At quarterback , the Pittsburgh Steelers are stuck between a rock and a hard place. The team's decision-makers await Aaron Rodgers ' decision, and 20 teams pick ahead of them in next month's 2025 NFL Draft. Waiting for next year's crop, which figures to include Texas's Arch Manning , isn't a guarantee, either.
Former NFL general manager and ESPN front office insider Mike Tannenbaum dispelled the notion that the wait-and-see approach is anything close to a sure thing for the Steelers. He has Pittsburgh trading up to the No. 10 spot to take now-former Colorado passer Shedeur Sanders in his latest mock draft .
"Bart Scott, one of my ESPN teammates, has for the last six or seven months espoused the theory that the Giants are trying to tank this year so they can get Arch Manning next year," Tannenbaum said on a media call on Wednesday. "And I'm just like, 'You know, Bart, there's just like way too many variables that happen.' Like, what happens if Arch Manning stays another year? What happens if you win two games at the end unexpectedly, like we saw this year?
"For Pittsburgh, I just don't think you can lock in and say, 'Hey, next year's class is gonna be better.' Because, at the end of the day, we just don't know."
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin watches offensive line vs. defensive line drill during Senior Bowl practice on Jan. 28, 2025. — Alan Saunders / Steelers Now
Manning isn't the only passer the Steelers might be looking forward to possibly getting their hands on. LSU's Garrett Nussmeier , Penn State's Drew Allar , and Clemson's Cade Klubnik are some others. More could emerge, as Tannenbaum pointed out, making banking on one guy in particular a difficult plan.
He referred to Cam Ward's emergence at Miami, a campaign that vaulted him to possibly being the first overall choice.
"If we were sitting here a year ago today and we were talking about a Washington State transfer who started his career at Incarnate Word, nobody would say, like, 'Oh, he may be the first pick in the draft,'" Tannenbaum said. "I think there's just too many variables to … approach, for this year, this position."
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