Entering Day 2 of the draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers had a good idea they were going to select a running back. Expecting to see Iowa RB Kaleb Johnson still on the board, however, was a surprise. Considered a top-50 selection, Johnson slipped down draft boards and into the Steelers’ lap at No. 83, a perfect meeting of value and need. Per the PPG’s Ray Fittipaldo, Johnson already looks promising.
“At rookie minicamp last Friday, he was the first guy that stood out to me,” Fittipaldo said on 93.7 The Fan Wednesday morning. “I saw him going through drills, he was all rocked up. I’m like, okay, give me the roster. He’s number 20. And it was Kaleb Johnson. He looks every bit the part of an NFL football player.”
Johnson carries his weight well. At the NFL Combine, he weighed in at 224 pounds and for his Hawkeyes Pro Day, bulked up to 234 pounds. It’s common for players to slim down for Indy to run fast, Johnson turned in a 4.57 40 time and returned to “normal” playing weight for Iowa Pro Day. No matter if he’s in the 220s or 230s, Johnson looks to be in great shape and the appearance of someone ready for the NFL.
Pittsburgh will find an immediate role for him. Johnson will likely assume an early-down role that focuses on his strengths in a running game similar to what he ran at Iowa. It will also minimize his issues in pass protection, one area he admits he’s still working on.
“There’s a reason they went out and got Kaleb Johnson in the third round,” Fittipaldo said. “They had him higher than a third-round pick. They were surprised when he was still there. So they’re excited about him.”
In fairness, rookie minicamp is a small window of time and evaluations don’t mean much. But NFL scouts can tell pretty quickly if a player has the right skill set or not. Former Senior Bowl director Jim Nagy once told the story of immediately knowing a drafted wide receiver didn’t have the right stuff.
Context clues suggest that was WR Amara Darboh, who caught eight career passes. Out of the gate, Johnson has passed the eye test. He’ll look to keep impressing once the veterans arrive for practice less than two weeks from today.
