No matter what name gets turned in on the card, every draft pick comes with risk. Some are character, some are scheme fit, some are just evaluation-based. And some are medically related. There are plenty of reasons why draft picks don’t work out and medical, either injuries known prior to being drafted or ones sustained during a career, have a profound impact on a prospect.
In the Pittsburgh Steelers’ two drafts under GM Omar Khan, they’ve taken plenty of health risks. To varying degrees and of course, teams can have different medical evaluations just in the way they can have different player/ability evaluations. A player can be off one team’s board due to injury and be cleared by another. Anyone the Steelers draft is “on” their board and been given medical clearance.
But it’s a trend worth mentioning. Of the 14 picks made under Khan, five have had some known current or long-term medical caveat. Let’s run through them.
2023
TE Darnell Washington – Knee
Once speculated to be a first-round pick, Washington fell into the third round before Pittsburgh drafted him at No. 93. While it was a historically deep tight end class, Washington also reportedly fell due to long-term concerns over his knee. Similar to Payton Wilson, many think Washington will be a one-contract player. While he didn’t have the lengthy surgery history like Wilson, he had at least one procedure, experienced knee swelling at the NFL Scouting Combine, and his skinnier legs had some teams believe he wasn’t long for the league.
But Pittsburgh stopped his fall, trading down from No. 80 to No. 93 in a deal with Carolina, recouping a fourth round pick similar to what the Steelers sent to the New England Patriots for OT Broderick Jones. Washington appeared in all 17 games as a rookie, though he popped up on the injury report several times due to his knee.
CB Cory Trice Jr. – Knee/Leg
A top-100 talent, Trice dropped until the final few dozen picks of the draft due to a lengthy knee history. Similar to Payton Wilson, Trice tore his ACL once in college, wearing a knee brace midway through the 2022 year. He broke his ankle in high school and suffered a high ankle sprain during his college career along with other more minor ailments. All that caused him to tumble late into Day 3 of the draft, Pittsburgh selecting him at No. 241.
Unfortunately, injuries didn’t escape Trice in the NFL. He tore his ACL during the Steelers’ first padded practice of training camp, carted off and out the rest of the year. He appears healthy now but the injuries – and odds – are stacking against him. No matter what happens, Trice was a worthwhile flier to take in the seventh round. The low risk made it an acceptable risk.
2024
OT Troy Fautanu – Knee
As is typical for draft season, the final week opened up rumors and reports of players with medical concerns. Fautanu was among that group with The MMQB’s Albert Breer mentioning teams harbored long-term concerns over his knee. Details felt sparse and he didn’t miss much, if any, time at Washington due to the injury.
Here’s what Breer wrote on April 22.
“Washington OT Troy Fautanu’s knee was flagged. That one was described to me as the sort of issue that shouldn’t be a problem in the short term but could wind up impacting his longevity in the pros.”
After being picked, Fautanu downplayed those worries, noting his knee hasn’t bothered him in years. It really doesn’t seem like much of a red flag or concern but a worry to at least some teams out there. Perhaps it’s one reason, of many, why he slipped to No. 20.
C Zach Frazier – Leg
Different context here. Frazier doesn’t have a lengthy injury history but is coming off a broken leg sustained last November, cutting his college career short. That made him the focus of doctors at the Combine, late to his media interviews due to testing.
But all news on Frazier’s health seems encouraging. By the Senior Bowl, he was in pads and snapping on the side, though he didn’t partake in practice. At the Combine, Frazier went through the on-field drills and tested at his Big 12 Pro Day workout.
After being drafted, Frazier declared himself fully healthy and he sounds ready for rookie minicamp two weeks from now. Overall, the least of the concerns on this list but the injury gets him on here all the same.
ILB Payton Wilson – Knee/Shoulder
The most complicated one, as you know by now. Wilson had one of the largest medical red flags of anyone in this year’s draft, two torn ACLs and three shoulder surgeries all in the span of a couple years. Combined with his age (24) and teams had real worry over his ability to play past his rookie deal. But Khan said the team was comfortable with him medically, making him the 98th pick.
It’s important to note that Wilson has been healthy the past two seasons and questionable knees didn’t prevent him from becoming college football’s top linebacker in 2023. Nor did they stop him from running 4.43 at the Combine. Granted, those are separate issues, the concern on Wilson is long-term – he’ll be a talented player until his body gives out and he’s thrown on the scrap pile. But Daniel Jeremiah said he’ll take four good years of Wilson than eight years of most other linebackers. A late third-round selection helps mitigate risk, too, and Wilson is worth taking a gamble on.
