3 players the Pittsburgh Steelers may regret passing on in 2022 NFL Draft

The Pittsburgh Steelers prioritized Kenny Pickett in the 2022 NFL Draft, but are there some players they may regret passing on?

Leading up to the 2022 NFL Draft, it was abundantly clear that the Pittsburgh Steelers were prioritizing a move at the quarterback position.

This year’s crop of prospects was certainly not universally beloved, especially by the actual teams making selections, and the Steelers didn’t even have to move up from the 20th overall pick in round one to get the QB they coveted most.

Kenny Pickett was just there for the taking, and they took him.

Because of their decision to go hard after the quarterback position, what did the Pittsburgh Steelers potentially miss out on? Here are three players they may regret leaving on the board.

2022 NFL Draft prospects Pittsburgh Steelers may regret passing on

1. Trent McDuffie, CB (Kansas City Chiefs)

Just one pick after the Pittsburgh Steelers pulled the trigger on their new signal-caller Kenny Pickett, the Kansas City Chiefs moved up to take Washington cornerback Trent McDuffie.

Considering what we saw from McDuffie at Washington, being picked outside of the top 20 overall — even just by one pick — makes him a steal for the Chiefs.

The Pittsburgh Steelers don’t exactly have the type of cornerback room you’re writing home about.

Ahkello Weatherspoon was a very nice addition for them last year and they also have free agent pickup Levi Wallace and slot corner Cameron Sutton, but this is a cornerback room that needed an infusion of top-tier talent.

The Steelers passed, and the Chiefs came in for the scoop.

Although the Steelers were obviously sold on Kenny Pickett, you can’t help but wonder if they would have been better served addressing other needs — like cornerback — with that top pick, rolling with Mitchell Trubisky in 2022, and then going hard after QBs in the 2023 NFL Draft class.

Player the Pittsburgh Steelers may regret passing on no. 2: Skyy Moore, WR

Another player the Pittsburgh Steelers may regret passing on also just so happened to be selected by the Kansas City Chiefs.

Just two picks after the Steelers pulled the trigger on big George Pickens out of Georgia, the Chiefs landed a player that many felt had a decent shot at the first round in this year’s draft.

That player is none other than Western Michigan receiver Skyy Moore.

In terms of physical traits, Pickens has Moore beat by a couple miles.

Pickens has outstanding size and as a result, a massive catch radius. He’s got the ability to help the Steelers’ offense give teams major headaches with another big, fast receiver on the outside in Chase Claypool.

Not that you have to have a receiver room with all shapes and sizes of players, but I think Skyy Moore presented a bit less risk there in round two than Pickens.

Pickens is coming off of an injury that nearly took away his entire 2021 season at Georgia. Although he’s back and healthy, Moore is one of the best and most proven deep threats in this year’s draft class.

He’ll probably excel right away with the Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes throwing him passes. Not that any success he has early on would be immediately translatable to another team, but you can’t help but wonder if Moore would have been the best replacement for the Steelers losing guys like JuJu Smith-Schuster and James Washington this offseason.

Player no. 1 the Pittsburgh Steelers will regret passing on: Malik Willis, QB

I’m sure Pittsburgh Steelers fans are happy with the top three picks this team ultimately ended up with in the 2022 NFL Draft.

• Kenny Pickett, QB
• George Pickens, WR
• DeMarvin Leal, DL

However, things could have been quite different. Instead of those three players, the Steelers could have come away from this year’s draft with all of:

• Trent McDuffie, CB
• Skyy Moore, WR
• Malik Willis, QB

The talk leading up to the 2022 NFL Draft seemed to all be centered around Malik Willis for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The internet and Twitterverse had laughed about how much it appeared Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin liked Willis.

If Tomlin showing so much love for Willis in the pre-draft process, even just non-verbally, was all a ploy to mask their interest in Kenny Pickett, then Tomlin deserves an Oscar for his performance.

Or, it’s possible that after a ton of discussion with everyone in the draft room, the Steelers just collectively decided that Pickett was the safer selection — which he might be — and Tomlin was overruled.

Who knows? We probably never will.

If given the choice between these two potential draft classes, I would personally choose the latter if I were the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Getting Malik Willis in round three would have been a total steal for them and would have given them a relatively risk-free dart throw at the position as compared to a first-round pick, who will have the pressure of a first-rounder to prove himself worthy of “franchise QB” status rather quickly.

The Steelers will have to live with their decision if Willis ends up hitting for the Titans and Pickett isn’t able to live up to his first-round hype.