Steelers Add At Key Positions But Miss Out On A Marquee Player At Important Positional Need

The Pittsburgh Steelers come into the 2024 NFL Draft with needs at a few different spots on the team, on both sides of the ball. Team insider for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Ray Fittipaldo, released his final mock draft for 2024, and he found ways to address them early in the process, grabbing two offensive players and two defensive players in the first four picks. However, the lack of addressing a center until the fourth round might have the team reeling for other solutions.

In the first round of his seven-round mock, he compiled without trades. Fittipaldo had the Steelers selecting University of Washington offensive tackle Troy Fautanu with the 20th overall pick. The 6'4", 317-pound, Henderson, Nevada native has position flexibility across the offensive line, according to The Athletic's Dane Brugler, and that will appeal to the Steelers along with some other factors. Fittipaldo wondered if Fautanu would last until the Steelers initial pick. It would mean they'd need to trade up to get him, which Fittipaldo endorses. However, some medical concerns could cause him to slide down the board on draft day. 

"Fautanu is a smooth athlete who can slide in at right tackle and allow the Steelers to move Broderick Jones to the left side of the line," he wrote. "He’ll turn 24 in October, but he’s ready to play now after making 30 starts for the Huskies. The bonus is his versatility, which could come in handy if there are injuries to others on the line."    

The team's second pick was cornerback Max Melton from Rutgers University. Pittsburgh added a cornerback, Donte Jackson from the Carolina Panthers, in the offseason but hasn't added a slot cornerback yet. Fittipaldo thinks the experience Melton has in his collegiate career playing in the slot and outside will make him an attractive pick for the Steelers. 

With the first of the team's two third-round picks, Fittipaldo addressed the receiver position by selecting University of Michigan's Roman Wilson. He noted while he didn't visit Pittsburgh General Manager Omar Khan and Head Coach Mike Tomlin attended his Pro Day. Tomlin also took a liking to him at the Senior Bowl. Fittipaldo noted that he had limited production in college due to his team's run-first mentality, but his speed could help out the Steelers' offense. 

With the next pick in the third round, Fittipaldo chose LSU Tigers defensive lineman Maason Smith. He wrote that the team needs to get younger on the defensive line, with Cam Heyward on the wrong side of 30 and Larry Ogunjobi set to be there in June. Fittiipaldo wrote that Smith never reached his full potential with the Tigers, but he thinks that mentorship and the right amount of playing time could help him take a starting spot in 2025.

One of the Steelers' biggest needs in the draft is at center. The team didn't bring in one in free agency and released their starter from the past two seasons, Mason Cole. Fittipaldo had the team selecting Penn State's Hunter Nourzad. Nourzad started his collegiate career at Cornell before becoming a Nittany Lion. He has 21 games started in the last two seasons. 

With the team's first sixth-round pick, Fittipaldo took University of Georgia safety Tykee Smith, who he thinks could find an early home on special teams due to his speed. He rounded out the mock draft with Pittsburgh's second sixth-rounder by taking inside linebacker Jaylan Ford from Texas. He said Ford projects as a run-stopping linebacker they could groom under Elandon Roberts. 

Steelers Take Big Risk By Not Addressing Center Early 

Pittsburgh wants to be one of the best teams running the football in 2024 and will need a stout offensive line to do so. Khan and Tomlin have consistently brought up that the team has players on the roster who are capable of playing the position, but none have a ton of experience.

Maybe the team can strike gold on Nourzad, but that's a tough proposition for a fourth-round pick. Not addressing the center position earlier is the biggest downfall of this mock draft, despite finding ways to address many of the team's other needs.