B-
Pittsburgh Steelers
A sensible, unshowy class lands the Steelers a B-.
by aechean ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 12 picks
· 5 steals
· 3 reaches
There is reaching, and then there is Harold Perkins Jr. at the Round 3 slot. The Steelers jumped the board by 47 and dared it to prove them wrong. It does the job without flash, and the B- reflects it.
Landing Burks that late papers over a lot of smaller sins. The Steelers indulged a want in Pregnon while a need in interior defensive lineman, edge rusher and other spots stayed open.
They covered a lot of ground and still skipped interior defensive lineman, which is a strange place to end up.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but interior defensive lineman.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick No. 21 they get a long-term starter on the line at fair value. More want than need.
The needs board was loud and they turned it down, spending slot 53 on Emmanuel Pregnon with interior defensive lineman, edge rusher and other spots unsolved.
They paid sticker price for Malachi Fields in Round 3, Pick 12, and that is fine. A need, and now a little less of one.
Harold Perkins Jr. at No. 85 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They bypassed pressing needs at interior defensive lineman, edge rusher and other spots to take Parker Brailsford, an offensive lineman that was not the priority.
You do not let a wide receiver like Deion Burks reach pick 121 and blink. They did not. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
They reached into another round for Drew Allar, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Value with a capital V on Charles Demmings in the 161st pick, a genuine coup. It fills a real need, too.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Jeremiah Wright in slot 216. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
A tidy bit of business in the 224th overall pick, where Thaddeus Dixon graded well above the range. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Good price on Isaiah Nwokobia in the Round 7 slot, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Xavier Nwankpa slipping to No. 237 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.