The Pittsburgh Steelers are in an odd spot heading into the 2020 NFL Draft. Ben Roethlisberger missed basically the entire season, they traded their first round pick for Minkah Fitzpatrick, but have a good enough roster to compete. Where Pittsburgh goes from here, who knows. This is a team that normally drafts well. Let’s dive right into their 2020 NFL Draft war room to see what Kevin Colbert and his team are thinking.
The Steelers have picks that sit at 49 and 102. We’re going to spend most of the focus there. Pittsburgh has 6 picks total. The rest of the picks add up to two 4th, a 5th, and 6th rounders. That’s basically the entire draft for the Steelers. They have some work to do and trading for Minkah Fitzpatrick put them behind the 8 ball a bit in order to seal a big draft. Not that they regret the trade because he’s a great player.
The Steelers defense is probably the area of focus. Pass rusher and secondary help. The Steelers were able to retain Bud Dupree but they lost depth at the position. It’s Dupree, TJ Watt, and NOTHING behind them. Josh Uche would be a really nice pick at 49. Uche is an athletic pass rusher from Michigan who is quick twitch and can bend around the edge. It would be a smart buy who can transition into a starter if they let Bud walk after this year. Bradlee Anae of Utah is another option. BUT, Uche is a great buy who didn’t get the proper respect at Michigan playing behind Chase Winovich and Rashan Gary. When Uche got his chance, he balled out. The former Wolverine has 14.5 sacks the last two years and was mostly a reserve as a Junior.
Pittsburgh needs cornerback help. How about someone like Darnay Holmes at the back half of the 3rd round. Holmes was a big time recruit and has quick feet. He was a top combine performer for me. Pittsburgh lost Artie Burns in free agency and Joe Haden is aging. There are more questions than answers in this secondary. It’s a position they have to attack and Holmes is a good place to start.
