The smoke is seemingly building into a full-on fire when it comes to Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders and the Pittsburgh Steelers as a first-round fit Thursday night in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Of course, it could all be a significant smokescreen from the Steelers, trying to get teams to move up in front of them to grab a quarterback and have a defensive lineman, safety, or running back fall to them.
But based on what everyone is seemingly hearing, particularly from the national aspect from guys like ESPN’s Adam Schefter, NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah, and more, the Sanders buzz with the Steelers is real, and many believe he’ll be their pick at No. 21 overall Thursday night.
That includes The Ringer’s Todd McShay, a longtime NFL Draft analyst.
“Based on conversations I’m having with people in the league, there’s a growing sense that Sanders will be the pick at 21. As I’ve said multiple times over the past couple of weeks, Mike Tomlin and Sanders did hit it off during the pre-draft process—any reports to the contrary are false,” McShay writes in his newsletter. “The good news for Sanders is that since Omar Khan was promoted to general manager in 2022, Tomlin has had a greater impact on personnel decisions than he did when Kevin Colbert was GM. Colbert and he worked together wonderfully, but Colbert had the final say on the vast majority of roster moves. Now, Tomlin has more power than he’s ever had.
“I say all that because the info I’m getting is that there’s a strong likelihood Tomlin is going to push the organization to draft Sanders. I think there’s a better than 50/50 chance that Sanders will be a Steeler by the end of the night.”
Well, that’s certainly noteworthy.
Over the last month or so, the Sanders connection to the Steelers has gained more hype and attention, with many slotting him in the back end of the first round to the Steelers, who have a significant need at the position long-term and are waiting on a decision from 41-year-0ld Aaron Rodgers.
Early in the pre-draft process, the belief was that Sanders would find himself inside the top 10 of the NFL Draft. But as more information became available, the belief is that Sanders could fall all the way to No. 21 overall and could even fall out of the first round entirely if the Steelers pass on him.
But if Tomlin seemingly has his way, as McShay believes will happen, Sanders will be the selection at No. 21 overall, giving the Steelers another shot at a franchise quarterback, albeit one who comes with some baggage with his last name and the media attention he’ll draw, though some of that is quite unfair.
That’s not to say that everyone in the organization is onboard. Despite SI’s Albert Breer reporting earlier in the week that there’s a growing sense of acceptance within the organization that Sanders will be the pick, not everyone is for it.
“It’s worth noting that there are voices in the organization who are not behind the decision. I don’t think the drafting of Kenny Pickett—Pittsburgh’s most recent first-round QB—is a huge factor, but the memories from that experience can’t be overlooked,” McShay added regarding Sanders and the Steelers. “Pickett, like Sanders, wasn’t considered a top-tier talent who could help the Steelers compete with the loaded group of quarterbacks at the top of the AFC.”
The scars of missing on Pickett and ultimately having to trade him might have some worried within the franchise. The Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac believes that’s the case and thinks the Steelers will wait until 2026 to address the position.
But the Steelers are desperate at QB and have done the work this offseason. If Sanders is on the board Thursday night at No. 21, it would not be surprising whatsoever to hear his name called for the Steelers.
