After coming off a hot end to the season last year, the Pittsburgh Steelers have a lot of promise going into the season next year. Before the season starts, the Steelers have the opportunity to improve their team with young talents from the NFL Draft. Some key pieces can be added here that could push this team over the top and make them legitimate contenders in the AFC.

My Mock Draft:

Round 1: Joey Porter Jr. (CB)

Round 2: Adetomiwa Adebawore (DL)

Round 2 (49th): Matthew Bergeron (OT)

Round 3: Nick Saldiveri (G)

Round 4: A.T. Perry (WR)

Round 7: Shaka Heyward (LB)

I think this draft for the Steelers this year can set up a successful future for the team. The Steelers have taken care of one of their needs from last year with quarterback Kenny Pickett. With that being said, the positions this year that need to be addressed are Defensive Tackle (DT), Cornerback (CB), and Left Tackle (LT) or Left Guard (LG). 

I believe that the Pittsburgh Steelers should take, if he falls to them in the draft, Joey Porter Jr. (CB). Porter sprung on to the scene with a dominant red-shirt junior season at Penn State. He had 27 tackles and 11 pass break ups all while only playing in 10 games. This is the best pick for the Steelers because he would come in and fill a hole at corner and a “home-town kid” vibe to the team. And if there is one thing we have learned in the past couple years in Pittsburgh sports, everyone likes the home-town kid. 

With the 32nd pick in the draft, I think the Steelers should take Adetomiwa Adebawore (DL). Adebawore had an impressive senior season campaign putting up five sacks and 38 total tackles. I think this selection is going to give a lot more depth to the team. Even though Cam Heyward is a wrecking force in the middle of the line, the Steelers seemed to struggle with injuries in that position. This pick would give more help to the already prominent defensive line and make opposing quarterbacks really uncomfortable.

The 49th pick in the draft should go towards Matthew Bergeron (OT). Bergeron is also coming off a strong senior campaign with his season at Syracuse. I think that taking an offensive lineman in the 3rd round fits the needs of the team. The offensive line this year played really well last year but the only concern is they rarely had to deal with any injuries. I think taking a lineman here is good because the Steelers need to have depth at the position in case injuries occur. 

In the 3rd round, I think the Steelers should pile on the O-line depth and take Nick Saldiveri (G). Saldiveri is a red-shirt senior that played at Old Dominion. This pick will once again help with the Steelers O-line depth with another guard to protect Pickett at Quarterback. 

In the 4th round, I think the Steelers should select A.T. Perry (WR). Perry is a red-shirt senior out of Wake Forest who is coming off back-to-back 1,000 yards receiving seasons. This pick is going to give the Steelers depth at the wide-receiver position. The Steelers receiver core is highlighted by Dionte Johnson, George Pickens, and recently-signed Allen Robinson. If the Steelers add another solid receiver, the passing attack could be scary-good this year.

With the Steelers’ 7th round pick in the draft, I think that they should take Shaka Heyward (LB). Heyward is a red-shirt senior out of Duke and racked up 94 tackles his senior year. There have been many players that have been taken in the final rounds of the draft and turn out to be very good players. One of those Steelers who was taken in the 7th round ended up to be Brett Keisel, who ended up to be a pretty good player throughout his career.