History might be the only reason to believe the Pittsburgh Steelers won’t select an offensive tackle in the first round of the NFL Draft.

Until last season, when they drafted Broderick Jones, the Steelers hadn’t taken a tackle with their first-round pick since 1996, which lessens the odds of them doing it two years in a row. The last time the Steelers addressed the same position with their No. 1 picks was 1999-2000 when they got wide receivers Troy Edwards and Plaxico Burress.

Those trends, however, might be the only thing preventing the Steelers from fortifying the tackle position with the No. 20 overall pick next Thursday night.

With Dan Moore entering the final season of his rookie contract and the Steelers looking to move Jones back to left tackle, his natural position, an opening could exist on the right side of the offensive line. And this year’s class has enough quality prospects to address that position.

As many as eight tackles could be selected in the first round.

NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein listed tackle as the deepest of all position groups.

“This season’s crop of tackles is strong both in high-end talent and depth when it comes to future quality starters,” Zierlein wrote in his annual positional analysis. “Teams’ draft boards will vary, as there are several flavors of tackle to choose from, but we should see at least seven tackles picked in the first round with starters still to be found on Day 2 and quality depth lasting into the fifth round.”

Coach Mike Tomlin always makes a stop at Georgia a priority on his annual trek of pro day sites. The Steelers were impressed enough with Jones last season that they traded up four spots in the first round to get him. This year, Tomlin got a chance to watch Jones’ teammate, Amarius Mims, who is projected to be picked in the second half of the first round.

“He’s a guy I would roll the dice with,” ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said. “Had he played more games, he’d be a top-10, top-five guy. He’s that gifted.”

Where Jones was considered raw based on 15 career starts, Mims has even less experience. The 6-foot-8, 340-pound junior had just eight college starts at right tackle. He was limited to six last season because of an injury.

“I like him, but I do worry he didn’t play a lot there,” former New York Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum said. “There were a lot of good players in front of him (at Georgia). I still have him in the first round because his movement for his size is just rare. … But there is a little bit of a risk.”

The Steelers invited Mims to their South Side practice facility early in the top-30 draft process. He was among four tackles with first-round grades that the Steelers hosted, joining Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga, Washington’s Troy Fautanu and Oklahoma’s Tyler Guyton.

“Fuaga is a really, really clean player for me,” NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. “I think he’s a plug-and-play as a right tackle. He could play guard if needed, but he’s just really consistent. He has quick feet. He’s really explosive and dynamic when he gets into guys. He has some nasty to him.”

Like other top tackles in his class, Fuaga could be lone gone by the time the Steelers make their first selection. Notre Dame’s Joe Alt is viewed as the cream of the crop and is projected to go in the top 10. Fautanu, Alabama’s JC Latham and Penn State’s Olu Fashanu also could be gone by then.

“It’s a loaded tackle class,” Jeremiah said. “Just in terms of that top group, there are 10 or 11 guys that are really interesting. I think we’ll see a bunch of Day 1 starters out of that group.”

A prospect who might be available in the second round when the Steelers hold the No. 51 pick is Notre Dame’s Blake Fisher. He started 25 games at right tackle over his final two seasons with the Fighting Irish.

Fisher conducted a top-30 visit with the Steelers earlier this month.

“He has some good foot speed and can get out and do some things in space,” Jeremiah said. “He has some power to him as well. He’s one of the names who could fit (into a system) as a versatile type of guy that you might be looking for.”

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