Steelers Now
A new mock draft by Field Yates of ESPN has the Pittsburgh Steelers making a big reach at quarterback in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Yates posted his first mock draft of the cycle just after the Super Bowl on Tuesday morning, and it has the Steelers making the surprising move of taking Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart at pick No. 21 overall in the first round.
Dart is the consensus No. 38 overall player on the NFL Mock Draft Database big board, and the Steelers have publicly stated their intention to sign either Russell Wilson or Justin Fields to a multi-year contract extension this offseason, but Yates still sees the Steelers as desperate for quarterback help.
“The Steelers’ pedestrian offense has held them back from playoff success in recent seasons, and Dart had a prolific college career,” Yates wrote. “Dart also took advantage of Senior Bowl week with a strong showing in front of Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin, who was on the field at each practice.
“This projection represents a big rise up the board from where Dart currently ranks outside my top 32, but quarterbacks always have a chance to climb given positional value. Keep an eye on Dart here as we get closer to April.”
The Steelers did not pay much attention to the quarterbacks in Mobile, with Tomlin, general manager Omar Khan and assistant general manager Andy Weidl spending most of their time at the Senior Bowl obsessing over the defensive lineman.
Yates has them passing on a couple of good ones, with Oregon’s Derrick Harmon and Michigan’s Kenneth Grant still on the board at pick No. 21. There were also lots of options at wide receiver, including Missouri’s Luther Burden III, Ohio State’s Emeka Egbuka and Texas’ Matthew Golden.
