At this point, everyone is probably sick of hearing that the Pittsburgh Steelers are probably going to take an offensive lineman or cornerback in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. There are some other needs that will be addressed in order to shore up depth in separate areas, but it'd be quite surprising if one of the two aforementioned positions aren't selected in the first round by the organization. The cornerback class is extremely deep, but a couple of the top offensive tackle prospects may be gone by the time the 17th overall pick comes along.
Steelers general manager, Omar Khan speaks to members of the media at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, IN. | Photo Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski / USA Today
Paris Johnson Jr. and Peter Skoronski are the two offensive lineman expected to be the first off the board and Pittsburgh may have to hope one of them drops out of the Top 10. As of Saturday, a new report suggests that one of them may not even get outside of the Top 3 overall selections.
Tony Pauline, a draft analyst for Pro Football Network, is hearing some murmurs about teams wanting to trade with the Arizona Cardinals at for the third overall pick, but not for a quarterback.
Latest- The Cardinals are getting calls from teams who want to move to #3 then take one of the offensive lineman. Did not hear which OT is being targeted.
— Tony Pauline (@TonyPauline) April 22, 2023
It's anyone's guess as to which lineman is on the minds of certain General Managers. This would vastly change how the first round shapes up for the Steelers and several other teams. It's far too much of a reach for Pittsburgh to move up 14 spots into the top five in an attempt to draft Dan Moore Jr.'s future replacement. (Or is it?)
Steelers left tackle Dan Moore Jr. sets up at the line of scrimmage prior to an offensive snap against the Baltimore Ravens during a 2021 regular season game. | Photo Credit: Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Several teams have selected one of the top offensive linemen in mock drafts over the course of the offseason. This report from Pauline is not being talked about by other outlets as of now, but the idea of a team moving up would have to give up significant draft capital and it seems much more likely that a team does it for a quarterback.
If this ends up happening, the Steelers can pretty much kiss the chances goodbye of landing Johnson or Skoronski. If one of the two goes third overall, the other is bound to be gone by the middle of the first round. This could cause Pittsburgh to shift the focus to the cornerback position with pick #17.
The Philadelphia Eagles are often aggressive on draft day and are a team to look out for here. The franchise has an aging offensive line and it will be critical to draft a guy to protect the highest paid player in NFL history, Jalen Hurts. After trading the first overall pick, the Chicago Bears have the capital to move back into the Top 5 to grab a big lineman to protect Justin Fields as well.
Photo Credit: Ashlee Rezin / Sun-Times
The Steelers Could Drastically Change Draft Plans If A Big Trade Happens For The Third Overall Pick
Draft night is extremely hectic. No one can truly predict what is going to happen but Steelers fans all over the world could be upset very early on if a potential franchise tackle ends up being picked with one of the first three selections.
Do you think a team would really trade up for the third overall pick in order to take Skoronski or Johnson? Let us know in the comments below!
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