Steelers Seriously Deemed A Team To "Keep Your Eye On" To Shoot Into Top 5 Of 2025 NFL Draft

The Pittsburgh Steelers are going to keep fans on the edge of their seats throughout the first night of the 2025 NFL Draft. They are a team who could easily address a handful of positions with the 21st overall pick, while they should also be considered a threat to trade up, or trade back. Pittsburgh gave up its second-round selection in exchange for DK Metcalf, which might make it reasonable for the Steelers to trade back in the first or the start of the second in order to gain some additional draft capital.

While trading back is a possibility, so is the complete opposite. The draft board should be cheaper than usual to move around on due to the fact that the event is deep, but there is also a small amount of clearly elite talent at premium positions. For example, Cam Ward seems to be the only quarterback that is an absolute lock to go in the top three picks of the 2025 NFL Draft. This means Shedeur Sanders could slide down the draft board, which may open the door for Pittsburgh to move up to land the quarterback.

Draft expert Matt Miller was asked by Mina Kimes on NFL Live if he could see any teams attempting to trade with the New England Patriots, who hold the fourth overall pick, if Sanders makes it out of the top three.

"Can we rule out the Pittsburgh Steelers?" Miller asked. "I remember not that long ago Pittsburgh traded up to 10 to take an inside linebacker, Pittsburgh will be aggressive at times. Now, going from 21 to 4, it's going to be expensive. Mike Tomlin has his team in the playoffs every year, so if you view this as an inexpensive year to move up the board, 'We love Shedeur, can walk right into this building.' I think Pittsburgh would be a team that you would have to keep an eye on."

Pittsburgh has moved up in the first round of the draft a couple of times over the last decade. Most recently, the organization did so in 2023 when it moved from 17 to 14 to select Broderick Jones -- which looks like a questionable move to this point. Prior to that, the Steelers moved up 10 spots to select Devin Bush in the 2019 NFL Draft.

It is hard to say how much it would cost to move up into the top five of the 2025 NFL Draft, but it would probably cost multiple first round picks. Trading up with New England would be the most expensive option, but Pittsburgh could also wait it out and see if Sanders falls even more. The only real threats when it comes to drafting quarterbacks are the Las Vegas Raiders at six, New York Jets at seven, New Orleans Saints at nine, and possibly the Dallas Cowboys at 12. 

Pittsburgh could see if the quarterback prospect makes it past a handful of those teams, and trading up with a team like the Carolina Panthers at eight seems like a possibility as well. This could be where George Pickens comes into play as Carolina does have a bit of a need for another wide receiver, but the organization may have learned its lesson about taking receivers from Pittsburgh after the Diontae Johnson fiasco. 

Steelers Should Not Be Trading Up For A Quarterback In 2025

If the Steelers want to take a big swing at quarterback in the 2025 draft, the organization needs to wait and see if Sanders or Jaxson Dart falls to the 21st overall pick. None of these quarterbacks are a sure-thing, so giving up a ton of draft capital to grab one could be a disastrous mistake. The prospects expected to go in the first round are graded similarly to the prospects that will fly off the board in the third, which means the Steelers should be looking into trading back if anything.

Pittsburgh need to address the defensive line at 21, or trade back. Ruining the future of the franchise is not worth it during this draft.

What do you think of Pittsburgh potentially moving up? Let us know in the comments below!

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