Steelers Stock Report: Trends after Day 1 of the 2025 NFL Draft
The Pick is in for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1st Round of the NFL Draft! Omar Khan, Andy Weidl, and Mike Tomlin add firepower and youth to the defensive front with the selection of Oregon Defensive Tackle Derrick Harmon.
Harmon was my prediction for the Steelers at Pick 21 in my final Mock Draft, and he’ll step in right away as a starting caliber DT with the upside to be one of the top interior defenders in the league early in his career.
But how does this selection affect the rest of the Steelers’ roster and plans for the remainder of the Draft? Let’s take a look!
STOCK UP: VERSATILITY UP FRONT
Harmon’s presence in the defensive trenches gives the Steelers unlimited options when it comes to rotating players and mixing up alignments. Harmon can play any spot along the DL, as can both Cam Heyward and Keeanu Benton, allowing PIT to maximize matchups and keep all 3 guys fresh over 4 quarters.
STOCK DOWN: QUARTERBACK DESPERATE FANS
The Steelers passed on their choice of the non-Cam Ward QBs by selecting Harmon, with Shedeur Sanders, Jaxson Dart, and Jalen Milroe all receiving 1st Round buzz and all 3 available to PIT at Pick 21. Much to the chagrin of the QB-desperate faction of Steelers Nation, the team clearly prioritized improving in the trenches over the more volatile addition of a QB they weren’t convinced could be the long-term answer at the position. A lot of Steelers fans are livid, despite living through a similar situation already during the short-lived Kenny Pickett era.
STOCK UP: RUN DEFENSE
Derrick Harmon was often knocked as a poor run defender in the eyes of fans and analysts who viewed a guy like Kenneth Grant, whose size and strength was viewed as superior to Harmon’s. However, when you turn on the tape at Oregon, it tells a different story. It shows a quick penetrator and powerful block-shedder with a nose for the football and a stout anchor. The Steelers’ run defense got better last night.
STOCK UP: DEFENSIVE LINE OUTLOOK POST CAM HEYWARD
Cam is coming off another All-Pro season in 2024, so I’m not burying him just yet, but Harmon is a Heyward clone up front, and should the cliff be coming for Cam, or should he decide to hang up the cleats after his contract extension is up, Harmon figures to step in as a worthy heir-apparent to the Steelers’ star DT. The best news? He’s only 21 years old and has a ton of development and improvement ahead of him, despite being a pretty complete player already.
What was your initial reaction to the Steelers’ selection of Derrick Harmon? Did I miss anything else this pick directly affects? Let me know your thoughts in the comments and stay tuned to the Steel Curtain Network throughout Day 2 of the NFL Draft for more news and updates!
a true Pittsburgh Steelers fan, since the 70’s I like the Derrick Harmon as the number# 1 draft pick
It’s tough to argue about the long-term value that the Steelers are getting with Harmon.
On the other hand, QB is a far more consequential position in determining a team’s ultimate performance. So even assuming Harmon develops into the player we think he’ll be, should Dart develop into a franchise QB for the Giants, it’ll raise some very uncomfortable questions about the Steelers’ strategic capabilities.
And if the Steelers happen to make a deal with Aaron Rodgers, it’s going to shoot down their recent claim that the Rodgers situation wouldn’t affect their draft posture. Obviously, if you’ve got a pretty good idea you’ll be signing Rodgers, then you don’t need to use your first draft pick on a QB — at least not this year.
Bill, is there a clear QB in the 2025 class that merited first round selection, including the two that actually were? True enough, we’ll see what happens with all these gentlemen, in time. As I recall, it took Noll four seasons to bring Pgh. a winning team, a team that could compete successfully in the playoffs, at a time when it was easier to accomplish in the aspects of drafting, training players, sophistication of the game, and rules of the game. Heck, Terry Hanratty only merited a second round selection in ’69 with Shiner and Nix on the roster. The Steeler roster will require time to be improved,along with work and luck. The Steelers’ front office must’ve thought Harmon would be a better DT than any of the draftable QBs this year would be in Pgh.’s offense. As to AARod, the apparent obsession of some within Pgh.’s FO makes no sense to me, either. None of the last three Steelers’ coaches were perfect. Perhaps Pgh. will find their version of Brady/Purdy on draft day 3.