The Pittsburgh Steelers are hosting three more players for pre-draft visits on Thursday, including a pair of likely first-round picks in the month’s draft. The team is hosting Toledo S Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, USC WR Makai Lemon, and Michigan TE Marlin Klein.
McNeil-Warren’s visit was reported yesterday but Lemon and Klein’s trips weren’t previously known.
A couple of big names #Steelers visitors Thursday
-safety Emmanuel McNeil Warren-Toledo
-wide receiver Makai Lemon-USC
-tight end Marlin Klein-Michigan
— 93.7 The Fan (@937theFan) April 9, 2026
McNeil-Warren and Lemon are among the best players at their respective positions and are likely to be taken in Round 1. At nearly 6-4, McNeil-Warren is a tall and physical safety who forced nine fumbles during his time with the Rockets while showing versatility to align anywhere defensively. While he makes his best plays coming downhill as opposed to playing free safety, he’s athletic enough to play in space.
He’s competing with Ohio State’s Caleb Downs and Oregon’s Dillon Thieneman to be the first safety off the board. Most expect McNeil-Warren to be taken third of the group but still be selected in the top 32. Our scouting report offered this conclusion:
“Emmanuel McNeil-Warren is a solid safety prospect who plays with a great attitude, has plus athletic traits, and had strong college production. Despite a need to fill out his frame, he has the makings of a strong safety with athleticism to play some in the post, too. If his eyes become a little more disciplined with more coaching, he’s a clear every-down starter.”
Lemon is jockeying to become the second wide receiver off the board. One of college football’s best wideouts in 2025, he broke out last year to catch 79 passes for 1,156 yards and 11 touchdowns and earn All-American honors. Though his frame is skinnier (5111, 192) than ideal with some projecting him to primarily play in the slot, Lemon is excellent post-catch and arguably might be the most talented receiver in the entire draft. Our scouting report highlighted his talent with this conclusion:
“Lemon has many of the quality traits you look for in a wide receiver at the NFL level thanks to his route nuance, efficiency, strong hands, and ability to win all over the field. His profile projects best as a slot receiver or versatile interior weapon who can be schemed open and contribute immediately in a variety of concepts. While not the prototype X-receiver, his skill set (especially his route intelligence, separation ability, and ball skills) translates well to today’s passing game and could allow him to become a high-impact NFL starter.”
He earned a 9.0 grade on our scale, the highest of any wide receiver in the 2026 draft. It’s possible he’s off the board by the time Pittsburgh picks at No. 21, but after Ohio State’s Carnell Tate, it’s hard to judge which receivers will be taken next and where.
Klein was born in Germany but eventually moved to the United States. He offers plenty of size at 6060, 248 pounds. Though lightly used at Michigan with just 38 career receptions and one touchdown, he showed off his athleticism with a 4.61 40-yard dash and 36-inch vertical at the NFL Combine. Our scouting report noted his above-average blocking, strong hands with a large catch radius, and ability to win vertically. Negatively, he’s a linear runner who struggles with nuanced route running and sudden movements. We concluded:
“Marlin Klein is a classic projection tight end. His value is rooted in blocking with flashes of untapped receiving upside. His floor is relatively high because of his ability to function as an in-line blocker and special teams contributor. But his ceiling depends on how much he can develop as a route runner and pass catcher. He will likely be a rotational TE early in his career, starting as a TE3 who can contribute in heavy packages, before potentially growing into a TE2 role.”
He’s expected to be drafted early-mid Day 3 in the fourth or fifth round.
Our pre-draft visit tracker has all the players the Steelers have hosted below. We now know 23 of the team’s allotted 30 non-local visits.
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