B+
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers cashed the board's mistake on Bell: B+.
by Lamtc4 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 6 steals
· 2 reaches
Thirty-one other rooms let Skyler Bell slide, and the Steelers were the ones holding the card at No. 121. Highway robbery. The bottom line is a respectable B+.
Every deal seemed to tilt their way, which is not luck. The edge rusher hole is the one line item this class does not answer. Spending an early pick on offensive lineman with edge rusher, cornerback and other spots open is the decision the grade keeps circling back to.
The Nowakowski reach is the anchor dragging on the value grade.
Good work on the whole, with edge rusher the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 21 they get a matchup problem out wide, and a steal at that. A real need, handled.
Anthony Hill Jr. at pick No. 58 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They paid up for Dontay Corleone at the 59th pick when waiting would have done the job. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
The board fumbled Michael Taaffe all the way to the 86th overall pick, and they scooped it up. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They read the board right and Sam Hecht was the payoff at slot 99. A minor need, but a need all the same.
They will replay Skyler Bell at Round 4, Pick 21 for years; that is how good the value is. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
The needs board was loud and they turned it down, spending the Round 4 slot on Keylan Rutledge with edge rusher, cornerback and other spots unsolved.
Good price on Drew Allar in pick 161, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They paid a round early for Riley Nowakowski in the 204th overall pick, more than the board wanted. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.