Kevin Colbert’s history of second round draft picks suggests the best is yet to come

With the first day of the 2018 NFL Draft having it’s dust barely settled, Steelers Nation has already turned its attention toward Pittsburgh’s remaining picks.

The sentiment, as it is every year, is that Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert “needs” to “get it right” with his next picks. A lot of Colbert’s critics are usually cynical over his first-round selections, but even the biggest optimists will agree that he almost always nails the second round.

That’s why I feel day two of the draft is going to be for the Steelers taking, based on previous years.

In 2017 the Steelers hit a home run by taking the best player available at a position of almost zero need: wide receiver. The team was seemingly set with six or seven players at the position group when JuJu Smith-Schuster‘s name was read from the draft card.

“Why did they take a wide receiver?”

The “yinzing”, as we call the complaints of Steelers Nation here, was intense during the draft and weeks after. That was, until, JuJu hit the field: for all intents and purposes he was the most productive receiver out of last year’s class.

In prior years the second round picks have been a mixed bag that hits more often than the Powerball lottery. While names like Limas Sweed, Mike Adams, and Senquez Golson still haunt our memories, picks like Le’Veon Bell and JuJu Smith-Schuster have us clamoring for what the future has in store. Add former second-round picks such as Jason Worilds, Stephon Tuitt, and Marcus Gilbert to the mix, along with a developing in Sean Davis, and our faith in Kevin Colbert should be very high.

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Following the trade of Martavis Bryant, all signs point to a wide receiver being a day two pick. However, the Steelers are still seeking a potential replacement for Ryan Shazier. Therefore, inside linebacker depth will also be a focus as the draft moves forward.

Yet, we could see a swerve. That same trade brought with it the Raiders third-round pick at 75th overall, which is fifteen picks following the Steelers second-round selection. In light of that, don’t be surprised if the team goes for the best player available on the board… or even attempts to move up to get whom they feel is a “must have” prospect.

Regardless, we can already sense that the second day of the 2018 NFL Draft is shaping up to be a big one for the Steelers.

Previous 2nd Round Selections

The following table is a list of second round draft picks made since Kevin Colbert became the Steelers general manager in 2000.