Daniel Jeremiah misinterpreted the question.
The NFL Network draft analyst was asked in February about the Pittsburgh Steelers restocking an aging defensive line in the first round of the NFL Draft. Jeremiah thought the question was about edge rushers and listed a few possibilities for the team.
Two months later, with outside linebacker T.J. Watt entering the final year of his contract amid rumors that extension talks have stalled, the thought of the Steelers using the No. 21 overall pick on an edge rusher isn’t so far-fetched.
“They’ll have options,” Jeremiah said that day. “If they want to go with an edge rusher, they’re going to have someone there that is worthy of that pick. They’re not going to have to reach if that’s truly the position that they wish to address.”
It’s more likely the Steelers will take an interior defensive lineman with their top pick, but let’s examine the potential suitors should they buck wisdom and take an outside linebacker instead.
This much is certain: Penn State’s Abdul Carter will be long gone. He’s rated as the top prospect overall on many draft experts’ boards, and he likely will be taken within the first three picks.
Georgia teammates Jalon Walker and Mykel Williams are listed by ESPN as being among the top 10 overall prospects, and they could go in the top half of the draft.
“Mykel Williams would be a lot of fun just because of the physicality they require, setting the edge. He checks that box,” Jeremiah said. “I think he has so much upside as a rusher, but I don’t anticipate he’ll be there.”
ESPN’s positional ranking projects seven pass rushers/edge defenders to go in the first round. The rest of that group includes Marshall’s Mike Green, Tennessee’s James Pearce Jr., Texas A&M’s Shemar Stewart and Boston College’s Donovan Ezeiruaku.
It’s worth noting that the only edge defender of any pedigree that the Steelers hosted for an official top-30 visit was Stewart. At 6-foot-5, 267 pounds, he is a tweener who is too light to be a down lineman but bigger than the team’s typical outside linebackers.
“Shemar Stewart is as raw as can be. Man, there is a lot to work with,” Jeremiah said. “I can’t imagine someone with his physical gifts that he has getting a chance to learn from T.J.”
While some teams view Stewart as a defensive end, the Steelers listed him as an outside linebacker when he conducted his visit April 11. His first-round draft status is based more on potential, though, than production. Consider that he never topped more than 1 1/2 sacks in any of his three seasons at Texas A&M.
“He’s a fascinating player, the most interesting player in the draft,” ESPN’s Field Yates said. “But he’s only got 4 1/2 career sacks. Every time I say it, I still get taken aback by it.”
Green, on the other hand, made the most of his final season at Marshall when he led FBS with 17 sacks. He spent two years there after transferring from Virginia.
Yates sees Green fitting nicely into a team that deploys a 3-4 defense such as the Steelers.
“If you drop him into coverage once in a while, he can do that, too,” Yates said. “He has real flexibility for a guy who makes his money as a pass rusher. He’s a ready-to-go edge rusher even though he finished his career at a smaller school.”
ESPN’s Lance Zierlein listed edge rusher as the deepest position group in the draft and said quality starters await teams that don’t take one in the first round.
“Day 2 of the draft will offer starters galore,” Zierlein wrote, “with plenty of high-energy, high-aggression talent at both even-front end and 3-4 rush linebacker. What stands out, in my opinion, is the sheer number of future starters and high-quality rotational players that should be available into the deeper stages of the fourth round.”
