The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Oregon DL Derrick Harmon in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, but before the Steelers made their pick, ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. made his case for the team taking QB Shedeur Sanders. Kiper believes that the Steelers don’t have a good opportunity to bring in a young quarterback, and that taking Sanders could’ve helped them compete in the quarterback-rich AFC.
“This organization has not won a playoff game in nine years. Haven’t had any losing seasons in a long time, 21, but they haven’t won a playoff game in nine years. In this division with [Joe] Burrow and Lamar [Jackson] and the AFC loaded with great quarterbacks, and you have Mason Rudolph and there’s Shedeur sitting there and you have no second-round pick, where’s the young quarterback coming in…if I’m Pittsburgh, Shedeur Sanders, to pass on him at this stage, pick 21, come on,” Kiper said on the ESPN broadcast via Awful Announcing.
After the selection, Kiper ranted about teams letting “traditional drop-back passers” fall in the draft, going as far back as 1955 when mentioning that the Steelers released Johnny Unitas.
In an article after the draft, Kiper again questioned the Steelers’ selecting Harmon over Sanders.
“Who is going to play quarterback in Pittsburgh? If the Steelers sign Aaron Rodgers, this is less of an issue. He would at least give them a 2025 starter. But I had issue with the Saints passing on Shedeur Sanders, so I have to point out the Steelers doing the same 12 picks later. Plus, Pittsburgh doesn’t have a second-round pick, meaning it will be a long wait until No. 83 on Friday night,” Kiper wrote. “But if they don’t sign Rodgers, and they don’t get lucky with the Day 2 quarterbacks, we’re going to be examining this pick all season long.”
Kiper was higher than most on Sanders ahead of the draft, ranking him No. 5 on his big board and praising his toughness and resiliency. NFL teams didn’t agree, as Sanders fell out of the first round. While there was reportedly some internal debate earlier this week within the Steelers on whether or not to select Sanders, the team opted to address defensive line, which was long thought to be the position it would target with its first-round pick.
After the Harmon selection, Kiper praised the pick on the ESPN broadcast and said Harmon is someone who can learn under Cameron Heyward.
“You watch him guys, he can get into the backfield. Plays a little high, but he’s a guy that can learn from Cam Heyward. Having a guy that can maybe be the heir apparent to Cam Heyward against the quarterback Shedeur Sanders, they opted for Derrick Harmon, because they love the fact that he can be that next guy to take over for Cam Heyward.”
Passing on Sanders can certainly be questioned. The Steelers don’t have a long-term quarterback plan in place, and even if they sign Rodgers, they’ll be hitching their wagon to a 41-year-old quarterback. Sanders would’ve at least represented someone who has the potential to be a long-term answer at the position, but the value of adding a defensive lineman who fits their scheme well and can help in the short term while also being an eventual Heyward replacement was too good to pass up.
The Steelers obviously weren’t alone in passing on Sanders, but they do have one of the worst quarterback situations in the league, so they were a natural landing spot. But Pittsburgh allowed 299 rushing yards in its Wild Card Round playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens and the run defense as a whole was inconsistent at times last season. The Steelers also released Larry Ogunjobi and didn’t add a ready-made starter in free agency, and Harmon gives them a long-term building block at a valuable position.
Passing on Sanders for Harmon isn’t a decision that can be judged in a vacuum, and it will be years before we’ll truly know if the Steelers made the right choice or not. There’s no issue with Kiper’s logic, but the fact that he views Shedeur Sanders more favorably than most certainly played a part in his thinking that Pittsburgh should’ve selected him. The Steelers still have a question mark at quarterback, but they added a player they loved throughout the pre-draft process and someone who can step in and fill the 36-year-old Heyward’s shoes when he decides to hang them up.
