With the NFL draft almost here, speculation is rampant about where the top prospects will land. For the Pittsburgh Steelers, some of that could be important, especially when it comes to the quarterbacks. The Steelers have done extensive homework on most of the top signal callers in this class. While that position is a weakness in this draft, it’s still a huge need for the Steelers. Draft expert Daniel Jeremiah recently hinted that he believes teams will trade back up into the first round to select quarterbacks.
“Everybody that I’ve talked to, and kind of looking at the situation, I would feel comfortable saying this,” Jeremiah said Wednesday on his Move the Sticks podcast. “I believe that Cam Ward, at this point in time, is the only quarterback who will be a team’s first pick in this draft, if that makes sense.
“In other words, Jaxson Dart, Shedeur Sanders, I think will be a team’s second pick. Now, that doesn’t mean they don’t go in the first round. They could easily, teams could come back up and take them, but they’re going to hold up the jersey and have the press conference with another player first. Then, they’re going to introduce the quarterback they took with their next pick. That’s where it looks now, a week out.”
Jeremiah is saying that he thinks teams will use their first-round picks on other positions and try to move up from their second-round pick back into the first round.
That would seem to imply that he doesn’t believe the Steelers will draft a quarterback in the first round. That doesn’t necessarily mean they would pass on a player like Sanders or Dart, though. Teams could jump the Steelers if they really like either of those prospects.
Based on recent information, it sounds like Sanders could be in for a draft-day fall. It’s just unclear if he’ll make it to the Steelers’ pick at 21. Reports suggest that the Steelers would consider Sanders if he does make it to them. However, that could be why a team trades back up into the first round. It might have to get to pick 20, at the latest, if it really wants Sanders.
With the makeup of this quarterback class, that would make sense. Besides Cam Ward, the rest of that group seems to have too many risks to spend a top-10 pick on. However, getting a player like Dart or Sanders at 20, for instance, could be better value. That might be especially true if a team has already taken a blue-chip player near the top of the draft.
Jeremiah is usually pretty trustworthy, but the draft is a fluid situation. Maybe a team like the New York Giants will draft Sanders in the top 10. Nothing is guaranteed. It does seem like the Steelers’ top choices at quarterback could be off the board by the time they pick in the first round, though.
