Khan: Steelers Open to Drafting Quarterback in Later Rounds

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers have rearranged the deck chairs in the quarterback room with Russell Wilson, Justin Fields and Kyle Allen, but they always go into training camp with four quarterbacks. Since they have three guys on the roster, that means one will be added at some point before training camp.

The Steelers have far too many needs to take one early, and Omar Khan even acknowledged as such on Monday. But he would not rule out a potential addition to the room later in the class.

“If you’re asking me – I’d say it’s not realistic that we’d take a quarterback in Round 1, if that’s what you’re asking, no,” Khan said. “There’s some good players and I wouldn’t close the door on anything. If there’s an opportunity to improve that room, we’ll look at it, but like you said, we’ve got three guys who are on one-year deals and we have to be open to it.”

The Steelers held a private workout for Gannon quarterback Kory Curtis earlier this month, according to MLFootball. Curtis is a former Ohio State quarterback, but thrived up in Erie with Gannon. Over the process, he has garnered interest and has displayed a strong arm in his workouts with teams like the Las Vegas Raiders and Dallas Cowboys.

Over his two seasons with Gannon, Curtis threw for 5134 passing yards and had an impressive 47 touchdowns to 11 interceptions. While Curtis started at Ohio State, he transferred to Bryant and then down once again to Gannon. But his physical tools have popped, giving him looks across the NFL. The Steelers have looked at quarterbacks to fill out their room, and they currently have three quarterbacks after the addition of Kyle Allen. But a rookie like Curtis could make sense for the fourth quarterback spot. Curtis last played with Gannon in 2022. He would be signing, though, and is heading to rookie minicamp with the Seattle Seahawks.

South Alabama QB Carter Bradley at the Senior. Bowl, Feb. 3, 2024 – Ed Thompson / Steelers Now

South Alabama quarterback Carter Bradley is another guy on the level they were interested in, and quarterbacks coach Tom Arth was sent to Mobile for his pro day. A guy at the Senior Bowl, Bradley was the group’s unknown. If you are not used to watching him, he has some surprising zip on his ball, and he plays with arm arrogance. But it can lead to some baffling decisions, and the mechanics on his front leg are a mess, leading to balls spraying all over the field.

While they have shown little to no interest in other quarterbacks, guys like Spencer Rattler, Joe Milton, or Jordan Travis could be intriguing players that add to the room. All have varying levels of physical tools, with Milton boasting a cannon for an arm with severe accuracy issues. Travis is a born leader but is coming off a severe leg injury, while Rattler may go earlier than the Steelers would like to take a quarterback.

The team will likely sign an undrafted free agent rather than draft someone, but since Khan is not closing the door, it is at least something to monitor.

Alan Saunders contributed reporting from Pittsburgh