Steelers Land Jackson Powers-Johnson, Malachi Corley in New Mock Draft

The Pittsburgh Steelers have many needs that must be filled out currently throughout the rest of the cycle, including the 2024 NFL Draft. With four picks in the Top-100, there is room to do just that and make some moves. Matt Miller of ESPN attempted to mock all seven rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft, and the haul for the Steelers would not surprise anyone.

In their first two picks, they land Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson in the first round and Western Kentucky wide receiver Malachi Corley.

Steelers offensive line coach Pat Meyer travelled to Eugene for Oregon pro day to watch Powers-Johnson, according to Senior Bowl director Jim Nagy. Head coach Mike Tomlin and general manager Omar Khan were not in attendance, which usually is a sign for future Steelers first-round picks. It’s rare for a center to go in the first round, but Powers-Johnson has played himself into legitimate first-round hype. His movement skills for someone of his size, over 330 pounds, are so rare. And yet, he has only started for one legitimate season. For someone that inexperienced at center to play the way he did speaks to coaching and the rare player, he is coming out of college.

Over the past three seasons, there have only been a handful of guys at the position that have been more productive. With over 250 catches for nearly 3,000 yards and 29 touchdown grabs, his resume on paper is really impressive. Corley’s unique play style and physical profile has drawn comparisons to another former Senior Bowl standout: current San Francisco 49ers playmaker Deebo Samuel.  As we all know, Samuel is a true unicorn at the position but there are certainly some similarities between the two players, most notably their indistinguishable builds.

Corley’s dense frame shows up in the play strength department, with him showcasing the ability to consistently fall forward or maintain balance upon contact with potential tacklers. Corley is built like a running back with plus vision for the position who shows a good understanding of reading blocks and angles in space.

After that, they addressed offensive tackle and cornerback, drafting Texas’ Christian Jones and Florida State’s Renardo Green. They land their defensive tackle in the fourth round, selecting Baylor’s Gabe Hall. This would follow a lot of what the Steelers like to do: draft guys they have seen up close. Jones, Green, and Hall attended the Shrine Bowl or Senior Bowl. Hall and Green had fantastic weeks at the Senior and Shrine Bowls, respectively. Jones did, too, with his length and athleticism flashing, though the tape is tough. He is a project but has great physical tools.

Finishing out the class, they landed Washington linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio and doubled down at wide receiver to land Colorado’s Xavier Waver. In general, the draft makes a lot of sense. It checks off their needs and gets them some nice value up and down the board. It would signal Dan Moore Jr. starting as Jones is raw and not ready to play in year one, but picks like Hall and Green have some serious upside to outplay their draft positions.