The 2025 NFL Draft is in the books, but now the real fun begins as the analysis of each team’s draft haul is underway.
For the Pittsburgh Steelers, outside of ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr., the early returns on the draft class haul are very positive. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler ranked the Steelers’ draft class No. 4 in the NFL, and The Ringer’s Todd McShay is incredibly high on the Steelers’ draft class, too.
In a piece on his blog Monday morning, McShay praised the Steelers for the haul of Oregon DL Derrick Harmon, Iowa RB Kaleb Johnson, Ohio State OLB Jack Sawyer, Iowa DL Yahya Black, Ohio State QB Will Howard, Washington LB Carson Bruener, and Central Michigan CB Donte Kent.
“I love the Derrick Harmon pick at No. 21, if only because I’d been hearing the Steelers were in play for Sanders there. Harmon has modeled his game after Cam Heyward, and now he can learn from the 35-year-old Pittsburgh stalwart,” McShay writes. “It was a down year for the Steelers’ defensive front, and Harmon will help immediately. When you consider they got DK Metcalf with their second-round pick, that’s a great haul.
“Their later picks all came off the board later than where I had them ranked, so I have to applaud the value. Iowa RB Kaleb Johnson (No. 83) will improve their running back room, and Iowa DT Yahya Black (No. 164) and Ohio State QB Will Howard (No. 185) represent exceptional value. I wouldn’t be surprised if Howard proves he can actually play for them at some point.”
Landing Harmon in the first round and plugging a major hole with arguably the best defensive linemen in the class was a home run for the Steelers. He models his game after Cameron Heyward, so getting a chance to play alongside him moving forward should be huge for Harmon.
After that, the Steelers really got some good value in the draft.
Landing Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson in the third round at No. 83 overall was a steal for the Steelers, especially considering Johnson was considered a second-round talent and even at No. 3 in a guy like Dane Brugler’s RB rankings. McShay didn’t have Johnson in the top 50 on his big board, but he was high on him overall, so the Steelers getting him at No. 83 overall is a huge plus.
Same for Ohio State OLB Jack Sawyer. The Ohio State star wasn’t in McShay’s top 50, but getting Sawyer at No. 123 overall in the fourth round for a guy projected as a Day 2 pick was great value for the Steelers, even if it wasn’t at a true position of need.
The capper in the draft class for McShay is Howard. McShay called him an offensive coordinator’s dream due to his toughness, smarts and processing. The Steelers landed him in the sixth round when he was largely projected as a third- or fourth-round pick. That’s a steal for the Steelers.
Howard might never develop into an NFL starting quarterback, but he projects as a good backup long-term, and McShay even believes that he’ll play for them at some point, which would be huge value.
Things look very good for the Steelers’ draft on paper. We’ll see how things look on the field later this year, but right now the arrow is pointing up for the Steelers once again.
