Draft prep 101: Offensive tackles the Steelers can't pass up

Each day this week, “Breakfast With Benz” will get you ready for this month’s NFL Draft by posting daily “Draft 101” podcasts. Former NFL and college scout and current Steelers Nation Radio host, Matt Williamson, joins Tim Benz for daily podcasts breaking down draft-eligible players in different position groups.

Wednesday looks at the crop of offensive linemen.

A popular narrative within a portion of Pittsburgh Steelers fans, media members and bloggers is that the franchise has to draft a tackle with the No. 17 pick in the first round. While Dan Moore and Chuks Okorafor proved themselves to be a capable tandem over the past two years, the belief is that there is still room for improvement.

Not to mention that the Steelers haven’t selected a first-round tackle since Jamain Stephens in 1996.

But in Wednesday’s “Draft 101” podcast, Williamson says he’d use a top-17 pick on one of two players for the Steelers this year: Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr. and Georgia’s Broderick Jones.

Look at Georgia LT Broderick Jones get out in space and get the kill shot on the DB. Bulldogs aren’t messing around on either side of the ball today. pic.twitter.com/Z9GblTFTVm

— Bobby Football (@Rob__Paul) November 5, 2022

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— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) March 22, 2023

Many would throw Northwestern’s Peter Skoronski into that mix too. Under normal circumstances, Williamson would agree. But, for what the Steelers need, he doesn’t see Skoronski as a perfect fit in Black and Gold.

“I think he is the best blocker in this whole draft. I think he has the best offensive line tape in this whole draft,” Williamson said of Skoronski. “But the Steelers were so aggressive getting guards (in free agency), I think they have to be prototypical-tackle shopping, and that’s it — the 6-foot-5, long arm, ‘look the part’ guys. And as good as Skoronski is, his arm length is very short. He is very stubby for a left tackle. And if they didn’t get all these guards (Nate Herbig, Isaac Seumalo), I’d be fine with it because he will play somewhere on the front five. But if he is not a left tackle, then you are stuck with five guards instead of an extra tackle.”

Cornerback is another popular position of choice for the Steelers when it comes to observers of the draft. But Williamson says — barring an unforeseen drop from Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez or Illinois’ Devon Witherspoon —there isn’t a cornerback the Steelers could take that he would select before Johnson Jr. or Jones. But he thinks “there is less than a 50% chance” either of those two tackles are on the board when the Steelers select anyway.

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Beyond those two, the Steelers have also been linked to Darnell Wright out of Tennessee and Johnson Jr.’s Ohio State teammate Dawand Jones. However, Williamson thinks both players may profile better as right tackles than left tackles. That would require Okorafor to switch sides since, in all likelihood, a first-round tackle pick would be moving Moore—not Okorafor—to the bench.

“Wright struggled at left tackle and excelled at right tackle,” Williamson said. “So I think he is only a right. … Dawand Jones (6-foot-8, 359 pounds) looks like a prototypical pure right tackle. He is the biggest human being you have ever seen. Paris Johnson is on the other side, the light-footed pass protector. But if you draft Dawand Jones — and I’m thinking more 32 than 17 — incorporate him as the extra tight end a lot, you can live with Dan Moore. It may not be perfect. But semi-red shirt Dawand Jones. Put him in goal line (situations). Put him 10 snaps a game as a sixth offensive lineman as he learns left tackle.”

Williamson likened Jones’ potential growth to that of Orlando Brown’s — a big, mauling type of player that eventually could refine his game to the point that he could play either tackle spot.

Don’t hand fight with Dawand Jones. I’m begging you. pic.twitter.com/pmHsRZOzDZ

— Josh Taylor (@JoshTaylorFB) January 31, 2023

Also, in Wednesday’s podcast, Williamson gives us his thoughts on if the franchise actually agrees with the public perception that it needs a tackle in the first place. We also discuss the guards the Steelers signed and if there are any centers in the draft that may tempt the Steelers to utilize a pick.

Listen: Tim Benz and Matt Williamson talk Steelers draft: The O-Line