The Steelers pulled another surprise with their sixth round draft pick Saturday when they took a long snapper, Colin Holba of Louisville.
He comes to them in the same round that once delivered them Antonio Brown.
Not many teams draft long snappers, but the Steelers did just that and that puts the job of longtime veteran Greg Warren on the line. He has been their long snapper for 12 years and signed a contract for No. 13.
The Steelers drafted another cornerback Saturday, picking Utah's Brian Allen in the fifth round.
It is the third straight year the Steelers have drafted two defensive backs in the same class and four out of the past five. They also drafted Cameron Sutton of Tennessee in the third round.
Allen stands 6 feet 3, tall as cornerbacks go, and weighs 215 pounds. He never played defense until 2014, when he moved from wide receiver.
He was not a full-time starter at Utah, sharing it with another.
The Steelers broke precedent and drafted a quarterback for the first time in four years, selecting Joshua Dobbs of Tennessee in the fourth round Saturday.
They drafted Landry Jones in the fourth round in 2013 and they just signed him to a two-year, $4.4 million contract days after he became an unrestricted free agent.
The selection of Dobbs (6-3, 216) also comes after Ben Roethlisberger briefly contemplated retirement after the 2016 season. Dobbs of course will compete, but whether he can unseat Jones at No. 2 or settle in at No. 3 as a rookie is the question more than whether he ultimately can succeed Roethlisberger.
"I'm not trying to replace anyone, I'm just trying to be the best Josh Dobbs I can be," he said.
Said Steelers quarterbacks coach Randy Fichtner, "Regardless of what Ben's doing _ whether he plays five more years, six more years; I tease him all the time you have to go eight _ that's irrelevant. I think our room just gets very competitive right now. It's been awhile."
Finding a franchise quarterback as late as the fourth round rarely happens, although Dak Prescott became a rookie starter in Dallas last season as a fourth-round pick and helped lead the Cowboys to the NFC championship game appearance.
Like Prescott, Dobbs ran a spread offense in college and has been compared to last year's Cowboys' rookie. Unlike most any other quarterback, he was an aerospace engineering major and had an internship with the United States government working on fighter jet engines two years ago.
"This is a very sharp young man who loves football and that's kind of unique," Fichtner said.
Dobbs started the past two seasons for the Vols. He completed 63 percent of his passes as a senior with 27 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He also rushed for 831 yards on 150 carries.
"You're talking about an athletic runner too and they asked him to run," Fichtner said. "He's definitely an athletic quarterback who can extend plays, is willing to extend plays and looks to do that."
