The Pittsburgh Steelers are typically a team that trusts its own process during the NFL Draft. It is not often that fans will see Pittsburgh making drastic moves by shooting up the draft board, but that is what the team did in 2019. The Steelers originally held the 20th overall pick that year, but the organization made a trade with the Denver Broncos to acquire the 10th overall pick. This would be the first time Pittsburgh was picking in the top 10 of the NFL Draft since 2000 when the franchise picked wide receiver Plaxico Burress.
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Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Devin Bush (55) lines up during the first half of an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Pittsburgh, Friday, Aug. 9, 2019.
With the 10th overall pick, the Steelers selected inside linebacker Devin Bush out of Michigan. He was considered one of the top prospects in the draft by analysts like Mel Kiper, but Pittsburgh would eventually regret the selection. The organization had a need at the position, so the pick made sense in the moment, but things fell apart rather quickly for Bush in Pittsburgh.
NFL insider and Broncos reporter Benjamin Allbright shared during a recent episode of Broncos Country Tonight that the Broncos were the ones that initiated that trade, not Pittsburgh.
"The Broncos initiated that trade," Allbright said. "That's why it didn't cost very much. The Broncos were willing to take significantly less; they wanted the extra pick to be able to get both [Dalton] Risner and Drew Lock in the second round, and they knew they could get to 20 and get [Noah] Fant. That was their whole plan. They took a lot less than it would normally take to move from 20 to 10."
In order to move up to the 10th overall pick, the Steelers had to give Denver the 20th and 52nd pick in 2019, while also giving up a third-round pick in 2020. That is not a steep price at all to move up in the first round of any draft, which maybe should have been a bit of a red flag for Pittsburgh. Typically when a team moves up in the draft, it is the organization that is chasing a player and initiates the contact with a potential trade partner, but that wasn't the case during the 2019 deal.
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Former first-round pick Devin Bush Jr. after being selected by the Steelers in 2019.
Bush didn't pan out, and the trade ultimately is not a great look for the Steelers despite the low cost to move up in the first round. Pittsburgh was still trying to find a great inside linebacker to replace what Ryan Shazier was bringing to the defense after the former linebacker went down with a spinal injury in 2017.
Bush made the All-Rookie Team in 2019, and the inside linebacker had an extremely promising rookie season. He also looked great at the start of 2020, but he then suffered a torn ACL which caused him to miss the rest of the year. He was never the same player once he returned in 2021 and 2022, and the organization declined his fifth-year option. He wound up signing with the Seattle Seahawks in 2023, and he has been on the Cleveland Browns since 2024. Despite the cheap price of the trade, Bush is still considered a bust.
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Former Steelers linebacker Devin Bush Jr. warms up before a game during his time with Pittsburgh.
Steelers Learned A Tough Lesson In 2019
The Steelers made the move in 2019 and it turned out to be a bad decision. Not only did the team's first-round pick not workout, but the organization gave up two additional picks in order to land him. It was an investment that went horribly, which hopefully sticks as a lesson within that building. Kevin Colbert was the general manager at the time, and he and Mike Tomlin each gave their input on picks. The same is true now with Omar Khan, so it is unclear who is truly responsible when picks go bad.
What did you think of the trade up in 2019? Let us know in the comments below!
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