The Pittsburgh Steelers wrapped up the 2020 NFL draft on Saturday. Pittsburgh made six choices, didn’t bother with any trades and came away with a solid draft haul overall. Pittsburgh didn’t miss not having a first-round pick after dealing it away for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and look to be heading into the virtual offseason program with a solid roster.
Here are our five big takeaways from the draft.
The Steelers should trade their first-round pick every year
We are kidding of course but things could not have gone better for Pittsburgh with the first round. The Miami Dolphins used the first-round pick the Steelers sent them last season to draft USC offensive tackle Austin Jackson. A good player, no doubt. But no one is praising the Steelers for having Jackson instead of Fitzpatrick if the tables are turned.
Several depth charts got better this weekend
The Steelers offensive line is better today than it was at the end of the 2019 season. The same can be said for the wide receiver depth chart. The outside linebacker depth chart is better as well. The additions of wide receiver Chase Claypool. edge rusher Alex Highsmith and guard Kevin Dotson are all upgrades over the players they are replacing.
Other depth charts did not
By contrast, I’m not sure the safety depth chart is any better than this would be is they had brought Sean Davis back. McFarland is an intriguing running back but he’s got a long road ahead of him to find a way into the top three on the depth chart. And even though Carlos Davis is a fun nose tackle prospect, he does not replace Javon Hargrave.
Did the Steelers do enough to keep up in the AFC?
The standard in the AFC is the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs. Both teams were better than the Steelers going into the draft and a case could be made both did more to improve their teams over the weekend. Pittsburgh did focus early in the draft on more athleticism but it remains to be seen if the improvements are enough to keep pace with these high-flying offenses.
Pittsburgh is confident in Ulysees Gilbert III
One of the more obvious needs for the Steelers going into the draft. The team cut Mark Barron and lost Tyler Matakevich in free agency. This left the inside linebacker depth chart pretty barren. But by passing on a linebacker with all of their picks they show me they are convinced Gilbert can be the team’s No. 3 inside linebacker and have an expanded role on defense.
