2026 Steelers Mock Draft: Post Pro Day Edition

Man, he's huge for a safety. Looks more like a linebacker.

 

Two wild swings in the dark in the first two rounds...?

Yep, i'd seen enough.

 

My issue with Beck is his elbow. How long will it last? His arm isn't the same after surgery.

The draft is many times just luck, as I am sure you know.

I just don't have faith in taking these QBs early. Granted, every QB has flaws or areas to improve, but they don't appear to be any better than Howard. Where is the upside versus taking a BPA at another position?

If I had to rank the top QBs...

1. Mendoza
2. Beck
3. Simpson
4. Allar
5. Nussmeier

Other than Mendoza, that list can flip-flop any which way.

At 53, if you have Rodriguez and Simpson there, who do you take? I take Rodriguez every time. There are such glaring holes in this team and this is a draft filled with very good defensive players for the first 3 rounds. I want defense for the first 3 picks, but it all depends on how the draft falls.

What it comes down to, IMO, is: are any of these QB prospects better than Howard? I don't think the Steelers are looking for a QB. I feel the FO is going with Howard.

 

Nobody wants to draft D in the 1st round, they just want to b!+ch about the D cost too much. That's how you get cheaper.

 

Beck's arm wasn't anything special before, but this is true. I am much more concerned about his character than I am his arm though. Not the type of guy you want as the team's leader. I think he has a high enough floor, because there are good parts to his game, but the "stars align" scenario is Chad Pennington, and most likely his ceiling is as a low end starter or quality enough back up.

The QB's are really difficult this year to predict. They are all so different. Mendoza is accurate and a leader, but is an amalgamation of meh talents and a total guess as to whether or not he can play under center. Simpson has a wildly wide range of outcomes. His highs were high, but the lows pretty low and he doesn't have a lot of tape. Personally I believe his ceiling is high, but he's also a risk. Beck is not particularly talented and has character issues, but is a seemingly safe bet to at least make it as an NFL back up. In a perfect scenario could he be a top 30 NFL QB? Maybe, but it's a scheme fit only. Allar is trash as a player, but has elite arm talent. He will either learn to be a gunslinging pocket passer, or he will be a total flop. No inbetween in my opinion. Nussmeier is interesting as I actually think his ceiling could be a starter as his arm and play on the move is really quite good, but the size concerns and injury issues could be at play. I honestly think he's a better prospect than Beck or Allar, but again, he is likely a scheme play and could end up like Brock Purdy in the long run.

I agree with you. I think a high caliber ILB prospect over a prospect like Simpson makes sense for us... especially if we are rolling Rodgers this season. If we roll Rodgers and we draft a QB, there's a good shot Mason is getting cut and Howard and a rookie are just going to battle it out for the back up job. That's why I think the idea is to not draft a QB and assess next offseason when the QB class is better.

Prospects better than Howard in this draft are Mendoza and Simpson IMO. Neither are big enough upgrades to warrant us drafting a QB in the first IMO.

 

I agree with you here. It appears that secondary and ILB are very high on our draft list (and rightfully so). WR and OG will likely be addressed in the first few rounds too.

First round is going to be a WR or a secondary player and nothing else. OG and ILB are in play in the second and third round alongside whatever we don't draft in the first.

 

You been drinking, bro?

 

This exactly

His arm is much less after surgery

 

I'm curious about Beck's arm. Didn't he already come back from that surgery and QB Miami to the championship game by throwing the ball? Honestly, I was not a fan when he was at Georgia. I thought he looked weak there. I actually thought he looked much stronger last season than he ever did for the DAWGS.

I'm not saying you guys are wrong that his elbow won't hold up. I'm just asking what did you see that looked weaker, and what do you know about UCL repairs and being a QB? The data I find says the prognosis is extremely high.

 

What I have read says 9 months. So, between 9 months and 2 years depending on the player.

 

Nope.


Just looking at the Steelers Roster from both a current and future perspective. I get why people don't like this mock but their are too many factors that need to be accounted for; namely with McNeil Warren in Round 1. Ramsey, Elliot, Brisker and Savage are all either one year players or long in the tooth. Of the ones that will be playing Safety, it appears the likes of Savage and Brisker would be the ones for McCarthy alluded to the fact that Ramsey isn't going to be playing in one static spot. As for Elliot, who knows how he will look. Even should all go well for 2026, 2027 doesn't paint a good picture overall.


Me having Emmanuel McNeil Warren in Round is less about the position and more about the player. Whenever I scout and grade players, I am grading the outcomes of said player and not basing it on mere draft position. Emmanuel is the draft's best box safety but a box safety with some seriously underrated coverage chops. Part of those underrated chops stem from his unique physical profile; 6'4 and weighing 205lbs. Again, he isn't going to win against the NFL's elite separators in the slot. However, against Tight Ends and other Receiving options that operate there?! EMW is more than capable.


The biggest reason though as to why EMW is a pick is based on MIPA (Most Impactful Player Available). Having another Defensive Player who can take the ball away, a hallmark of the Steelers since the 70s, adds another element to the teams Defense; doubly so since the team has not had a reliable turnover machine at the Safety spot since Minkah Fitzpatrick. Emmanuel will never have Minkah's production as a Deep Centerfielder but in the running game, he has shown he is capable of turning the game around.

 

This.


This isn't the usual "Tommy John Surgery" from 1974 to 2019. 2020 onward, Medical Science and Sports Rehabilitation are way more advanced and way more capable of taking care of injuries such as those. Other injuries such as ACL Injuries are also no longer the Career Killers that they once were. Now, as far as Achilles Tears?! That is still being studied for potential medical breakthroughs though progress has been made in that front. The major current hurdle that all doctors face is something that affects us all; nerve damage.


That aspect is still very much ongoing but the technology is still years away from that even being reliable enough for the everyday man; much less athletes. Injuries aside, Carson Beck, to me, is the best QB for he possess all the qualities one looks for in a QB. I have already outlined them enough for those interested. If people are forgetting, they are as follows;

1. Watch their heads when they are holding the ball in the pocket. Are they going through their progressions or not? Does it look like they are actually moving their heads and reading coverage post-snap, and are able to look at two or more of their targets regularly when dropping back? One of the skills NFL quarterbacks need to have is the ability to make two or more reads.
   
   
2. Are they getting the ball out of their hand quickly? With the kinds of speed pass-rushing demons screaming off the edges in today’s NFL game, it’s vitally important that college quarterbacks show the ability to get the ball out of their hand in a timely fashion. The NFL range for NFL QBs time to throw in 2025 was between 2.56 seconds and 3.24 seconds per Next Gen Stats.
   
   
3. Accurate throws. Watch the throwing locations. Is the quarterback you’re watching able to deliver the ball in a spot that puts the receiver in the best possible position to pick up yardage after the catch?
   
   
4. Keeping the ball out of harm’s way is extremely important. This is also referred to as “ball security.” Do they have the ability to keep defenders from touching their passes? I don’t just mean interceptions either. I also mean PBUs (passes broken up). I personally chart PBUs during college quarterback game film study.
   
   
5. How well can they adapt to the flow of the game post-snap?
   
   

All of these translate to the NFL for such tools are a necessity for success at the QB Position. Athletic traits can only get a QB, and therefore a team, only so far. Funnily enough, guess who else has these traits; Super Bowl Winning QB Sam Darnold. It did take him a while but Sam Darnold showed everyone how it was coming together in Minnesota. In Seattle, everything did come together for him though having that team most definitely helped. In the end, Sam Darnold proved me correct; a person that wasn't nearly as high on him in the 2018 Draft as I was with Josh Allen or even Baker Mayfield.