Each day leading up to the 2026 NFL Draft — April 23-25 — TeamFB7 will break down a different team’s biggest draft need and the best selection to address it. Granted, teams will most often use their first-round pick on the best available player/value and not necessarily always their biggest need, so this isn’t going to compile together into a mock draft in the end. It’s more a breakdown of how each team could best address its most paramount priority if it chooses.
Pittsburgh is hosting the 2026 NFL Draft starting Thursday, so whoever the Steelers select in the first round is sure to get a much more fervent reaction from the live crowd than most No. 21 overall picks.
That’s not the only suspense in play for Steelers fans, though.
There is some speculation or buzz that quarterback Aaron Rodgers might seize the spotlight of the moment to announce his return for the upcoming season, as he’s yet to give any indication on his status while pondering retirement.
In the meantime, the Steelers and new head coach Mike McCarthy opened minicamp Monday with 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard as QB1.
Given the team’s apparent comfort and confidence going into the season with Howard at quarterback if Rodgers opts to retire and clear his schedule for even more dark-cave meditation and ayahuasca retreats, that might prove to be one of the better value picks from the last draft.
That remains to be proven, though, and as it stands, the Steelers’ 2025 draft is looking very underwhelming otherwise.
Picking in the same spot last year, Pittsburgh took Oregon defensive tackle Derrick Harmon at No. 21 overall. He played in 12 games with eight starts and had 27 tackles, 3 sacks and 22 pressures with PFF grading him 83rd out of 134 qualifying defensive tackles. He could well provide solid return on that investment over time.
The rest of the Steelers’ draft picks, though …
RB Kaleb Johnson (3rd round, pick No. 83): Rushed for 69 yards on a weak 2.8 yards per carry and averaged 23.8 yards on 8 kickoff returns.
DE Jack Sawyer (4th round, No. 123): 34 tackles, 3 tackles for loss and 1 sack in 295 snaps over 17 games graded 105th of 115 edge rushers by PFF.
DT Yahya Black (5th round, No. 164): 28 tackles, 0 TFLs, 0 sacks, 2 forced fumbles in 17 games with three starts, graded 98th out of 134 DTs by PFF.
LB Carson Bruener (7th round, No. 226): 19 tackles in 17 games.
CB Donte Kent (7th round, No. 229): Missed entire season due to injury.
As the Steelers launch a new era with coach Mike Tomlin stepping down after 19 seasons and McCarthy, the former Packers and Cowboys coach, taking over, they’ll look to have a more impactful draft haul this year. Fortunately, they have a lot more picks in the top half of the draft to work with this time.
Pittsburgh holds the following picks this week: 1st round (No. 21), 2nd (53), 3rd (76), 3rd (85), 3rd (99), 4th (121), 4th (135), 5th (161), 6th (216), 7th (224), 7th (230) and 7th (237).
What Are The Biggest Needs For Pittsburgh Steelers In 2026 NFL Draft?
The Steelers gave Rodgers some extra enticement to come back when they traded for wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr., flipping a sixth-round pick for a seventh-rounder with the Colts and then signing Pittman to an extension.
Pittman, who has averaged 81 receptions and 876 yards across six NFL seasons, may have been a lower-end WR1, but he’s a top-tier WR2 now paired with DK Metcalf.
The Steelers simply didn’t have a true No. 2 last season with Calvin Austin (31-372-3) the next most productive wideout. Austin signed with the Giants as a free agent, so the wide receiver depth chart overall is still thin and perhaps investing some early draft capital in the position would further compel a Rodgers return.
Or bolstering the offensive line.
The Steelers’ big loss in free agency was left guard Isaac Seumalo, who signed a 3-year, $31.5-million contract with the Cardinals. Pittsburgh hasn’t added a replacement for him, though it has Spencer Anderson, an experienced reserve who made 11 starts over the last two seasons. But there’s a reason most high-profile mock drafts have the Steelers taking the top offensive guard in the draft — Penn State’s Olaivavega Ioane — with that No. 21 pick.
Otherwise, Pittsburgh is decently set on offense.
Productive No. 2 running back Kenneth Gainwell signed as a free agent with the Buccaneers after a career-best season (537 rushing yards, 73 catches for 486 yards and 8 total TDs), but the Steelers got great value in signing Rico Dowdle on a 2-year, $12.25-million pact to pair with Jaylen Warren (958 rushing yards, 6 TDs in 2025) in the backfield. Dowdle is coming off back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons for the Cowboys and Panthers, and while he isn’t quite the same receiving weapon Gainwell is, he nonetheless had 39 catches each of the last two seasons.
And Pat Freiermuth (41-486-4) is locked in at tight end entering his sixth season with the team, with Darnell Washington (31-364-1) starting to emerge last year in his third NFL season.
Steelers’ Defensive Needs In Draft
Pittsburgh doesn’t have many glaring needs on defense after using most of its free agency budget on that side of the ball.
The big addition was former Buccaneers cornerback Jamel Dean on a 3-year, $36.75-million deal. PFF graded Dean as the third-best CB in the NFL (80.6) after he had 3 interceptions, 9 passes defended, 2 forced fumbles and played generally stifling coverage. Dean, Joey Porter Jr. and eight-time Pro Bowl selection Jalen Ramsey form a formidable trio at cornerback.
Pittsburgh also signed two safeties in Jaquan Brisker (1 year, $5.5 million) and Darnell Savage (1 year, just under $1.5 million). Brisker had 93 tackles, an INT and 8 PDs for the Bears last season, while Savage was a former starter for the Packers and Jaguars before playing a limited role last season between the Jags, Bills and Commanders. He’ll likely serve as depth for the Steelers as well, with incumbent starter DeShon Elliott back after missing the second half of last season with a hyperextended knee.
The team could look to use some early draft capital on a safety for the future, though, with Brisker and Savage on one-year deals and Elliott a free agent after 2027.
Meanwhile, the Steelers front seven is well stocked also.
Leading tacklers Payton Wilson (126 tackles, 6 TFLs despite only starting 4 of the 17 games he played) and Patrick Queen (120 tackles, 8 TFLs) are back along with starter Malik Harrison (limited to 11 games due to injury last year). Queen is in the last year of his contract, so this is a position the Steelers could address in the middle rounds of the draft, but it’s not a priority early.
Up front, Pittsburgh signed former Titans defensive tackle Sebastian Joseph-Day (2 years, $11 million) to join soon-to-be 37-year-old six-time All-Pro Cameron Heyward (still at the top of his game and PFF’s top-graded interior defensive linemen at 90.4 last season), Harmon and nose tackle Keeanu Benton (coming off a breakout season with 5.5 sacks) as part of a deep unit.
And, of course, star T.J. Watt (up to 115 career sacks and counting) returns along with Alex Highsmith (team-high 9.5 sacks and 15 TFLs in 2025) and Nick Herbig (7.5 sacks, 13 TFLs) to form a daunting trio off the edge.
New defensive coordinator Patrick Graham steps into a great situation.
So to summarize, the main needs for the Steelers in the draft this week are offensive guard, wide receiver and safety.
Who Should Steelers Draft At No. 21?
As the draft order sets up, it’s very likely the Steelers will have a shot at the consensus top offensive guard prospect — the aforementioned Ioane out of Penn State.
There’s a reason almost every notable draft analyst has the 6-foot-4, 320-pound people-mover ticketed to the Steelers.
We’re not going to reinvent the wheel here. Pittsburgh should indeed be the first team looking to take an interior offensive lineman in this draft, and if so, it will be hard to pass on Ioane as an ideal replacement for Seumalo.
Pittsburgh can still find great upside at wide receiver — like these guys — with one of (or two of) its four Day 2 picks.
