Pittsburgh Steelers’ brass successfully building through the draft
By Ryan Brennan
The Pittsburgh Steelers have done an exceptional job at finding talented players through the draft, no matter the round.
It’s becoming a norm for the Pittsburgh Steelers, something that a lot of teams have been struggling with their entire existence. The NFL Draft is a key time for any NFL franchise looking to receive commitment from a group of young players ready to prove their worth.
Unfortunately for most teams, the draft is a nightmare as we watch them select JaMarcus Russell with the first pick in 2007, Trent Richardson with the third pick in 2012 or Jason Smith with the second pick in 2009. The draft is a make-or-break moment for a franchise’s future, and we often see a lot of the big-name players end up being busts.
Not for the Pittsburgh Steelers, though.
The Steelers find first-round talent in the middle rounds on a consistent basis, and have done a great job of hitting gold with their first round pick. Especially looking over the past three years, I think they’ve done an exceptional job at putting together a great core of young players via the draft.
If these players continue to develop and gain a loyalty to the Steelers, we could see Pittsburgh play some high-level football for years to come.
As I look at the past three drafts, I notice that the Steelers have not only gathered some top-level talent in all rounds, but they added some players at key positions that will help lock down both sides of the ball in the near future.
In this slideshow, I will examine the past three drafts for the Steelers and how each one will shape the team for a bright future. We will start with the 2017 NFL Draft, which personally is my favorite Steelers’ draft in recent memory.