The Pittsburgh Steelers have officially selected Derrick Harmon with their first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. They had a gaping hole at interior defensive line, and he fell right into their laps. While they also needed a quarterback, they obviously did not feel good about any of the options available to them when they were on the clock -- at least not at pick 21. In the end, they got the guy they wanted all along, and he should be a key contributor to Pittsburgh for the next decade.
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Former University of Oregon defensive Tackle Derrick Harmon bursts off the line of scrimmage and evades a University of Illinois offensive lineman during a collegiate football contest.
Harmon was the fourth defensive tackle picked in the draft, and the reason he fell that far was because he was flagged for medical concerns. Without those, he most likely would have been the second player at that position to be selected. The other teams' loss is the Steelers' gain, and they are excited about their new threat on the line.
However, Harmon himself was confused about why those red flags came up during the draft process. He spoke about that while on a private press conference with the media. He said that he had "no idea" about what was even supposedly wrong with him and why it could be a problem. However, he likely won't complain too much about joining a defense full of elite players.
This happened recently with the Steelers numerous times. In the 2024 NFL Draft, Troy Fautanu also was dinged for a potential health issue, and that caused him to slide in the draft a bit. Pittsburgh selected him in the first round of that draft as well, and those issues did pop up during training camp and the regular season, so there may be some merit to these warnings popping up -- even if the players don't know about them.
AP photo
Steelers' 2024 first round pick Troy Fautanu gets introduced as a Pittsburgh Steeler by Art Rooney II.
Fautanu missed most of preseason and training camp due to injury, which caused him to be a backup in Week 1. He started Week 2 and was expected to be the full-time right tackle for the rest of the season, but an injured knee ended his season very early. Hopefully, Harmon won't have to deal with the same circumstances, and he should be an impact player if he stays healthy.
Steelers Have Dealt With False Medical "Concerns" As Well
In that same 2024 draft, the Steelers landed Payton Wilson late in the third round. He dropped hard because he is missing his ACL in one of his knees. However, that did not slow him down, as he had an amazing rookie season. He looks like he will be the star linebacker that Pittsburgh has desperately needed since their Super Bowl appearances. Of course, he is not the only Steeler to be missing that ligament.
Obviously, caution should be taken when these problems arise during the pre-draft process. Sometimes, they are very real. Other times, they could be made up in attempts to make a player slide down in the draft, or other teams just misdiagnose these prospects. As long as the Steelers feel like those issues are not there or won't be too harmful, the pick makes a ton of sense.
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Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin smiles as General Manager Omar Khan looks on during a team workout at the UPMC Sports Complex in Pittsburgh, PA.
There may be some concerns about the Steelers' training staff as well. They got low grades, with the strength and conditioning coaches being ranked as the worst in the NFL by the players. That may be a bad sign for Harmon, but it obviously wasn't too bad for guys like Wilson and Darnell Washington. Either way, we wish Harmon the best of luck and hope he starts all 17 games for the Steelers in the 2025 season and beyond.
What do you think about Harmon being confused about his medical concerns? Do you think they will affect him like they did Fautanu, or will he be perfectly fine like Wilson? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.
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