Shedeur Sanders wasn’t drafted on Day 1, and it’s now unclear how far he could fall. The Tennessee Titans and New York Giants took their quarterback in the first round with Cam Ward and Jaxson Dart, and it’s not a given that Sanders will be the next quarterback off the board. Could the Pittsburgh Steelers be interested if he makes it all the way to the No. 83 overall pick in the third round?
“You got the Browns with a couple of picks in the second round. You’ve got the Saints who have a high second-round pick,” Tom Pelissero said while listing as possibilities for Sanders on Day 2 via NFL Network’s Good Morning Football. “The Steelers don’t have a second-round pick. They do have a third. In my mind, that might potentially be the floor for Shedeur Sanders.”
Sanders had quite the private party Thursday with branded “Legendary” merch and an overall flashy setup with his father Deion Sanders in attendance. He addressed his draft party in a video on X once the first round was over and called it fuel to the fire.
It was just four or five days ago that people were calling the idea of Sanders falling to No. 21 crazy. But as the draft approached it started to become clear that this was a possibility.
“I think what we learned last night about Shedeur is nobody loves him,” Kyle Brandt said on the show. “Nobody loves him as a prospect, or they would’ve drafted him last night.”
For what it’s worth, Ian Rapoport reported that the Steelers were internally split on whether to take Harmon or Sanders if both fell to them. If they were going back and forth on whether to use pick No. 21 on him yesterday, then I would think they are certainly interested today.
Mike Tomlin reportedly likes him, and the P-G’s Gerry Dulac reported they have a first-round grade on him. Unless you are fully bought into the idea of that being a smokescreen, I don’t think they’d pass on him again.
Keep in mind that the Steelers could trade back into the second round, though that would likely mean giving up 2026 draft capital or a significant chunk of their remaining 2025 capital.
George Pickens remains a possibility to be traded, which could also get the Steelers back into the second round.
Is there a scenario in which the Steelers walk out of the first two days with Harmon and Sanders?
With the Browns and Saints already passing on him, it’s not a given that they will be comfortable drafting him in the second round. They could prefer Tyler Shough or Jalen Milroe, and there are only so many teams in need of a quarterback this early.
“I would also caution people here to just be ready for the possibility that Shedeur Sanders is not the third quarterback off the board either,” Pelissero said. “After Cam Ward, those next four—Dart, Shedeur, Tyler Shough and Jalen Milroe—they’re in different orders on everybody’s board.”
As of right now, it doesn’t seem out of the realm of possibility that Sanders could fall to the Steelers in the third round. Wouldn’t that be something?
