The Pittsburgh Steelers could lose key pieces on defense this offseason but they fill those holes in the 2020 NFL Draft in this 7-round mock draft.
Mike Tomlin and the Pittsburgh Steelers almost making the NFL Playoffs in the 2019 season is one of the most incredible things that we’ve ever seen. With Ben Roethlisberger missing essentially the entire year due to injury, the Steelers offense was severely limited with Mason Rudolph and Devlin Hodges at quarterback yet the team still finished as the No. 7 club in the final AFC standings.
Because of the way the Steelers performed despite their hardships in the 2019 campaign, there is a ton of optimism about what Pittsburgh can accomplish in 2020. They’ll get Roethlisberger back in the fold, which will be a huge boom in itself, and the defense pulled itself out of a hole to become one of the better units in the league last season.
One of the catalysts for the defense’s resurgence was acquiring Minkah Fitzpatrick via a trade with the Dolphins. The move was met with criticism when it happened as the Steelers had just lost Big Ben to injury and they gave up a first-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft to make the deal happen. But the effect he had on the defense made it hard to fault Pittsburgh too much.
While the Fitzpatrick trade gives the Steelers a young game-changer in the secondary to go with some great pieces like T.J. Watt and 2019 first-round pick Devin Bush, Pittsburgh still has work to do on defense in free agency and the 2020 NFL Draft. With some key players set to hit free agency, there are going to be needs on defense to address without a first- or third-round pick.
Beyond that, the Steelers could also use some help on offense. While they aren’t really in position to upgrade their backup quarterback situation given their lack of draft capital, the offensive line and group of pass-catchers could use some help in terms of depth pieces. Those will be focuses in the draft.
So without a first-round pick, how can the Pittsburgh Steelers get better and tool for a playoff run with Roethlisberger returning? Let’s see what they can do in a new 7-round mock draft as the NFL Combine continues. This mock was simulated using The Draft Network’s mock draft machine.