Steelers 7-Round Mock Draft 3.0: Final Predictions

Welcome to NFL Draft week. It’s one of the most exciting and polarizing sporting events on the calendar, and for Steelers fans who’ve been following the leadup closely, it’s proven to be one of the more unpredictable Drafts in a long while.

Pittsburgh has shown the majority of its interest in the Defensive Tackle, Quarterback, Running Back, and Wide Receiver positions, but it doesn’t feel like they’re pressing for a specific order in taking prospects at these spots. In fact, the thing I’m probably most confident in is that they will make their selections based on value, and not on a specific prioritization of needs.

This is easily the most difficult final Steelers Mock Draft I’ve undertaken since I started really analyzing the Draft in 2019.

With that in mind, let’s dive into my final predictions for all 7 Rounds of the upcoming Draft for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

ROUND 1 | PICK 21 OVERALL

DERRICK HARMON, DEFENSIVE TACKLE, OREGON

Measurables: 6044 | 313 lbs | R-Junior
Pre-Draft Interest: Top 30 Visit

Harmon would slide in as a starter from Day 1, providing the Steelers with a terrorizing 3-man DL group with Cam Heyward and Keeanu Benton. Harmon can play any spot up front and win both as a pass rusher and run defender. He’s a Heyward clone physically, and he has the juice and upside to provide the Steelers with an heir apparent to the 36-year-old All-Pro.

ROUND 3 | PICK 83 OVERALL

DYLAN SAMPSON, RUNNING BACK, TENNESSEE

Measurables: 5080 | 200 lbs | Junior
Pre-Draft Interest: Top 30 Visit

The Steelers feel that Jaylen Warren can be their RB1, but they would love to add some homerun speed to the room. Sampson can score from anywhere on the field, and he provides enough as a pass catcher to thrive in the screen game and on flats and wheel routes out of the backfield. His presence would allow the Steelers to use him as their change-of-pace option to Warren, who has great short area burst and underrated power, but is more of a 1-speed player than Sampson.

ROUND 4 | PICK 123 OVERALL

KYLE MCCORD, QUARTERBACK, SYRACUSE

Measurables: 5110 | 196 lbs | Senior
Pre-Draft Interest: Top 30 Visit

While a run of Tier 2 QBs could go at the back end of the 1st and early 2nd round, after that I think things really slow down with teams using their Day 2 picks to go after more immediate impact positions like RB, DT, and WR. McCord has the prototypical size the Steelers value and experience making full field reads at the collegiate level, both at OSU and Syracuse. He’s a good long-term backup option but has enough upside to be viewed as a “dart throw” type selection for Pittsburgh as they wait until next year to make their big move in the Draft at QB.

ROUND 5 | PICK 156 OVERALL

MALACHI MOORE, SAFETY, ALABAMA

Measurables: 5110 | 196 lbs | Senior
Pre-Draft Interest: Mike Tomlin at Pro Day

Moore is a versatile playmaker with great vision and field awareness. He doesn’t have elite measurables, but the saying “you can’t measure heart” fits his profile well. Moore takes really good tackling angles and cuts off routes using his recognition skills and quick-react ability. As a developmental 4th Safety with the grit to be impactful on special teams right away, Moore would be good value in Rd. 5.

ROUND 6 | PICK 185 OVERALL

PAT BRYANT, WIDE RECEIVER, ILLINOIS

Measurables: 6020 | 204 lbs | Senior
Pre-Draft Interest: Formal Interview at Senior Bowl

The Steelers are seemingly looking for a future replacement for George Pickens in this draft, and if you’re looking for a play style match, Pat Bryant is that guy. A natural hands-catcher with great body control, you could argue that Bryant is actually a more nuanced route runner than Pickens even as a collegiate athlete. He got away with a lot of pushing on the boundaries in college, so he’ll need to clean that up as a pro. Bryant would represent great value for Pittsburgh in the 6th round of this Draft.

ROUND 7 | PICK 229 OVERALL

YAHYA BLACK, DEFENSIVE TACKLE, IOWA

Measurables: 6060 | 336 lbs | Senior
Pre-Draft Interest: Top 30 Visit

The former Hawkeye is a space-eating NT with intriguing measurables and an appetite for contact. He’s bigger than he is strong at this point in his career, although that should be improved in an NFL weight room. He lacks the quickness to be much more than an early-down run defender, but as a rotational 0-tech for a Steelers defense that needs some size there but doesn’t play in base enough to warrant spending an early pick on the position, Black could be a good late round solution for Pittsburgh.

The Steelers have an opportunity to add both immediate help and developmental talent to their roster in this Draft if they play their cards right, and while I don’t expect them to chase a QB in the 1st Round, I do believe they will add one with one of their middle selections.

If this is how the Draft played out for Pittsburgh, would you be satisfied with it? Let me know in the comments and be sure to tune into SCN’s live Draft coverage of all 3 Days.