Pittsburgh Steelers Mock Draft: B/R Community Top 100 and 7-Round Results

The Bleacher Report writers came together and pooled their extensive football acumen to create a community mock draft. When you write about and cover a team, you have a unique perspective that provides results that are both insightful and entertaining.

How the mock draft worked was fairly simple. For the first 100 picks, the selections were all made in real time by B/R writers. It’s a great exercise, as you are forced to contend with the ebb and flow of the draft. This is atypical of a normal mock draft because you must account for the unpredictability of other writers picking for their teams.

After the first 100 picks were made live, Rounds 4-7 were left to the individual writers to fill in the blanks, so to speak. This meant making the best possible picks from the pool of remaining players.

Check out the B/R community mock draft from the standpoint of the Pittsburgh Steelers and see how they did.

First Round

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

As the draft opened, the targets for the Steelers were fairly obvious. Their primary needs are a pass-rushing outside linebacker and a cornerback. Yes, there are some significant secondary needs, but for the most part, these are the positions that require the most attention. 

When Pittsburgh went on the clock at No. 22, the entire top tier of edge players was gone. If I had pressed for a pass-rushing outside linebacker, it could have been regarded as a reach. Instead, the pick is a cornerback in Wake Forest's Kevin Johnson. Johnson has a physical style that the Steelers secondary has been missing. He's also a solid value at this point in the round.

Pick	Team	Player	Position	School
1	Buccaneers	Jameis Winston	QB	Florida State
2	Titans	Marcus Mariota	QB	Oregon
3	Jaguars	Dante Fowler Jr.	DE	Florida
4	Raiders	Leonard Williams	DT	USC
5	Redskins	Brandon Scherff	OL	Iowa
6	Jets	Vic Beasley	OLB	Clemson
7	Bears	Amari Cooper	WR	Alabama
8	Falcons	Bud Dupree	DE	Kentucky
9	Giants	Kevin White	WR	West Virginia
10	Rams	Andrus Peat	OT	Stanford
11	Vikings	Marcus Peters	CB	Washington
12	Browns	DeVante Parker	WR	Louisville
13	Saints	Shane Ray	DE	Missouri
14	Dolphins	La'el Collins	OL	LSU
15	49ers	Trae Waynes	CB	Michigan State
16	Texans	Breshad Perriman	WR	UCF
17	Chargers	Danny Shelton	DT	Washington
18	Chiefs	Randy Gregory	LB	Nebraska
19	Browns	Todd Gurley	RB	Georgia
20	Eagles	Jake Fisher	OL	Oregon
21	Bengals	Landon Collins	S	Alabama
22	Steelers	Kevin Johnson	CB	Wake Forest
23	Lions	Malcom Brown	DT	Texas
24	Cardinals	Cameron Erving	OC	Florida State
25	Panthers	Ereck Flowers	OT	Miami (FL)
26	Ravens	Jaelen Strong	WR	Arizona State
27	Cowboys	Byron Jones	CB	Connecticut
28	Broncos	T.J. Clemmings	OT	Pittsburgh
29	Colts	Arik Armstead	DE	Oregon
30	Packers	Owamagbe Odighizuwa	OLB	UCLA
31	Saints	Eric Kendricks	LB	UCLA
32	Patriots	Melvin Gordon	RB	Wisconsin

Second Round

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Taking a cornerback in Round 1 meant the pressure was on in Round 2. The next tier of pass-rushing outside linebacker prospects could have gone quickly. Several of those players came off right away, but all wasn't lost. When the Steelers went back on the clock, Utah's Nate Orchard was still available. This pick was a simple one, as the drop-off after Orchard is significant.

Orchard has adequate size (6'3", 250 lbs) to hold up against the run, and he has excellent polish to his game. Orchard might not have the overwhelming athleticism of some of the other linebackers in this group, but his nice mix of pass-rushing moves makes up for that.

Pick	Team	Player	Position	School
33	Titans	Jalen Collins	CB	LSU
34	Buccaneers	Ty Sambrailo	OL	Colorado State
35	Raiders	Nelson Agholor	WR	USC
36	Jaguars	Dorial Green-Beckham	WR	Oklahoma
37	Jets	Laken Tomlinson	OG	Duke
38	Redskins	Ameer Abdullah	RB	Nebraska
39	Bears	Eli Harold	OLB	Virginia
40	Giants	Damarious Randall	S	Arizona State
41	Rams	D.J. Humphries	OL	Florida
42	Falcons	Eric Rowe	S	Utah
43	Browns	Donovan Smith	OT	Penn State
44	Saints	Phillip Dorsett	WR	Miami (FL)
45	Vikings	Stephone Anthony	LB	Clemson
46	49ers	Preston Smith	DE	Mississippi State
47	Dolphins	Devin Funchess	WR/TE	Michigan
48	Chargers	Tevin Coleman	RB	Indiana
49	Chiefs	Eddie Goldman	DL	Florida State
50	Bills	A.J. Cann	OG	South Carolina
51	Texans	Benardrick McKinney	OLB	Mississippi State
52	Eagles	Devin Smith	WR	Ohio State
53	Bengals	Maxx Williams	TE	Minnesota
54	Lions	Duke Johnson	RB	Miami (FL)
55	Cardinals	Ronald Darby	CB	Florida State
56	Steelers	Nate Orchard	DE/LB	Utah
57	Panthers	Jay Ajayi	RB	Boise State
58	Ravens	Clive Walford	TE	Miami (FL)
59	Broncos	Grady Jarrett	DT	Clemson
60	Cowboys	TJ Yeldon	RB	Alabama
61	Colts	Paul Dawson	LB	TCU
62	Packers	P.J. Williams	CB	Florida State
63	Seahawks	Carl Davis	DL	Iowa
64	Patriots	Tre' Jackson	OG	Florida State

Third Round

Greg Bartram-USA TODAY Sports

Since I addressed the Steelers' principal needs in the first two rounds, there was a little freedom here to take a chance on a high-upside player at one of those secondary-need positions.

When Pittsburgh was up, I gave serious consideration to Ohio State defensive tackle Michael Bennett and Stanford defensive end Henry Anderson. Look for both to come off the board earlier than pick No. 87 when the actual draft rolls around. 

However, I ended up picking a different Buckeye in tight end Jeff Heuerman. Heath Miller can't play forever, and Heuerman is a near-ideal candidate to be his long-term replacement.

Pick	Team	Player	Position	School
65	Buccaneers	Rashad Greene	WR	Florida State
66	Titans	Cedric Ogbuehi	OT	Texas A&M
67	Jaguars	Jeremy Langford	RB	Michigan State
68	Raiders	Ali Marpet	OG	Hobart College
69	Redskins	Danielle Hunter	DE	LSU
70	Jets	Tre McBride	WR	William & Mary
71	Bears	Jaquiski Tartt	S	Samford
72	Rams	Sammie Coates	WR	Auburn
73	Falcons	Mitch Morse	OG	Missouri
74	Giants	Rob Havenstein	OT	Wisconsin
75	Saints	D'Joun Smith	CB	Florida Atlantic
76	Vikings	Shaq Thompson	OLB	Washington
77	Browns	Jordan Phillips	DT	Oklahoma
78	Saints	John Miller	OG	Louisville
79	49ers	Denzel Perryman	ILB	Miami (FL)
80	Chiefs	Tyler Lockett	WR	Kansas State
81	Bills	Bryce Petty	QB	Baylor
82	Texans	Doran Grant	CB	Ohio State
83	Chargers	Hau'oli Kikaha	OLB	Washington
84	Eagles	Quinten Rollins	CB	Miami (OH)
85	Bengals	Za'Darius Smith	DE	Kentucky
86	Cardinals	David Cobb	RB	Minnesota
87	Steelers	Jeff Heuerman	TE	Ohio State
88	Lions	Josh Shaw	CB	USC
89	Panthers	Michael Bennett	DT	Ohio State
90	Ravens	Derron Smith	SS	Fresno State
91	Cowboys	Trey Flowers	DE	Arkansas
92	Broncos	Henry Anderson	DE	Stanford
93	Colts	Mike Davis	RB	South Carolina
94	Packers	Brett Hundley	QB	UCLA
95	Seahawks	Alex Carter	CB	Stanford
96	Patriots	Kenny Bell	WR	Nebraska
97	Patriots	Ifo Ekpre-Olomu	CB	Oregon
98	Chiefs	Senquez Golson	CB	Mississippi
99	Bengals	Steven Nelson	CB	Oregon State
*100	Titans	Nick O'Leary	TE	FSU

 *First pick of Round 4.

Fourth Round

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Moving into the fourth round, Pittsburgh could consider a wide receiver here or go back to the secondary for another selection. Pittsburgh needs to add another wide receiver in case things don't work out with Markus Wheaton. At the same time, bringing in talent to groom to play free safety is just as important.

This time around, safety won and Penn State safety Adrian Amos was the pick. Amos slid some because teams aren't sure if he is a safety or a cornerback at the NFL level. He looks like an athletic signal-high safety in the Steelers scheme and a good choice here.

Fifth Round

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Coming back around, the Steelers can now consider the depth at wide receiver or maybe go back to defense to hedge their bets at either linebacker or cornerback. There are some interesting guys who look to be available in the fifth round. So given the circumstances, Pittsburgh should be in good shape.

This time around, outside linebacker got the nod again. And the prospect is fascinating. Michigan defensive end Frank Clark certainly passes the eye test for what Pittsburgh is looking for in a pass-rusher. He is raw, but at this point in the draft he is an easy risk to take.

Sixth Round

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As Pittsburgh gets into the sixth round, the Steelers find themselves with a pair of picks, both of which will be used on project players with high athletic upsides. First, I selected Mississippi State cornerback Justin Cox. His size (6'1", 191 lbs) and speed (4.36-second 40-yard dash) make him a fascinating prospect. His game is still far from complete, but at this point he is well worth the risk.

With the second sixth-round selection (compensatory pick), I went for a wide receiver who brings impressive speed and power. Baylor's Antwan Goodley (4.44-second 40-yard dash) doesn't get the attention he deserves, but he is a really fascinating player. An underrated deep threat and powerful with the football in his hands, Goodley can impact the offense split wide or out of the backfield.

Seventh Round

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By the time the Steelers get to the seventh round, pretty much all bets are off. In the first six rounds, I filled some significant gaps on the roster, so I couldn't really go wrong here no matter which player I selected. This time around, I selected Buffalo defensive end Kristjan Sokoli. At 6'5" and 290 pounds, Sokoli looks and plays like a natural 5-technique end.

With the retirement of Brett Keisel, there is an opening on the roster for another defensive end. Sokoli is relentless and physical, never giving up on the play. In fact, on film, a lot of his game is reminiscent of Keisel and his style.