Steelers/NFL category, Page 130
First Call: Ben Roethlisberger’s draft tip for Steelers; ESPN says Steelers ‘team to watch’ for a Courtland Sutton trade
Thursday’s “First Call” features Ben Roethlisberger’s suggestion for the Pittsburgh Steelers on Day 1 of the NFL Draft. We try to connect some dots between Alex Highsmith’s contract restructure and what that means for the Steelers on the wide receiver trade front. A potential second-round draftee talks about why one...
U mad, bro?: Pens fans fed up with Mike Sullivan; Pirates fans peeved over pitch counts; loud Kenny Pickett loyalists
At the time of this post, the Steelers haven’t made their first-round pick in the NFL Draft. So no one in Pittsburgh can be angry about that. Yet. Check back here next week. However, we do have Pitt fans prickly about Kenny Pickett, Penguins fans piping up about missing the...
Tim Benz: Steelers should address positional priority over bulk needs in draft
Apparently, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin feels properly hydrated heading into the start of the NFL Draft on Thursday night. “We’ve been very active in free agency,” Tomlin said Monday. “That makes you really comfortable as we lean in on draft weekend. We’ve addressed a lot of needs, and you...
Steelers encounter NFL Draft class loaded with receivers, corners but lacking at other spots
For the first time in NFL history, quarterbacks could be drafted with the first four picks. Six could be selected in the first round. Wide receivers could be taken at a historical rate, too. NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah recently had as many 12 listed among his top 50 overall...
Joe Rutter’s Steelers mock draft: It’s time to fill that hole in middle of offensive line
It makes perfect sense for the Pittsburgh Steelers to take a center early in the NFL Draft. Simply put, they do not have a viable candidate on the roster despite what general manager Omar Khan and coach Mike Tomlin continue to say about their internal options. Khan keeps dropping the name...
Report: Steelers restructure contract of OLB Alex Highsmith, creating $7 million in cap space
The Pittsburgh Steelers are clearing some salary cap space ahead of the NFL Draft. The contract of outside linebacker Alex Highsmith has been restructured, converting most of his $10.733 million salary into a signing bonus, NFL Network reported Wednesday. Highsmith is in the first year of a four-year, $68 million...
Mark Madden: Expect quarterback fever with the 2024 NFL Draft, but wide receivers will make most impact
The NFL Draft is anything but an exact science, and the hype surrounding it is a myth. Mike Tomlin bleats about the Pittsburgh Steelers being “prepared,” but every team is equally prepared. Every team has the same resources, information and video. The only difference is how talent available to be...
On Sports: Steelers won’t pick up 5th-year option on Justin Fields; Ben Roethlisberger celebrates draft anniversaryVideo
Did anyone believe it was prudent to exercise a 2025 contract option valued at more than $25 million for a player entering this season as a backup who was given up on by his previous team in exchange for nothing guaranteed more than a sixth-round pick? No? Some might have...
NFL Draft Guide 2024: Who Steelers might pick, position breakdowns, mock drafts
The Pittsburgh Steelers have seven overall picks in the 2024 NFL Draft, starting with the 20th overall in the first round. Here are the team’s picks: • Round 1, selection 20 overall • Round 2, selection 51 • Round 3, selection 84 • Round 3, selection 98 (from Philadelphia via...
Breakfast with Benz NFL Draft preview: QB class will impact Steelers even if they don’t take one
After replacing Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph and Mitch Trubisky with Russell Wilson, Justin Fields and Kyle Allen, the Pittsburgh Steelers are unlikely to draft a quarterback of consequence in this weekend’s NFL Draft. However, this doesn’t mean the Steelers are immune from the impact of the quarterback draft market over...
Chris Adamski’s Steelers mock draft: Doubling up on Georgia tackles… and ex-Cornell players?
How about a redux at one of the sport’s most important positions — a spot that’s prominent among the in-the-trenches group along the line of scrimmage that team management is known to covet? Likewise, how about another type of sequel? Call it, “National-Champion Dawg, 2.0.” When it comes to the...
NFL Draft preview: Deep cornerback class awaits Steelers as they reshape position
Of the five cornerbacks who dressed for the 2023 season opener, four no longer play for the Pittsburgh Steelers. That makes Joey Porter Jr., with all of 11 career starts, the longest-tenured Steelers player at his position as the organization prepares for the NFL Draft. Patrick Peterson was released and...
First Call: Levi Wallace leaves in free agency; medical concern for potential Steelers draftee; bizarre MLB ejection
Tuesday’s “First Call” features news about a departing Pittsburgh Steelers defensive back. A potential Steelers draft target may have a medical concern. The Brandon Aiyuk trade conversation has more oxygen. And a Pittsburgh-area native was a star during a crazy day at Yankee Stadium. Losing Levi Cornerback Levi Wallace is...
Breakfast with Benz NFL Draft preview: Despite Steelers’ need at center, ‘anomaly’ of elite tackles may be too much to pass up
As we discussed in our NFL Draft preview podcast series with former pro and college scout Matt Williamson, the Pittsburgh Steelers have significant needs at defensive back and wide receiver. But in both cases, the truly top-notch players at those positions are likely to be gone by the time they...
Steelers notes: ‘Top 30’ visits to facility just 1 part of Mike Tomlin’s draft evaluation process
After a fourth question about official pre-draft “top 30” visits the Pittsburgh Steelers host, coach Mike Tomlin had heard enough. “I think you guys,” Tomlin said, referring to the roughly two dozen media members at Monday’s news conference at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, “are probably making a little bit more...
Steelers not ‘overly thirsty’ entering draft despite glaring hole at center
The work done in the offseason, via signings and trades, has saturated the Pittsburgh Steelers roster and kept coach Mike Tomlin hydrated as the NFL Draft approaches. “We’ve addressed a lot of needs, and you don’t feel overly thirsty in any particular area,” Tomlin said Monday at a pre-draft news...
NFL Draft preview: Steelers could pass on safety class that is lacking top-tier prospects
Since taking Terrell Edmunds with the No. 28 overall pick in 2018 and trading for Minkah Fitzpatrick a year later, the Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t needed to use an early draft pick on the safety position. The only additions via the draft came late on the third day. In 2020, the...
Mark Madden: Getting a 1st-round WR makes sense, but the Steelers cling to outdated philosophy
Conventional wisdom says the Pittsburgh Steelers will take an offensive lineman with their first pick of the NFL Draft, 20th overall. Either a tackle or center. Whichever of those two positions isn’t addressed with that choice, they will likely select in the second round. That’s smart. If it’s the ’70s....
Breakfast With Benz NFL Draft preview: ‘Awesome’ receiver class awaits Steelers to address significant need
I was never the world’s biggest Diontae Johnson fan. But I still wasn’t wild about the Pittsburgh Steelers’ recent trade which shipped him off to Carolina for cornerback Donte Jackson. For all of Johnson’s inconsistencies, I still think he was a better receiver than Jackson is a corner. And, while...
First Call: Steelers may have 1st-round trade-down partner, if they want; another team fends off WR trade rumors
Monday’s “First Call” has a draft day trade idea for the Pittsburgh Steelers. More news on a potential Steelers trade target from the wide receiver talent pool. The Pirates may be facing the wrong team at the wrong time. And an ex-Pirates pitcher is mowing down the National League. Something...
NFL Draft preview: In lean year for inside linebackers, Steelers can ride with veteran starters
When the Pittsburgh Steelers broke training camp last year, they had three veteran free agents sharing playing time at inside linebacker. All three were starters elsewhere and provided an ample level of comfort at a spot that was completely retooled that offseason. “We felt really good about the position,” general...
NFL Draft preview: Inspired by Micah Parsons, Penn State duo trying to make mark as pass rushers
It’s fitting that Chop Robinson’s draft bio on the NFL website compares him to Dallas Cowboys star defender Micah Parsons. Although they played different positions at Penn State, they have enough similar traits that personnel execs believe Robinson can follow in Parsons’ footsteps and excel as an NFL pass rusher....
NFL Draft preview: High-end defensive tackles lacking in 2024 class
For a team that could use another infusion of youth on the defensive line, the Pittsburgh Steelers elected to stockpile veteran depth in the offseason. The Steelers re-signed nose tackle Montravius Adams to a two-year contract at the outset of free agency. They added ninth-year veteran Dean Lowry, who turns...
First Call: Steelers QB Russell Wilson to throw out Pirates’ 1st pitch; watch Paul Skenes sparkle again in IndyVideo
In Friday’s “First Call,” new Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson is getting back to his baseball roots. Paul Skenes makes another minor league start. A local pitcher is tearing up the American League in Oakland, and we preview this weekend’s Pirates-Red Sox series at PNC Park. Russ is with us...
Breakfast With Benz NFL Draft preview: Front 7 fits and misses for Steelers
When the Pittsburgh Steelers were truly elite at team-building, they could afford to spend high draft choices on front-seven defensive players who didn’t necessarily have to come in and start right away but could contribute and evolve into long-term defensive stalwarts. Particularly along the defensive line. Cameron Heyward, Stephon Tuitt,...
