Nailing a draft class is one of the quickest ways to revitalize an NFL franchise. That can be done with a standard seven draft picks, so imagine what 12—including five in the top 100—can do for a team. The Pittsburgh Steelers have a chance to find that out if they play their cards right.
They can’t afford to miss.
“The reality is for Pittsburgh, this is the most critical draft you’ve had in probably two decades,” Orlovsky said Tuesday via ESPN’s Get Up. “You were the second-oldest roster in football last year. You have five picks in the top 100. You haven’t had that many since 1999. I do think this is gonna be a good football team, but reality is the draft is equally, if not more, important than the decision at quarterback.”
A good quarterback doesn’t automatically lead to success. You have to have a good roster ready to receive and maximize their talents. Just look at Sam Darnold and the New York Jets, or Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions. Would Ben Roethlisberger’s career have followed the same trajectory had he entered a worse situation in 2004? He certainly wasn’t the QB capable of carrying a team right away like he was later in his career.
The Steelers were the second-oldest roster in the league, but a lot of that was skewed by a handful of players. Aaron Rodgers (42), Cam Heyward (36), Adam Thielen (35), Isaac Seumalo (32), T.J. Watt (31), and Jalen Ramsey (31) pulled the average up. At least two of those players are now gone, and the Steelers figure to suddenly be one of the youngest teams in the league over the next couple seasons. Up to 12 rookie draft selections will certainly aid in that process.
Which position groups are lacking youth? Wide receiver and safety are the first two that come to mind. It’s no surprise they are two of the favorites to be Pittsburgh’s first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
The Steelers haven’t had 12 draft picks since 1992, and they haven’t had five in the top 100 since 1999. In 1999, just Joey Porter Sr. was a hit inside the top 100, but they managed to find Aaron Smith just outside the top 100. Pittsburgh needs a better hit rate this time around, but that 1999 class still helped build the foundation of the next Steelers Super Bowl team in 2005.
Omar Khan and Andy Weidl have had three years together in charge of the Steelers’ draft board and only one of those players is off the roster due to a career-ending injury. Those three classes have produced 10 or 11 starters with prospects of that number increasing due to players like Jack Sawyer, Will Howard, and Spencer Anderson.
The 2026 draft is the Steelers’ chance to finally break through the mediocre upper-middle class of the NFL and create a chance for something more.
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