database. Through my Interest, Athletic Score studies, we saw a heavy theme of athleticism, particularly on Day 3, the Steelers taking guys who fit their mold.
The Titans and Saints were the only teams to rank higher in pick value. Topping Tennessee’s list was safety James Williams of Miami, cornerback Jarvis Brownlee Jr. of Louisville, and edge rusher Jaylen Harrell of Michigan. All were late-round selections who were projected higher than they were selected. New Orleans’ top marks were quarterback Spencer Rattler of South Carolina and Northern Iowa defensive lineman Kristian Boyd, similarly Day 3 picks with higher projections.
Other teams with positive pick value results were the Eagles, Rams, Chargers, and Chiefs. Philadelphia’s perceived steals were Clemson linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. and Florida State wide receiver Johnny Wilson on Day 3. The Rams got Arkansas center Beaux Limmer later than anticipated (late sixth round) along with Clemson defensive linemen Tyler Davis on Day 3.
The Los Angeles Chargers got extreme value in the seventh round, pouncing on wide receivers Brenden Rice of USC and Michigan’s Cornelius Johnson. Kansas City had four picks with positive value: safety Jaden Hicks of Washington State, cornerback Kamal Hadden of Tennessee, guard C.J. Hanson of Holy Cross, and tackle Kingsley Suamataia of BYU.
Within the division, the Bengals tied for eighth-best pick value, Cleveland came in at 19th, and Baltimore lower than expected at 28th.
While NFL teams had access to more information on the prospects and obviously different boards, I had fun putting this together in attempts to put a gauge on how the Pittsburgh Steelers’ draft compared to the rest of the league. I hope you enjoyed it as well.
