Expect Steelers to stand pat at OT in NFL Draft
The Pittsburgh Steelers built up enough depth at tackle in recent years that they weathered extended absences by starter Marcus Gilbert the past two seasons.
Chris Hubbard started 10 games in 2017, and Matt Feiler picked up where Hubbard left off last season by starting 10 times at right tackle in place of Gilbert.
Hubbard and Feiler were undrafted free agents who came through the pipeline, waiting their turn until an opportunity for playing time was presented. The Steelers also fortified the position by drafting Jerald Hawkins in the fourth round in 2016 and Chuks Okorafor in the third round last season, then adding Zach Banner to the 53-man roster last summer.
Which means one year after losing Hubbard as the top backup, the Steelers are equipped to replace Gilbert, who was traded to the Arizona Cardinals in March for a sixth-round draft pick. And no such issues exist on the left side, where Alejandro Villanueva has started 58 consecutive games and was named to the Pro Bowl the past two seasons.
Feiler, based on his experience last season, figures to enter training camp as the starter at right tackle. The Steelers were impressed by how well Okorafor handled his rookie season — he started in place of an injured Feiler against the Denver Broncos — and Okorafor will be in the mix. Hawkins, a contributor in 2017, will be on the field after spending last year on injured reserve.
“It’s still in the starting blocks,” coach Mike Tomlin said last month at the NFL annual meetings. “We have some capable, young guys. … We feel like we have some quality young tackles, and it will play out in an appropriate way over the course of training camp and the preseason.”
Based on the way the Steelers conducted their predraft visits, they likely will stand pat at tackle during the NFL Draft next week. The Steelers hosted only one offensive lineman during the three-week, 30-player predraft process, and it was a late-round guard prospect.
The Steelers, who hold 10 picks in this year’s draft, haven’t taken a tackle in consecutive years since selecting Gilbert in the second round of the 2011 draft and following with Mike Adams in the second round and Kelvin Beachum in the seventh in 2012.
Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert labeled this class “really good” in “numbers” at tackle, and Houston Texans GM Brian Gaine echoed that sentiment at the NFL Combine.
“I think that’s a good year in the draft at tackle for both the left and right side at various points in the draft from starting-caliber players to backup players,” Gaine said.
NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah had seven tackles listed among the top 50 players in his latest mock. The top tackles are Washington State’s Andre Dillard, a three-year starter on the left side, and Florida’s Jawaan Taylor, who also played on both sides in college.
“He can handle speed in pass protection,” Jeremiah said about Taylor. “He can redirect easy in the run game. He’s got some serious torque to be able to latch on and turn and dump guys. He’s a really, really good football player who has played on the right side, and I think has the ability, eventually if you need him to, he could survive on the left side.”
West Virginia’s Yodny Cajuste, a two-year starter at left tackle, didn’t crack Jeremiah’s list, but he is viewed as a potential second-day pick.
Joe Rutter is a TribLive reporter who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since the 2016 season. A graduate of Greensburg Salem High School and Point Park, he is in his fifth decade covering sports for the Trib. He can be reached at jrutter@triblive.com.
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