In just over two weeks, the 2025 NFL Draft will get underway in Green Bay. Teams will try and make major moves in the first round of the draft to land big-time playmakers on both sides of the football, shoring up rosters in the process.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of those teams seemingly looking to make a big move, especially at quarterback as buzz continuing to build regarding names like Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders.
For ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr., he strongly debated taking a quarterback for the Steelers in his latest mock draft for ESPN.com. But, instead of pulling the trigger on a QB selection, Kiper went in a different direction Tuesday morning, pairing the Steelers with Oregon defensive lineman Derrick Harmon for his second-straight mock draft at No. 21 overall.
“Harmon is a constant headache for opponents. He had five sacks and 35 pressures as an interior pass rusher last season, and he took care of business in the run game with 11 stops and 10 tackles for loss. Keeanu Benton and Harmon would be a good pairing inside,” Kiper writes, according to ESPN.com. “I originally had Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart to Pittsburgh. He throws with accuracy and velocity, and he’d be a potential short- and long-term answer.
“We’re all still waiting to see what happens with Aaron Rodgers, so I’ll hold off on any quarterback moves for the Steelers until we know a little more.”
Harmon remains a popular name for the Steelers in the first round, due in large part to their need along the defensive line, as well as the play style of Harmon overall.
Throughout the pre-draft process, Harmon — who spent one season at Oregon after transferring from Michigan State — has drawn comparisons to Steelers All-Pro defensive lineman Cameron Heyward. In fact, Harmon himself stated at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine that he models his game after the future Hall of Famer.
So, getting that guy into the mix to not only play alongside Heyward but learn from him on the field and behind the scenes, too, would do wonders for the Steelers’ rebuild in the trenches.
In a scouting report for Steelers Depot, Alex Kozora compared Harmon to the Seattle Seahawks’ Leonard Williams, who was a former first-round pick of the New York Giants.
“Harmon is a well-rounded interior rush player with the experience and skill set to play base 3-4 end. Those types of guys aren’t the easiest to find and project, especially for someone with Harmon’s higher-end traits. He’s a solid fit for a team like Pittsburgh, which could be looking for an eventual Cam Heyward replacement. He has two years left on his deal, and the Steelers drafted Heyward two years before they needed him.
“Harmon may not reach the heights of an All-Pro, but he’s a solid starter who can grow and improve. My NFL comp is Leonard Williams.”
Pairing Harmon with Heyward and having two good, young building blocks along the defensive line in Harmon and Keeanu Benton would be quite a trio for 2025, and would have the Steelers looking much better in the trenches on the defensive side of the football than they have in recent years.
Were the Steelers to pass on Dart like they do in Kiper’s mock draft, the wait until No. 83 overall in the third round would be a tough one for Pittsburgh should it want to grab a QB. In Kiper’s mock, Dart goes No. 26 to the Los Angeles Rams.
Then, Louisville’s Tyler Shough is picked at No. 33 by the Cleveland Browns, and Alabama’s Jalen Milroe is selected at No. 34 by the New York Giants, marking five quarterbacks off the board in the first 34 picks.
