We are back with another Pittsburgh Steelers and NFL Draft Mailbag, ladies and gentlemen! With the conclusion of the offseason program, it feels like a good time to take a step back from the heat and talk some football.
As always, I sincerely appreciate all of the questions that you all provided, as they made for some outstanding talking points to help pass the time until training camp arrives. Here we go.
Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt in a game against the Baltimore Ravens on Jan. 4, 2026. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Q: What will T.J. Watt look like in Patrick Graham's defense? Will he still be chipped and double-teamed at a ridiculously high rate?
A: Even though he's no longer at the apex of his powers, T.J. Watt is still a good player with innate playmaking ability, so it's safe to assume that opposing offensive coordinators are going to devote additional resources to slowing him down. The reason those chips have been so effective is because he's a speed rusher that wins primarily high-side, and as his athleticism has faded a bit, he hasn't quite been able to add counters to his game to combat that.
It's no substitute for game-changing plays, but his gravity is still valuable, just difficult to quantify. He seems more open to moving around this year, but it might make more sense for them to utilize Nick Herbig in that role because he's just better suited for it. All in all, I'm cautiously optimistic that Patrick Graham will bring about a more modern approach and give everyone, including Watt, a boost as a result.
Q: What do you think are the pros and cons of the Steelers' current team-building philosophy?
A: They've always put a premium on pass rushers during my lifetime, and outside of quarterback play, there's an argument that being able to get home with four is the next most important ingredient to a championship squad. I've always admired how they've been able to find outliers of some sort, with Herbig being the latest example, that have the position-critical traits to create chaos even without the ideal measurements. Throughout the Omar Khan / Andy Wiedl era, they've invested premium draft capital in extremely athletic and highly skilled offensive linemen with high ceilings. That's always going to be a strong formula for success in the long run.
The entire construction of the passing game has been a mess during the 2020s, and having arguably the league's worst wide receiver room in a two-year stretch is unacceptable. They continue to roll with very rigid quarterbacks that put such strict limitations on how they can attack defenses through the air. Overall, I think my biggest gripe has been the lack of ambition towards escaping the middle class of the league or timeline navigation. The standard seems to have shifted from contending for trophies to merely being content with maximizing whatever is on the roster that particular year.
To end on a positive note: I do think the organization will finally begin to prioritize offense over defense under Mike McCarthy , which will be a breath of fresh air for many, including myself.
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. and Germie Bernard at OTAs on May 18, 2026 — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Q: Are you surprised that rookie wideout Germie Bernard is earning rave reviews coming out of OTAs? Is it realistic to expect him to start at some point this season?
A: Admittedly, I put very little stock into player report cards before pads even come on, but it doesn't surprise me that Germie Bernard is impressing folks early on. Part of the allure with him was how simple his evaluation was—there were a fair number of receivers with higher ceilings, but his well-roundedness (including his run blocking!) gave him a high floor worth banking on.
The biggest thing for him is just building chemistry with Aaron Rodgers , who is incredibly big on the details and notoriously demanding of young receivers to get on the same wavelength, particularly with the hand signals and route depths. McCarthy will base out of 11 (3 WRs) personnel, and it's absolutely reasonable to anticipate him being one of those guys on opening weekend.
Pittsburgh Steelers safety Jaquan Brisker at practice on May 18, 2026. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Q: Are you worried about the free safety position?
A: If you include Jalen Ramsey , who seems slated to start the season in the slot, the Steelers have three starting-caliber safeties, and that's a good place to be. There is definitely a good bit of overlap in skill sets between DeShon Elliott (returning from a significant injury) and Jaquan Brisker , both of whom are notably better near the line of scrimmage.
Graham's system features a heavy amount of Cover 2 looks (21.3% of pass snaps in 2024), but someone will have to play center field whenever they play Cover 3 (33.9%), and that's where things could get dicey. Both players fill the run from depth quite well, but keeping a lid on the shot plays and limiting explosives will be the key here.
If worst comes to worst, they could shift Ramsey back into that role, as well, although there's some obvious give-and-take with that decision. Last season, he helped stabilize things in the secondary from a communication standpoint while remaining assignment sound, keeping things in front of him. However, it came at a cost with very little ball production from that specific alignment, which is tougher to justify when he's one of the highest-paid players on the entire team. So, they do have options to at least prevent things from going off the rails. Regardless, I'm fascinated to see how all the pieces of the puzzle come together in the new system.
Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. at practice on Jan. 2, 2026. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Q: Will the Steelers extend Joey Porter Jr. , and what will his new contract look like?
A: My prediction remains the same: yes, but this was always going to be the most difficult negotiation to sort through for a handful of reasons. Joey Porter Jr. has been very transparent in his belief that he thinks he's one of the best players at his position and surely wants to be compensated as such, meaning his deal will have the highest percentage of guaranteed money attached to it.
At this stage of his development, he's a pretty scheme-specific player, which has made him even more valuable to Pittsburgh because of how often they've played man coverage in recent years compared to the rest of the league. Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn received a four-year, $100M deal with roughly 47% of that fully guaranteed last offseason, so his camp will likely be using that as a comparison. There's risk there because of the volatility of the position, but as long as he continues to fine-tune the other areas of his game (zone coverage, run defense), then this is a contract that should age fine.
Oklahoma State's Drew Mestemaker celebrates after an OSU touchdown during a spring football game for the Oklahoma State University Cowboys at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla., Saturday, April 18, 2026. — USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Q: What are your thoughts on Oklahoma State quarterback Drew Mestemaker?
A: A transfer from North Texas, Drew Mestmaker has one of the wildest stories to becoming a draft prospect in recent memory: he's a zero-star recruit that played on the defensive side of the ball in high school before walking on, winning the starting quarterback gig, and putting up impressive numbers (4,381 yards and 34 touchdowns) as a redshirt freshman.
He's a poised passer that is generally accurate to all three levels of the field, and there are a surprising amount of anticipatory throws over the middle on his tape. He's got good size with room to put on even more mass to his frame and is a functional athlete, which you see with how well he throws on the move even when rolling to his left. Overall, his physical traits are solid by NFL standards.
There are some pretty vast peaks and valleys to his play throughout the course of games—most of the dips come when he's faced with immediate pressure in the pocket, and that often causes his decision-making to go awry. His offensive coordinator, whom he is following to Stillwater, did an excellent job scheming things up for him, but he was asked to operate some full-field reads and got to the backside of the progression multiple times in the games that I studied. With that being said, his process isn't consistently sound, as he'll turn down open receivers and is still learning how to throw guys open versus leverage. Finally, he's facing a significantly more difficult schedule to open the season this year and if he shows well in those matchups, I'll be more inclined to throw him into my 2027 NFL Draft quarterback rankings.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph during a game against the Baltimore Ravens on Jan. 4, 2026. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Q: What are the odds that Mason Rudolph is on the roster when the Steelers take the field week one?
A: That's tough, I'll say about 30%. Obviously, Rodgers and Drew Allar are both locks for the 53-man roster, so then it comes down to whether Mason Rudolph can beat out Will Howard for that final spot. He's entering his age 31 season with 20 career starts to his name in a myriad of offenses at this point, so the experience factor is on his side.
I do buy the notion that McCarthy is intrigued at the idea of developing Howard, at least into a backup caliber signal caller, which is something that I thought was well within the realm of possibility when he was coming out of Ohio State. How those guys pick up the offense in training camp and perhaps more importantly, how they perform in live action throughout preseason, will be the tipping point. You can't disregard unforeseen injuries in this equation either. Because I don't envision this being the reason Pittsburgh wins or loses the Super Bowl in 2027, my preference would be to stick with the youngster.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now : DB's Steelers Mailbag: Watt Usage, Porter Extension, Backup QB Battle
