Apr. 18—Welcome to Brian Batko's Steelers mailbag. You can submit your questions for occasional offseason mailbags to Brian directly @BrianBatko on X and bbatko@post-gazette.com.
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Jim K: Hope all is well with you, Brian. I rarely tune in during the endless NFL offseason, but I see the Steelers are bringing in older offensive linemen; I'm hoping that means they should start almost immediately. I know that was one of the pluses associated with using draft capital on Pickett, that he would be ready to play and was mature enough to handle the transition to the NFL. Is that the case with these current options in the draft the Steelers are interviewing? I don't really understand trying to switch them positionally. Why not draft a true center, guard or tackle early if they need one? Obviously every NFL team wants to hit early on their first pick and have that position sealed up for years, it's rather important ...
Brian: The age of the linemen the Steelers are hosting on pre-draft visits doesn't really stand out to me. A general surplus of older prospects continues to be a side effect of the extra COVID-19 year of eligibility for anyone who played college ball in 2020.
I think it's more about the Steelers targeting players in a certain tier of their big board. The near-consensus top three tackles, for instance — Joe Alt, Olu Fashanu, J.C. Latham — haven't been here, which could be an indication the Steelers don't expect them to last until No. 20.
But Amarius Mims, Taliese Fuaga, Troy Fautanu, Tyler Guyton, Graham Barton, Jackson Powers-Johnson and Zach Frazier all are in that mid- to late first-round range. And just about all of them have some type of circumstance that's worth looking into more with an in-person meeting — positional questions, injury history or being an out-west prospect.
If I were you, I wouldn't be too wrapped up in the philosophy of drafting a guy and keeping him at the position he played in college. There is something to be said for where players are most comfortable, but if you're really good — like 20th overall good — you'll make it work for the team that takes you. Within reason, of course. I'm not suggesting they try to put Powers-Johnson at right tackle or anything like that.
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Ed H: In looking at the Steelers' last five drafts, what letter grade would you assign for the effort? What was good, what falls into a meh status, and what was ridiculously dumb?
Brian: OK, let's do this ...
2023 — A, but it's far too early to say. Broderick Jones and Joey Porter Jr. appear to be good long-term starters, with Keeanu Benton trending upward, too. Nick Herbig has shown flashes. Jury's out on Darnell Washington and Cory Trice Jr.
2022 — C but also too early. We'll see how high George Pickens can push his NFL ceiling. The promise he's shown in his first two seasons is the only thing keeping this above D/F territory, considering the first-rounder is already gone and netted little in return.
2021 — B but a still a bit too early. Mainly because we've yet to see if Najee Harris, Pat Freiermuth or even Dan Moore Jr. make it to a second contract here. If none of them do ... meh, to use your word. We already know Kendrick Green was one of those regrettable third-round misses.
2020 — B+ almost entirely thanks to Alex Highsmith as a third-round find. As we know, there was limited draft capital at their disposal this year, with no first-round pick. Chase Claypool turned in a fantastic rookie season, then fell off. Kevin Dotson gave two good years as a fourth-rounder. The late-round swings were strikeouts, but that's par for the course with the Steelers lately.
2019 — D, and that may be too generous. None of these picks at the time are what you might call "ridiculously dumb," but this haul did turn out to be ridiculously bad. The trade up for Devin Bush, while logical in the moment, ended up magnifying that whiff. Diontae Johnson wound up being the only player to last more than four seasons here. He played five before falling out of favor enough to be traded straight up for a cornerback who's a year older and was probably going to be cut.
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Tracy B: What are the chances the Steelers land my guy in Byron Murphy as the surprise pick at #20?
Brian: Let's go with 2%. Not only could Murphy be gone by then, but even if he's there, the Steelers don't typically draft his type of defensive lineman in the first round. Murphy could still be a disruptive force in the NFL at 6-foot-1, 306 pounds, but it's no coincidence that the Steelers often employ bigger bodies to hold the line next to T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith standing up on the edge.
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Paul from Beaver Falls: Since Omar has Chicago's number, any chance he can trade Dan Moore for a 2nd round pick?
Brian: If you're trying to think of a team that could use a veteran tackle to cover their butt in case the draft doesn't fall their way or they don't trust a rookie to play immediately ... well, the Steelers are one of those teams. No one's going to trade a second-rounder for Moore, but sure, Omar Khan can try. Perhaps he already has. You never know until you ask, and the Steelers can (truthfully) tell teams they like Moore but want to move Broderick Jones to the left side.
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Mike P: If this is Cam's last season, what type of year does he need in order to lock up a Hall of Fame career? Or do you think that's wishful thinking to hope he can make it?
Brian: Numbers-wise, Cam Heyward already compares favorably to a guy like former Patriots defensive lineman Richard Seymour, who made it to Canton last year after retiring in 2012. But voters tend to view candidates through the prism of career accolades and winning, too. Heyward's case will be a lot stronger with another All-Pro nod, first or second team. And, of course, a Super Bowl would check a major box for him. Short of that, he'll be on the fringes.
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Tim in Cleveland: How much of a role does the new OC dictate the way, let's say, how the o-line is coached?
Brian: The offensive coordinator will install his offense, design the playbook, set the overall agenda for the unit and organize the position coaches. But it's not his job to teach the finer points of technique to the offensive linemen or anything along those lines. If anything, a lot of offensive line coaches around the league also carry a title as run game coordinator. The Steelers don't use that official capacity, but Pat Meyer has input there, and so did his predecessors.
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Jud W: What would you guess will be the biggest Steelers surprise on Day 2 of the draft? I think it's safe to say we have a good idea for Day 1?
Brian: Darnell Washington qualified as a minor surprise last year at the end of Day 2. Doubtful there will be anything similar to that next weekend, but if I had to predict one, I guess I'd say a quarterback. Jordan Travis or Joe Milton as someone to stash in the inactive role throughout their rookie season? It's unlikely, though. The Steelers would have to really like one of those guys, and there's been little indication of that. Which is why it would be a big surprise!
Brian Batko: bbatko@post-gazette.com and @BrianBatko on X
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