For the second straight year, the Pittsburgh Steelers enter the 2026 NFL Draft with more questions than answers on their rebuilding roster. The Aaron Rodgers saga is once again controlling their entire offseason as general manager Omar Khan prepares to begin the Mike McCarthy era with 12 picks in his pocket.
While the Steelers have dealt with transitioning phases in many recent offseasons, Khan is in uncharted territory as he prepares for his first season on the job without Mike Tomlin as the team’s head coach. With Pittsburgh hosting the 2026 NFL Draft, he will be under even more pressure as local fans dominate Acrisure Stadium.
Despite rumors that Rodgers is likely headed toward retirement, the Steelers are reportedly not interested in taking a quarterback in the first round. But with most fans in the stadium desperate to watch the team select its next franchise star, that enticing option cannot be entirely ruled out.
Pittsburgh is also a premier draft night trade candidate, sending predictions all over the board. Before the 2026 NFL Draft unfolds, we will break down our Steelers mock draft.
Round 1, Pick 21: OG Olaivavega Ioane, Penn State
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Unless the Steelers want to be the team taking a shot on Ty Simpson, it will likely not be a quarterback in the first round. They have spent a considerable amount of time scouting first-round safeties, but with that position deeper than usual in 2026, finding a guard to replace the departing Isaac Seumalo should be the top priority on Day One, leading to Pittsburgh taking Penn State product Olaivavega Ioane at No. 21.
Ioane is the consensus top guard of the class and is projected to fall in the back-end of the first round. Longtime backup Spencer Anderson, who is entering a contract year, is currently penciled into the Steelers’ opening lineup, but has not been a weekly starter in his three-year career.
Regardless of who is under center in Week 1, Pittsburgh needs to provide him with quality protection. If they pass on guard in Round 1, there is no other bona fide day-one starting guard who would be available later in the draft.
Round 3, Pick 76: QB Drew Allar, Penn State
All signs point to the Steelers using one of their three Day Two selections on a quarterback. Pittsburgh is reportedly looking for a signal-caller with “long arms, big hands and a knack for thriving in the cold weather,” according to ESPN’s Brooke Pryor. Of the options expected to be available in the third round, Drew Allar best fits the bill.
Like many of his peers in the incoming quarterback class, Allar disappointed in 2025, ending an injury-shortened, six-game season with just 1,100 passing yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions. His regression turned him from a potential first-round prospect to a fringe Day Two target.
Allar lost the initial excitement many fans had for him in his final year at Penn State, but he remains a potential buy-low target with high-level experience and a proven track record of success at the collegiate level. Depending on what they saw during the pre-draft process, the Steelers could very well end up with a pair of Nittany Lions in their first two picks.
Round 3, Pick 85: WR Bryce Lance, North Dakota State
The Steelers entered the 2026 offseason with a dire need for receivers, an area they immediately addressed by acquiring Michael Pittman Jr. from the Indianapolis Colts. Pittman will form a nice tandem with leading wideout DK Metcalf, but Pittsburgh still lacks depth at the position after letting Calvin Austin III and Adam Thielen walk in free agency.
Metcalf and Pittman are excellent over the middle of the field and near the sidelines, but neither is a consistent downfield threat. Pittsburgh needs a third complement to space the field, which North Dakota State star Bryce Lance could be. Lance has turned heads during the pre-draft process after posting 2,132 receiving yards and 27 total touchdowns in his last two seasons with the Bison.
Competition will always be a question mark for FCS products, but the Steelers would just need Lance to be the efficient downfield threat that he has been for his entire life. He averaged a whopping 21.2 yards per catch in 2025, the most in the FCS among players with 50 or more catches.
Round 3, Pick 99: S Bud Clark, TCU
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If the Steelers pass on safety in the first round, it will be one of their top priorities on Day Two. They could trade into the second round, but given how deep the class is, they can afford to exercise patience and still find a starting-caliber player late in the third round.
As an experienced, rangy safety, TCU’s Bud Clark is an ideal scheme fit for first-year defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. Clark, who turns 24 in May, is one of the older prospects of the class, but he is one of the premier playmakers on the board, racking up 20 pass breakups and 15 interceptions since 2022.
The Steelers had success with deploying Jalen Ramsey at safety in 2025, but the new coaching staff appears to be transitioning him back to cornerback. They still lack depth on the back end after losing Kyle Dugger and Chuck Clark, and with DeShon Elliott currently rehabbing a career-threatening leg injury.
Round 4, Pick 121: WR De’Zhaun Stribling, Ole Miss
Pittsburgh will almost certainly use at least two of its 12 picks on receivers whom it believes can contribute on the field immediately. Expect Khan to double down on another deep threat on Day Three, where Ole Miss’ De’Zhaun Stribling makes a lot of sense.
Stribling is another older prospect who broke through with Oklahoma State in 2024, then became a key part of Ole Miss’ National Championship runner-up campaign in 2025. He combines elite physicality and hand strength with an encouraging 6-foot-2 frame and has always done his best work downfield. Subpar route-running is his biggest concern, but he could be an excellent field-stretching target to open up the middle of the field for Metcalf and Pittman.
Round 4, Pick 135: LB Kaleb Elarms-Orr, TCU
The Steelers have two solid run-stopping linebackers in Patrick Queen and Payton Wilson, but they otherwise lack depth at inside linebacker. They re-signed veteran Cole Holcomb to provide depth, but expect them to still target the position early on Day Three.
TCU’s Kaleb Elarms-Orr has semi-quietly risen up draft boards throughout the pre-draft process. After a strong showing at the Senior Bowl, the 22-year-old impressed with a 4.47-second 40-yard dash at the Combine, the third-fastest of the position, trailing only projected top-10 picks Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese.
Elarms-Orr, who racked up 130 tackles for the Horned Frogs in 2025, might have done enough to convince teams to take a shot on him in the third round. If not, he would be an excellent addition for the Steelers on Day Three of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Round 5, Pick 161: DT Albert Regis, Texas A&M
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Defensive tackle is not an urgent position of need, but it is an area the Steelers need to consider soon. Keanu Benton is preparing for a contract year, and the eternal Cameron Heyward turns 37 one month after the draft.
Depending on when Khan gets the itch to address the position, Texas A&M alum Albert Regis would be a solid Day Three target. Regis broke out in his senior season, notching 46 tackles, two sacks and six pass breakups in 2025. Regis has concerns in run defense but is an elite pass-disruptor, recording nine batted passes in his final two seasons in College Station.
Pittsburgh went big on the position in the 2025 NFL Draft, taking Derrick Harmon in the first round and Yahya Black in the fifth. Both players showed promise in their rookie seasons, which should not have Khan adding to the group before round five.
Round 6, Pick 216: FB/TE Max Bredeson, Michigan
Few head coaches have loved fullbacks more than Mike McCarthy did in Green Bay, making it somewhat surprising the Steelers avoided the position after Connor Heyward left in free agency. Perhaps Pittsburgh will instead address the position late in the 2026 NFL Draft, where Michigan’s Max Bredeson is likely to hear his name called.
As a product of Michigan’s run-dominant offense, Bredeson has been one of the best backfield blockers in college football for years. Although he did not record many offensive touches, Bredeson was the Wolverines’ highest-graded run and pass-blocker in 2025 on Pro Football Focus.
With Darnell Washington entering a contract year, the Steelers could also be in the market for a new blocking-centric tight end soon. Bredeson took 188 of his 310 offensive snaps in 2025 at tight end and could be that player with the right development.
Round 7, Pick 224: CB Jadon Canady, Oregon
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The Steelers are not short on cornerbacks, but after ending the 2025 season allowing the second-most passing yards in the league, nothing is off the table. It would not be a surprise if they target the position earlier, but in round seven, there are few players with higher upside than Oregon’s Jadon Canady.
The well-traveled Canady had stops at Tulane and Ole Miss before wrapping up his collegiate career with the Ducks in 2025. While not the biggest stat-stuffing machine, Canady recovered from a season-ending injury in 2023 to post a respectable 17 pass breakups and two interceptions in his final two years of college football.
Canady knows who he is ahead of the draft and is ready to contribute on special teams to secure his place on a 53-man roster, before potentially establishing himself as a starter. Although undersized, the Jacksonville native plays with a physical edge that allowed him to compete with the best receivers in the Big Ten on a weekly basis.
Round 7, Pick 230: LB Jimmy Rolder, Michigan
The team that ends up taking a dive on Jimmy Rolder at the tail end of the 2026 NFL Draft could end up with one of the biggest steals of the draft. That could easily end up being the Steelers, who are expected to be one of the many teams looking for special teams help late in the process.
After riding the bench behind star teammates for three years, Rolder took full advantage of his opportunity as a senior and surprisingly led Michigan with 73 tackles in 2025. He lacks high-end athleticism and strength, but his pursuit and athleticism as a run defender quickly made it seem foolish that he rode the bench as long as he did.
While teams that rate Rolder based on his 2025 film might have him higher on their boards, his lack of prolonged success and subpar physical measurements might push him to the final round, where any team would be lucky to snag him. Rolder was one of the Wolverines’ best special teams players before emerging as a starter and will immediately contribute there as a professional.
Round 7, Pick 237: OT Travis Burke, Memphis
Aside from former Dallas Cowboys starter Brock Hoffman, the Steelers do not have much in their backup offensive line rotation. They particularly lack tackle depth and will undoubtedly use one of their trio of seventh-round picks on a low-risk, high-upside player like Memphis’ Travis Burke.
A former FCS product at Gardner-Webb, Burke started for two years at FIU before ending his career with the Tigers, where he emerged as a first-team All-American Athletic tackle. The durable 23-year-old has attractive physical numbers, combining his 6-foot-8 frame with a 34.5-inch wingspan. Burke does not have the best footwork, but nobody is a perfect prospect on Day Three.
Burke’s physical measurements could easily have him selected much earlier than the seventh round, but scouts reported concerns with his subpar lateral movement against quicker edge-rushers, which is all the NFL has to offer. He is a project, but one that the Steelers might find worth investing in late in the 2026 NFL Draft.
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