The Pittsburgh Steelers find themselves in a difficult spot leading up to the 2025 NFL Draft. They need a quarterback for the future, have a significant hole along their defensive line, and need to add a running back as well.
They have to do all that under GM Omar Khan without a second-round pick, too, after sending the No. 52 overall pick to the Seattle Seahawks in March to land star receiver DK Metcalf.
They’re still waiting on a decision from 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers, too, making things rather difficult with limited draft capital and so many holes. But based on a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Steelers are looking to move back in the 2025 NFL Draft to accumulate more picks.
Knowing that, Pro Football Focus’ Josh Liskiewitz predicts that the Steelers will do just that in the first round: trade down from No. 21, accumulate more picks and land a quarterback after moving down.
“There appears to be a mutual respect between Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin and Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders — enough that this feels like the spot where his ‘slide’ ends… in a sense. With multiple quarterbacks in play for this range but no other team clearly tied to Sanders, Pittsburgh can afford to trade back a few spots, gain additional capital and still confidently land their next signal-caller,” Liskiewitz writes. “Sanders’ ability to layer throws downfield over coverage is his calling card, highlighted by a 94.8 passing grade on throws of 20-plus air yards in 2024.”
Where there’s smoke, there is fire when it comes to Shedeur Sanders and the Steelers. Head coach Mike Tomlin spoke highly of him on Tuesday during a pre-NFL Draft press conference, and many insiders are connecting the Colorado star to the Black and Gold.
One would think that if the Steelers are really interested in him, they wouldn’t move out of No. 21 if he were there, but that’s what Liskiewitz has them doing — the Steelers still landing Sanders after moving down.
That would be quite a home run for the Steelers, who would address QB long-term and accumulate more picks in the 2025 NFL Draft in the process, giving them a chance to address more holes on their roster. That seems like an entirely unrealistic scenario right now though.
But if it were to happen, it would be hard to be upset with the Steelers’ decision. We’ll see what Khan has up his sleeve Thursday night.
