This post was originally published on this site
The Steelers move on from George Pickens in latest mock draft
God help us, the 2025 NFL Draft is still over a month away. We’ve reached the point of the offseason where a 40-yard dash time at a Pro Day gets talked about at length and the draft nerds start second-guessing how good a player is because he ran six-hundredths of a second slower than he thought they would – please move the draft to April 1st and end this madness.
Anyway, sorry for the rant, here’s my Steelers Mock Draft 4.0. I’m sure all of you will 100 percent agree and not get irrationally angry.
Round 1, Pick 21: WR Luther Burden III, Missouri
Burden would be the perfect complement to DK Metcalf. A guy who can separate off the line of scrimmage and be the X while DK takes the lid off and uses that big body downfield as the Z.
TRADE
- Pittsburgh Steelers receive: 2025 third-round pick (No. 69), 2026 fifth-round pick
- New England Patriots receive: WR George Pickens
There is too much smoke for there to not be fire when it comes to a Pickens trade. Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said he expects a trade to happen involving Pickens in 2025, and Mark Kaboly says that if Pickens requested a trade, the Steelers would trade him. After paying DK Metcalf, it doesn’t feel likely that the Steelers will also pay Pickens. If that’s the case, trade him, replace him with Burden, and get a couple of draft picks over the next two drafts to fill in other needs.
Round 3, Pick 69 (from New England): QB Jalen Milroe, Alabama
Yeah, I think it’s happening. During the Senior Bowl, I wrote multiple times that Milroe didn’t look good throwing the ball – because he didn’t. He’s a raw prospect that will need fine-tuning, but I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. The good news is that guys like Jalen Hurts, Lamar Jackson, and Josh Allen have been able to improve their passing abilities each year in the league. The bad news is that I don’t have faith in the Steelers to develop him and will be worried about this quarterback hunt no matter who it is.
Round 3, Pick 83: RB D.J. Giddens, Kansas State
Giddens is as well-balanced a back as you’ll find at this spot. He’s shown to be a reliable runner in both gap and zone runs and would be the perfect addition to a running back room of Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell.
Round 4, Pick 123: DT JJ Pegues, Ole Miss
Pegues is a good disruptor against both the run and pass. The Steelers have added multiple free agents to their defensive line, but a young body with the chance of being a long-term fixture is still needed.
Round 5, Pick 156: LB Kobe King, Penn State
The Steelers lost Elandon Roberts to free agency and brought in Malik Harrison as a replacement—I don’t see that as a good answer. King is a terrific run-stopper who could challenge Harrison and Cole Holcomb for defensive reps while also contributing on special teams.
Round 6, Pick 185: EDGE Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, Georgia
The Steelers don’t really have a good fourth edge rusher behind T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, and Nick Herbig. Bringing in a young guy, as well as a veteran, to duke it out for that role in camp would be beneficial.
Round 7, Pick 229: TE Oronde Gadsden II, Syracuse
With MyCole Pruitt gone, Pittsburgh needs a third tight end. Gadsden is a great run blocker, but also added 73 receptions and seven touchdowns for the Orange in 2024.