B
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers robbed the room for Hunter. Final grade: B.
by Jdj029 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 13 picks
· 12 steals
· 1 reaches
The board owed the Steelers one, and it paid up: Lee Hunter, the No. 48 name on the board, sitting there at slot 99 like a gift left on the doorstep.
Reaching for Wagner left real value on the table behind him. With edge rusher and running back unsolved, spending premium capital on offensive lineman is the choice that costs them.
A whole weekend of picks and edge rusher is somehow still a want. Quarterback was the priority and it is no longer a question, which is most of the job.
Good work on the whole, with edge rusher the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
Jordyn Tyson in Round 1, Pick 21 is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A quiet steal in the Round 2 slot: Emmanuel Pregnon for less than the market said. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Steal is underselling it; Emmanuel McNeil-Warren at pick 76 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They barely believed it either: Josiah Trotter still on the board at slot 89. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Lee Hunter at pick No. 99 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Taking Bud Clark in the 121st overall pick is close to grand larceny; a safety that good had no business lasting this long. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
The needs board was loud and they turned it down, spending the 129th pick on Aamil Wagner with edge rusher and running back unsolved.
Hezekiah Masses at No. 161 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. The roster fit checks out.
A cornerback of that caliber at pick No. 216 is the definition of value, full stop. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Keyshaun Elliott at the 224th pick is the proof. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Value with a capital V on Miles Kitselman in the 230th overall pick, a genuine coup. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
The board fumbled Zavion Thomas all the way to Round 7, Pick 21, and they scooped it up. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They read the board right and Cole Payton was the payoff at slot 241. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.