It's been too long since I've done a mailbag article for the site and for that, I apologize. Now back home from the NFL Combine, The Pittsburgh Steelers have a huge week ahead of them on the dawn of free agency. They have plenty of cash space to spend and plenty of voids that they need to fill in the process, including what happens at quarterback. No matter what transpires, it should be an entertaining week that provides plenty of consumable content.
As always, I really appreciate all of the responses on social media that brought forth a variety of interesting topics to discuss. Here we go.
Q: How did the Steelers miss out on Geno Smith ?
A: Good question. Good passers rarely become available and the cost was insignificant, even factoring in a market rate extension. For all we know, they could have inquired but were outbid, but this is something the Steelers should have been in on, for sure. His first two seasons as a starter, he led top-12 offenses in points per drive. Last season was a step down in both his and the teams performance but it was basically an untenable situation given how much they were putting on his shoulders behind a disastrous offensive line.
Smith turns 35 later this year, so he's no spring chicken. But with Pittsburgh running it back with an older core and the coaching staff intact, he was the best option available to help maximize that window. It still seems like Russell Wilson or Justin Fields are the most likely option under center next season.
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith warms up before his team's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct, 18 2021. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Q: Do you believe the reports of Shedeur Sanders stock falling this much ? If he's available for the Steelers in round one, should they consider taking him?
A: The timing of it all makes sense, given how many media members and team personnel were all in Indianapolis for the NFL Combine last week. To me, it's less about his stock falling per se and more about realizing that the NFL as a whole thinks that this is a one-quarterback class with Cam Ward as the consensus top guy.
There are things to love about Sanders game (Sharpshooter accuracy with a repeatable throwing motion, competitive toughness and smart decision making) but his game has some significant warts that are rather worrisome as well (consistently drifting in the pocket, underwhelming drive velocity and middling creation capacity).
I have a second-round grade on Sanders and think he can be a solid starter in the right situation but when you're taking a quarterback in the top-10 of the NFL Draft, you'd ideally like someone with more upside or a player that's more of a finished product. The Colorado offense was mostly a mess outside the receiver room and that did make his evaluation more frustrating to complete. If Pittsburgh took him in the first round, I could understand the vision given the massive need.
Q: Do the Steelers have a legitimate shot at landing Milton Williams in free agency?
A: I don't think so. He's an awesome player, but seeing how so many of the big fish targets were taken off the board before the contact period, it leaves Williams as one of the most impactful players left. Simply put, he's going to get paid. As of right now, Larry Ogunjobi is still on the roster but we'll see if that remains true for much longer seeing as he's due a $3 million roster bonus on March 15.
If he remains on the roster for 2025, I think you can still make the argument that they should take an interior defensive lineman in round one, assuming there's one they are in love with. They have to prepare themselves for the eventual Cam Heyward replacement anyways. But it's difficult to see them making a significant addition via free agency in the trenches given what's on the roster currently.
Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Broderick Jones during a game against Baltimore Ravenson Nov. 17, 2024. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Q: What's the status report on Broderick Jones ? Were last years struggles due to a steep learning curve in a new system? If he continues down this path, could he kick inside to guard?
A: The Steelers brass had to know that they were taking a pretty big risk trading up in the first round to select him out of Georgia because he was so raw from a technical standpoint without much playing experience. This was always going to be a three-year project at minimum. The most concerning part is that he's still struggling with the same things in pass pro (bending at the waist, inconsistent strike timing and wide hand placement) and his effectiveness as a run blocker wasn't the same in 2024, either.
His weaknesses would be further exposed at guard. I do think the elbow injury that he suffered in training camp had an impact on his natural play strength. Moving back to left tackle could be a good thing for him but those quick losses in pass pro are even more difficult for a quarterback to mitigate. He's the starter Week 1, but they need some sort of contingency plan, preferably a veteran with some starting experience, if things go south quickly.
Q: Should the Steelers be targeting receivers that only play on the outside given how much depth they have in the slot already?
A: In a perfect world, they'd probably prefer to either sign a guy like Darius Slayton , who has experience playing outside in free agency. Calvin Austin III took a step forward last season and the team invested a third round pick in Roman Wilson . With that being said, I don't think either of those players are proven contributors to the point that you'd pass on a primary slot receiver that you're in love with.
For example, Ohio State wide receiver Emeka Egbuka . In base, he could play the Z but in three receiver sets, he would work best in the slot. If they think he's one of the 20 best players in the draft and the highest graded player on their board, they should simply select him. I think positional preference should be more of a tie-breaking than a dealbreaker for them. They just need more weapons, regardless of who is throwing the football next fall.
Ohio State receiver Emeka Egbuka before 2024 game. — ruralexpat
Q: If you could choose one free agent to sign, who would it be?
A: The seemingly never-ending wide receiver saga is something that all of us are ready to put an end to but this is an unusually solid cornerback market with a lot of good players for the picking. Charavrius Ward's 2023 film was the most impressive of all of the guys that I studied this cycle. He's long with comfortability in press, sees the game well from off coverage and is an outstanding open field tackler. Pairing him with Joey Porter Jr. on the boundary would be really fun and give them a solution that they've been searching for over the years. He'll be 29-years old and matches the timeline of their defense.
I'm not picky, though. Whether it's Byron Murphy , Carlton Davis , Paulson Adebo or a few others, filling that void in free agency just makes too much sense. If they're able to get the boundary spot squared away, they could prioritize finding a slot corner in the draft process and there's a couple good options to choose from there as well.
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens guarded by San Francisco 49ers cornerback Charvarius Ward
Q: What are your thoughts on Tennessee WR Dont'e Thornton? He's a name that we had not heard a lot about prior to the Combine.
A: Every year, there are a couple guys that test phenomenally and force you to check out their tape, with Thornton being one of those guys for me this year. To properly contextualize how freaky this dude is, he scored a 9.80 relative athletic score and ironically, one of his closest athletic comps was George Pickens . In college, he basically only ran two routes: go's and slants but he turned so many of his chances into chunk plays. It's very apparent that he can really move and the 4.3 40-time translates to when he's out there on the field, plus you can't teach the size. There's only one year of even modest production, which was 2024 in a funky offensive system, but you can guarantee that some team will be willing to take a chance on the profile on day three. There are some similarities to a guy like Marquez Valdez-Scantling, who has had a long NFL career as a depth threat and there's a chance that Thornton could replicate that.
Q: I see so many mock draft gurus choosing QB, WR or DB as the first pick. Why do they seem to not take into account where the Steelers coaches focus lies during the pre-draft process?
A: The simple answer to your question is because there are 32 teams and that's a lot of information to process simultaneously. For most, the thought process is simply to look at the needs of the roster and try to apply a player to that team that would help alleviate that specific void. That process certainly isn't perfect but it's not as predictive as a lot of fans would like. Mock drafts are a fun exercise that drive a ton of traffic from a readership perspective and that's why you see so many of them, but they aren't gospel by any means.
In my opinion, the real value can be found from guys like Daniel Jeremiah and Dane Brugler because they have good intel on how the league views individual players and what their perceived stock could be. But even then, it only takes one team to fall in love with a prospect and just because that player goes early, it doesn't mean the rest of the league valued him that way. So, it's tricky. If you're just interested in mocks from a Steelers perspective, it's best to just pay more attention to those that cover the team with more detail, which is what we strive to do here at Steelers Now , rather than those that have to focus on things through a big picture lens.
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