At the beginning of the offseason, Steelers president Art Rooney II said that the team would be looking to the draft either this year or next for a quarterback. While I am as optimistic as the next person about Will Howard, he was a sixth-round pick. It’s a relatively safe assumption that they will be going all-in on landing a first-round quarterback next year during the 2026 NFL Draft that will be held in Pittsburgh. The George Pickens trade this morning to acquire another 2026 third-round pick seems like a clear part of that strategy.
“Obviously, we will be looking in the draft as well either this year or next. That [quarterback position] has to be the priority,” Rooney told Steelers reporters at the end of January.
GM Omar Khan admitted that the team’s free agency decisions were made this year with the compensatory draft pick system in mind. Their big signings were players cut by their previous teams to mitigate any impact on the comp pick formula and maximize their return for losing players like Dan Moore Jr., Justin Fields, and Russell Wilson. As it stands, the Steelers are the only team projected to get the maximum of four compensatory draft selections in 2026.
While the Steelers had the third-worst draft pick value in the recent 2025 draft, they should be near the top of the league in value for 2026. Here is a rough estimate of what their picks might look like.
| Round | No. of Picks |
| 1 | 1 |
| 2 | 1 |
| 3 | 3 |
| 4 | 2 |
| 5 | 2 |
| 6 | 2 |
| 7 | 1 |
Some of those compensatory picks may even be higher depending on incentives and playing time. If Wilson holds down the starting job in New York over Jaxson Dart, that projected fifth-round pick can pretty easily become a fourth-round compensatory pick.
The Steelers made seven picks and only two inside the top 120 in 2025. They could very easily end up with 12 picks and six inside the top 120 next year. That gives them more than enough ammunition to maneuver around the draft board whichever way they see fit.
If the Steelers’ 2025 roster is as bad a some are billing it to be, they might be picking in (or just outside of) the top 15. That would boost the value of all their original picks and put them within striking distance of entering the top 10 to draft their future franchise quarterback.
Things are coming together for the Steelers to have their franchise quarterback walk across the stage in Pittsburgh as they host their first draft since the 1940s.
