C
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers did enough to get by: C.
by Kev05555 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 12 picks
· 2 steals
· 10 reaches
If confidence were a draft strategy, the Steelers would have aced it. Jaiden Ausberry at Round 3, Pick 12 is 330 spots clear of where he belonged. The final tally is a middling C.
Landing Lee III that late papers over a lot of smaller sins. They will answer for taking offensive lineman early while edge rusher went begging.
If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through edge rusher. Quarterback was the priority and it is no longer a question, which is most of the job.
Not a disaster, not a triumph, just a middling class.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 21st pick they get a cornerstone up front, though the board says they badly overpaid. More want than need.
Raymond Cottrell at pick No. 53 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
They talked themselves into Jaiden Ausberry at pick 76, and the board did not agree. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Tyler Van Dyke this early at No. 85. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
The needs board was loud and they turned it down, spending slot 99 on Markel Bell with edge rusher unsolved.
Robert Spears-Jennings at the Round 4 slot is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Value with a capital V on Justin Joly in Round 4, Pick 35, a genuine coup. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Will Lee III at No. 161 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A wild overpay on Diego Pavia in the Round 6 slot, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Noah Thomas in pick No. 224, miles early. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They reached into another round for Jamari Lyons, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A reach on Terion Stewart in the 237th overall pick; the board had better options right there. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.