The Pittsburgh Steelers have 12 draft picks this year, and several positions in need of some added depth. They don’t come into the draft as one of the teams more likely to trade any proven players for extra capital. But to FOX Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano, there are a couple of situations that might make sense. One involving Nick Herbig.
In an article posted on Wednesday, Vacchiano compiled a list of mock draft-day trades. That included the Steelers sending Nick Herbig to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for their 2026 second-round pick (58th overall) and a 2027 conditional fifth-round pick.
“Herbig, 24, is stuck in a rotation behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith in Pittsburgh and in the final year of his contract. He had 13 sacks in a limited role over the past two seasons and would be well worth the high pick it would probably cost for the Steelers to swap him,” Vacchiano wrote.
Herbig has had to wait for opportunities behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith throughout his young career. But when he’s on the field, he’s been impressive. Herbig has been dynamic as a pass rusher and has come up with several splash plays to boot. He’s certainly worthy of an extension, one that would have to be hammered out in the near future as he goes into the final year of his deal.
But the presence of Watt and Highsmith adds some complications. Watt just signed a massive extension, and Highsmith is under contract through 2027. Would Herbig sign an extension knowing he might have to wait behind those two for another two seasons?
Thus, some have floated Herbig as a trade candidate, as Vacchiano does here. If the Steelers didn’t want to extend him, it would make sense to trade him instead of risking him walking in free agency for nothing. But for what it’s worth, the Steelers could consider trading one of Watt or Highsmith instead. Gerry Dulac hinted as much this week.
In this scenario, the Steelers would get some solid value. They’d be without Herbig, but would then have six picks in the first three rounds, and three in the first two.
That wasn’t the only trade idea Vacchiano had in mind. He also has Pittsburgh sending DK Metcalf to the Washington Commanders for a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-rounder.
“They did just trade for Michael Pittman, so their cupboard wouldn’t be bare without Metcalf. And Metcalf was a bit of a disappointment last season,” Vacchiano wrote. “Metcalf cost the Steelers a second-round pick. After a down year, and with three years and more than $100 million left on his contract, something less would do.”
Trading Metcalf away for a third, one year after acquiring him for a second, is not an example of good business. But in this scenario, the Steelers would have many more draft picks to work with. If they made both these trades, that would give them an absurd seven picks in the first three rounds and 14 overall. That feels like an unrealistic number. But in that scenario, Pittsburgh could take plenty of stabs at receiver to recoup the loss of Metcalf.
Again, with 12 picks, the Steelers won’t have much incentive to ship off key players for extra draft capital. But in these two situations, Vacchiano thinks trading Nick Herbig and Metcalf makes sense.
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