Steelers Draft Digest: Dunbar Works Karl Brooks, White at Virginia Tech

The Steelers draft brass sends Karl Dunbar out of Bowling Green and Sheldon White gets a look at some prospects in Blacksburg.

: Steelers defensive line coach Karl Dunbar traveled to Bowling Green University to not only get a look at Bowling Green DL Karl Brooks, but to put him through his workout. Pittsburgh is looking to add defensive linemen, and rightfully so. After the brutal combine snub that Brooks received after a great week in Mobile at the Senior Bowl. Meanwhile, area scout Mark Gorscak was also there in attendance.

This continues a trend of Pittsburgh having an interest in defensive linemen throughout the draft cycle. As such, expect Pittsburgh to draft at least one, if not two, defensive linemen during the process. Brooks could be a sneaky mid-round pick that they want to land.

: In a new mock draft done by the Draft Wire, the Steelers land a massive tackle in Georgia OT Broderick Jones. That would be about as ideal as it could get. In the rest of the class, they land Kansas State CB Julius Brents, Iowa LB Jack Campbell, and LSU WR Kayshon Boutte. That makes sense with their needs profiled, though it would be tough to walk away without a defensive lineman at some point in the draft.

: Meanwhile, Pittsburgh sent the director of pro scouting Sheldon White down to Blacksburg, according to Aaron Wilson. Virginia Tech pro day is from loaded, but standout slot cornerback Chamarri Conner immediately stands out as a player that the Steelers draft brass could like as a mid-round pick. A physical ballhawk, Conner has versatility and could fit the need of a passing-down slot cornerback in the draft.

: The Steelers lost a 2024 compensatory pick by signing Patrick Peterson after losing Cam Sutton. However, they can easily gain it back with some other losses, but they should still be plenty active in free agency, so the question of whether they will have a compensatory pick still seems to be up in the air. In addition, they are indirect cancellations according to Nick Korte, meaning they are across different rounds.

🏈: Star cornerback Devon Witherspoon out of Illinois did not participate in the pro day for the Fighting Illini today after suffering a hamstring injury in NFL Combine training. That leaves Witherspoon with his own personal workout date on the 6th of April, where teams will get to see the star workout and test on his own. However, until then, they will go without those numbers.