Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Pittsburgh Steelers face roster decisions with new head coach Mike McCarthy and key departures like Isaac Seumalo.
- A veteran interior offensive lineman’s absence creates urgency for early draft investment to protect Aaron Rodgers.
- Questions linger about depth and durability on defense, prompting potential mid-round selections to bolster the back end.
It’s been an offseason full of change for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Longtime head coach Mike Tomlin resigned and was replaced by another sideline veteran in Mike McCarthy. The team’s coaching staff was almost completely overhauled before the roster was infused with some talent in free agency and through a trade for receiver Michael Pittman Jr.
T.J. Watt, DK Metcalf and Cam Heyward aren’t losing their starting spots anytime soon, but that doesn’t mean that the Steelers are going to trot out the same lineup as last season. Here’s how the 2026 NFL Draft could shake things up before the black and gold convenes in Latrobe for training camp.
Steelers must replace massive veteran guard
After Isaac Seumalo departed to join the Arizona Cardinals in free agency — moving closer to his West Coast roots on a three-year, $31.5 million deal — the Steelers have a pretty noticeable hole beside budding center Zach Frazier, whom Aaron Rodgers believes has a bright future in the league.
That tasks McCarthy with replacing a starter at that interior spot on the offensive line. Penn State’s Olaivavega Ioane seems to be the consensus here, as both a fit in the mid-to-late first round and a local product. If the Steelers are to spend a draft pick that warrants a large role early on, it would be in line with how Omar Khan has constructed the offensive line, which includes Broderick Jones (24 years old), Troy Fautanu (25), Mason McCormick (25) and Frazier (24). Aside from McCormick, each of those people movers were first- or second-round choices.
Why Broderick Jones’ Steelers role is cloudy
Speaking of offensive tackle, Jones’ future is a question mark for the Steelers right now.
During last season’s Week 12 matchup against the Chicago Bears, Dominique Robinson grabbed the back of the 2023 first-round pick’s helmet and yanked him down. Jones was forced to exit the game, and the neck injury he suffered because of it cost him the rest of his season.
Dylan Cook, once a practice squad player and fourth-stringer on the depth chart, stood in the rest of the way and did a solid job. However, if Jones remains shelved and McCarthy doesn’t buy that Cook is a long-term answer, Pittsburgh could look at someone like Utah’s Caleb Lomu, Clemson’s Blake Miller or Arizona State’s Max Iheanachor in the middle rounds.
The Steelers aren’t as likely to invest at the quarterback’s blindside as they are other spots on the field, but that doesn’t mean it’s completely out of the question.
Could the Steelers use some reinforcements on the back end?
DeShon Elliott — who, much like Jones, missed a large portion last season due to injury — seems to be on track to make his return from the badly hyperextended knee he suffered in a Week 8 primetime loss to the Green Bay Packers.
He’s a leader on the Steelers’ defense, as evidenced by the contract extension the team gave him before last year began, but he has been sidelined in each of his eight NFL campaigns. It will be interesting to see if Pittsburgh learned its lesson moving forward, as the mix of retreads Kyle Dugger, Jabrill Peppers and Chuck Clark didn’t cut it behind him.
With three third-round choices currently at their disposal, it wouldn’t be impossible for the Steelers to move up to pluck Ohio State’s Caleb Downs, whom they met with at the NFL Scouting Combine. I’m not saying the odds are high there, but it’s not impossible.
A more likely scenario is that Pittsburgh takes someone like LSU’s A.J. Haulcy in the mid-rounds.