Steelers Open to Drafting First-Round QB: ‘I Wouldn’t Close the Door’
PALM BEACH, Fla. — As the calendar turns to April, the Pittsburgh Steelers still have a significant need at quarterback for the 2025 season. They have an even more significant need beyond the 2025 season.
The Steelers have two quarterbacks under contract for the 2025 season: Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson. Both were signed as free agents this spring. Rudolph was the backup for the Tennessee Titans last year. Thompson was the third-stringer for the Miami Dolphins.
Neither player is moving the needle in 2025, even if the Steelers continue to express their level of faith in Rudolph. It seems likely that they’ll add another veteran like Aaron Rodgers, but that will still only be a short-term option.
If the Steelers want to take a significant step to secure the long-term future of the position, that will have to come through the draft.
The only problem with that idea is that the this year’s draft class is relatively devoid of talent where the Steelers are picking. The top two quarterbacks, Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, are expected to be long gone by the time the Steelers make their first pick, and with their second-rounder already in Seattle as part of the DK Metcalf trade, they don’t necessarily have a plethora of assets with which to trade up.
But head coach Mike Tomlin said not to rule out the Steelers making their next move at quarterback via any form or fashion.
“I wouldn’t close the door on any component of acquisition at that position,” he said.
Tomlin and Omar Khan have been heavily scouting quarterbacks on the NFL Draft trail, hitting Alabama, Ohio State, Texas and Notre Dame to see Jalen Milroe, Will Howard, Quinn Ewers and Riley Leonard. They’re also bringing Louisville’s Tyler Shough and Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart to their facility for pre-draft visits.
None of those players are projected as likely first-round picks in the range of the Steelers’ selection. Dart is the highest-ranked on the NFL Mock Draft Database consensus big board at No. 31, followed by Milroe at 46, Howard at 67, Ewers at 90 and Shough at 93.
Tomlin was asked directly about taking a quarterback in the first round, and the lack of likely talent, according to draft rankings.
“I don’t worry how others judge guys,” he said. “We’re just trying to get to know the pool ourselves. … Last week was a big week for us. Went to Texas, Ohio State and Notre Dame, for example. It’s just part of our process, getting the complete totality of the process, getting exposure to these guys in as many places as we can.
“It started in Mobile for me. We had a chance to visit with a significant number of them in Indy and now we’re on the pro day circuit. We’re going through our normal process. It doesn’t appear to be devoid of talent. I like a lot of the guys I’ve met, not only their tangible qualities, but their intangible qualities. So I’m feeling really good about the trajectory of the group and how we’re going to place them on the board.”
It doesn’t seem likely, but that could include their first-round draft pick.