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Four Freak Athletes for Steelers to Target in 2025 NFL Draft
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- Four Freak Athletes for Steelers to Target in 2025 NFL Draft
Next week, all of the top prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft will be in one central location: The NFL Combine in Indianapolis, for the biggest job interview of their lives. Teams will get face time with the players of their choosing, athletes have another massive opportunity to showcase their talent and fans get their first real glimpse of the positional groups that the Pittsburgh Steelers are prioritizing in the draft.
Will they go back to the well in the trenches, flip to the defensive side of the ball or nab a playmaker offensively? While obviously not a final declaration, we'll have more clarity very soon.
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For as much as people poke fun at the "underwear olympics", the athletic testing portion of this event does indeed matter, granted more for some teams than others. Every year, it seems like there are a few electrifying performances from athletic freaks that set social media ablaze.
With that in mind, let's discuss several interesting 2025 NFL Draft prospects at positions of need that could light it up on the turf and draw even more attention from the Steelers brass.
Savion Williams, WR, TCU
Good luck finding a more unique prospect in this class than Savions Williams: a mega-sized wide receiver by trade who moonlights as a tailback and even threw a couple passes in 2024. Explosive is a suitable way to describe his game. As a route runner, he's flexible for his size while also possessing impressive the burst to create yards after the catch by erasing tackling angles in the open field.
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According to Bruce Feldman of The Athletic , Williams has a reported 40-inch vertical and if you want proof of that translating to the football field, go check out his leaping touchdown grab in which he mossed two UCF defenders this past season. With that being said, it's obvious that there's details lacking throughout his game and he'll need to make strides individually to avoid falling into being solely viewed as a gadget player. The Steelers don't have this archetype of player currently but part of me believes that it's one they're seeking in this year's draft class.
Bayshul Tuten, RB, Virginia Tech
Bhayshul Tuten, Virginia Tech Athletics
For as talented as this running back crop is at the top, it's just as promising from a depth perspective. If you're viewing prospects through the lens of acceleration and straight-line speed, Bayshul Tuten is as good as it gets. The Hokie tailback finished his college career with three straight seasons of double digit touchdowns, many of those via explosive plays on the perimeter. He's shifty with the ball in his hands and has a good feel for finding cutback lanes before bursting into daylight.
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Last offseason, he reportedly clocked a 4.32 40-yard dash and if he were able to replicate that in Indy, that would rank in the 98th percentile among running backs in the mockdraftable database. He's a bit scheme specific, but for Arthur Smith's outside zone-heavy system, he's fits like a glove. He's certainly talented enough to earn a complimentary role immediately but the ball security issues need to be cleaned up or he'll lose the trust of whichever coaching staff he ends up landing with.
Jalen Milroe , QB, Alabama
Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe in practice at the 2025 Senior Bowl, Jan. 30, 2025. — Alan Saunders / Steelers Now
In terms of physical gifts, Jalen Milroe sits on a throne by his lonesome in an otherwise underwhelming quarterback class. Whether it's as a scrambler or a designed runner out of the backfield, he shows off a rare combination of strength, speed and wiggle at 220 pounds. Nothing on the rushing menu is off the table with him under center, as he's capable of running power concepts in between the tackles or executing zone-reads to escape outside. In addition to that, he throws with very good zip and his deep ball accuracy has been the most consistent part of his aerial attack while at Alabama.
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Amid an up and down college career, Milroe received high character marks from anyone who has crossed paths with him, is a noted hard worker with a competitive mindset that should shine in the interview process. His work in the pocket still needs major seasoning, which will take time and patience that some teams won't have the trust to see through. But if the Steelers want to take a high-upside swing for the fences in the 2025 NFL Draft, this is a guy that makes sense once the price is right.
Nick Emmanwori , DB, South Carolina
There's no player in this class that embodies the phrase "built in a lab" than South Carolina's Nick Emmanwori. If taking bets on which prospect ends up as the talk of the town next week, he's as good of a bet as any. Over the past several seasons, Emmanwori wore several hats for the Gamecocks defense: free safety, box safety and slot corner. With all of the different body types shifting inside offensively in the modern NFL, Emmanwori can help a defensive coordinator solve those problems. His size can body up tight ends, he's fluid enough to hang with receivers and his length is a real weapon at the catch point. Not only is he a reliable tackler in space but he's a thumper who sets the tone for the entire defense by regularly knocking ball carriers backwards. The mental processing and general feel in deep coverage assignments needs to be improved upon but it's worth noting that he's still 21-years old.
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The Steelers don't currently have a trustworthy slot option on the roster and while he's a non-traditional solution, it's one that could pique their interest if he falls to the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
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