Steelers get aggressive, go big in rounds 2-3 of 2023 NFL Draft
The second day of the 2023 NFL Draft is in the books. The Pittsburgh Steelers entered the second round with the No. 32 pick and, despite claims that numerous other NFL teams made calls about that spot, held and went after a player they absolutely wanted. Omar Khan, Andy Weidl, Mike Tomlin, and company got aggressive throughout the remainder of the second and third rounds, adding talent on both sides of the ball.
Before jumping into the Day 2 picks for Pittsburgh, there’s something to add about the Steelers’ first round.
Smoke screen
Now that the smoke screen has cleared and Pittsburgh has a new left tackle named Broderick Jones from Georgia, who had him in their mock draft to the Steelers? Anyone?
I never saw his name mentioned by anyone as the Steelers’ first round selection, and Pittsburgh did a great job of covering their behinds and blowing smoke by stating, prior to the draft, that they were good with Dan Moore Jr., their current third-year left tackle. That being said, they did a great job of moving ahead of the J-E-T-S. That was intel they had because they knew New York was going to pick.
Does Moore become the ‘swing tackle’ or, possibly, do the Steelers let Chukwuma Okorafor go after this season and stick Moore there? They can save $8,750,000 next year by removing Okorafor.
Pick 32: Second round
Joey Porter Jr. was the man of the of the hour. A great pick at 32 overall. The Steelers did not like the trades that were offered, apparently. They grabbed the local Penn State product, instead.
Porter will be a great cornerback for the Steelers. Veteran corner Patrick Peterson will be a great guy for the fresh rookie to learn from. Porter is a sticky defensive back who can be a true ‘shutdown corner’ for the Steelers. Watch out AFC North, there is a new dude in town. And he has that attitude that Pops (Joey Porter Sr.) had.
Making his own mark. 📈 pic.twitter.com/t83KIarM7H
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) April 29, 2023
Pick 49: Second round
Defensive lineman Keeanu Benton out of Wisconsin became the Steelers’ second 2nd-round pick on Friday night. Great job, in my opinion, from the Steelers scouting department and front office. Pittsburgh needed some quality youngsters to fill in when Cameron Heyward needs a rest.
Benton can anchor the nose tackle spot or slide over at the defensive end position. Can he be a long-term replacement once Heyward is ready to hang up the cleats? Only time will tell. Just plug Benton in and let him play this season.
DC Teryl Austin on DL Keeanu Benton: pic.twitter.com/5nZGMFABf3
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) April 29, 2023
Pick 93: Third round
There was a lot of chatter about this year’s tight end draft class. The Steelers added a guy many in the NFL are calling a “mauler” to pair with Pat Freiermuth in Darnell Washington of Georgia.
Washington a big tight end who can block and occasionally catch a pass. We can use all the help we can get for the running game and he can be a big body in the end zone. Let’s hope he is everything Joe K. (here at Steel City Underground) thinks he is going to be.
Massive Mauler 💪
📺: #NFLDraft on NFLN pic.twitter.com/QnTYFNyEiC
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) April 29, 2023
Summary
Great draft Steelers. Overall, I believe the team is heading back to playoffs and they are going to be nasty.
Pittsburgh, who traded with the Carolina Panthers to get Washington, has the following picks on Day 3 of the NFL Draft:
Round 4 (pick 132 overall, SF>CAR>PIT), Round 7 (pick 241 overall, MIN>DET>PIT), and Round 7 (pick 251 overall, LA>PIT compensatory) barring any other trades that are made in what has already been a trade-intensive draft.
