27. Pittsburgh Steelers: Isaiah Bond, WR, Texas
Well, we know the Pittsburgh Steelers are going to be pursuing wide receivers in the 2024 offseason. There were rumors that they wanted to trade for Brandon Aiyuk. There were rumors that they wanted to trade for Christian Kirk. There were rumors that they wanted to trade for basically anyone who might have been available.
They settled on Mike Williams, but the need for a receiver is there regardless of what the team decides to do beyond this season at the quarterback position, and right now it looks like Russell Wilson might have a legit shot at getting re-signed with what we’ve seen him do in his first two starts.
The Steelers are such a well-run team. We’re seeing a Mike Tomlin masterclass this year. This offense always seems to do a great job of finding playmakers at just about every juncture of the draft but Isaiah Bond would give them a guy who is extremely dynamic in space and in the vertical passing game.
28. Minnesota Vikings: Deone Walker, DL, Kentucky
The Minnesota Vikings had a pair of first-round picks in the 2024 NFL Draft and used them on JJ McCarthy and Dallas Turner. The 2025 season should be the start of the JJ McCarthy era for the Vikings despite the emergence of Sam Darnold this year, and the Vikings already have the elite-level personnel to surround McCarthy offensively.
A quarterback’s true best friend is a defense that can get off the field quickly, and the Vikings have proven at times this season that they are an up-and-coming unit under coordinator Brian Flores.
You can’t go wrong in the 1st round of the NFL Draft going after players in the defensive trenches, especially rare athletes like Deone Walker. Walker is a game-wrecker on the interior who has size, length, playmaking ability, and the type of disruptive traits to draw a lot of attention.