The only small silver lining of the Pittsburgh Steelers heartbreakingly missing the 2023 NFL playoffs is that the Steelers' draft pick is now in the top 18 of the 2023 NFL Draft. With the Steelers' No. 17 pick, the team will be able to fill a major need. At that spot, they could draft a cornerback, offensive lineman, or a defensive lineman. It is still incredibly early in the draft process, but right now, it looks like OL or CB are the two positions that will offer the best value when the Steelers go on the clock. This could change a thousand times between now and Thursday, April 27, but for now, three names Steelers fans should know are Broderick Jones, Cam Smith, and Anton Harrison.
Broderick Jones, OL, Georgia
The Steelers' biggest need this offseason is at left tackle. LT Dan Moore Jr. didn’t have a great season, so there’s a good chance that is where the team goes with their first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
The team drafted quarterback Kenny Pickett last season, and it looks like the organization has now found its franchise QB. Step to in the rebuild process after finding a signal-caller is making sure you have an offensive line in place that will give Pickett time to operate and keep him upright and healthy moving forward.
Right now, it looks like there is almost no chance that the top two tackles in the draft — Paris Johnson Jr. from Ohio State and Peter Skoronski from Northwestern, the 6th and 10th-raked prospects, per ESPN‘s Todd McShay — fall to the Steelers’ No. 17 slot.
That said, there are still several options in the middle of the first round who could become a decade-long left tackle, although they offer more question marks than Johnson or Skoronski.
Broderick Jones started 15 games at left tackle for the national champion Georgia Bulldogs this season and didn’t allow a single sack. He’s a good pass blocker and an excellent run blocker. His major issue is that at 6-foot-4, 310 pounds, his body type may mean he’s more of an NFL guard than a tackle.
That’s not the worst thing in the world, although the Steelers are pretty deep at the guard spot these days with the emergence of James Daniels. If your projected first-round left tackle turns into a starting guard, that’s not a horrible outcome.
Cam Smith, CB, South Carolina
If the Steelers' No. 17 pick is a cornerback, the fan-favorite choice would be Penn State CB Joey Porter Jr. The son of the former Steelers player and coach would look great in the black and gold but, one, he may not be available when the Steelers draft at No. 17, and two, South Carolina’s Cam Smith may be a better fit anyway.
The Steelers have six free agents in the secondary (Cameron Sutton, Terrell Edmunds, Damontae Kazee, Elijah Riley, James Pierre, and Karl Joseph) this offseason. And while they will re-sign some, they likely won’t be able to keep them all. This means the team will have a serious need in the defensive backfield.
Smith is a scheme-versatile jack-of-all-trades who can play out on the outside, in the nickel, or even at safety. This gives Mike Tomlin a lot of options, which he wouldn’t necessarily have with Porter Jr., who is primarily a press-man boundary corner.
Anton Harrison, OT, Oklahoma
If the Steelers deem Broderick Jones to be an NFL guard in the future and want to roll the dice with a more true tackle, two of the Steelers' draft options are to pick a cornerback (see above) or trade up for Paris Johnson Jr. or Peter Skoronski.
The 2023 NFL Draft is Steelers general manager Omar Khan’s first fully in charge of the Pittsburgh War Room. In the past, Khan’s mentor and former Steelers GM Kevin Colbert has shown his willingness to trade up for a player he targeted. If Khan is from that same school, going up to get Johnson or Skoronski to protect Kenny Pickett could happen.
Option No. 3 is skipping Jones and going with Oklahoma left tackle Anton Harrison instead.
Like Jones, Harrison didn’t allow a sack in 2022 with the Sooners and is a little bigger than his Bulldogs counterpart at 6-foot-5, 315 pounds. He is not quite as athletic, though, and could be susceptible to NFL speed rushers. Still, he has the look and feel of an NFL left tackle.
If offensive line coach Pat Meyer can develop Harrison like he did with James Daniels and most of the rest of the Pittsburgh O-line, the former Sooner could become a bedrock piece for the Steelers as they continue their rebuild that started when they replaced Ben Roethlisberger with Kenny Pickett last offseason.
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