2018 NFL Mock Draft: Steelers bring in tremendous haul on Day 1 and 2 of NFL Draft

The Pittsburgh Steelers need to add talent on the defensive side of the football, and this is no secret. While national NFL Draft analysts have the Steelers taking every position from quarterbacks to tight ends with their top pick, leave it to a member of the Pittsburgh media to set the record straight.

Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette just released his fourth, and final, 7-round Steelers mock draft, and while he, like everyone else who does mock drafts, is merely speculating, his speculations come from an inside look into the Pittsburgh Steelers organization and locker room.

Somewhere Todd McShay or Mel Kiper Jr. have never been.

Fittipaldo goes into tremendous detail on every draft pick he suggests, but out of respect I will allow you to check his site for those details. Check out his full mock draft HERE. What I did is take each pick, as well as who he was also considering with that particular pick, and list it below.

After reading over the Steelers’ overall selections, let us know what you think about the mock draft in the comment section below. Do you like their approach? What about the positions taken in each round? Does it jive with your own personal Big Board? And of course, what do you think about the actual prospects selected?

Now onto the 7-round mock draft for the 2018 NFL Draft...

1. ILB Rashaan Evans of Alabama

Evans might not be the fastest linebacker in the draft, and he did nothing to answer that question for scouts by electing not to run the 40-yard dash during the pre-draft process. But the tape doesn’t lie. What he might lack in elite speed he makes up for with an aggressive downhill style that should mesh well with the Steelers defense. NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah describes him as a “Steeler-type player.” Evans played through a groin injury last fall, but if he’s healthy, he’ll be plenty athletic enough to develop into a three-down linebacker. He has the potential to be a plug-and-play starter, and his presence will help the Steelers get over the loss of Shazier.

Also considered: ILB Leighton Vander Esch of Boise State

2. S Jessie Bates of Wake Forest

Also considered: WR Christian Kirk of Texas A&M

3. WR Dante Pettis of Washington

Also considered: DL B.J. Hill of North Carolina State

5a. DL P.J. Hall of Sam Houston State

Also considered: DL Bilal Nichols of Delaware

5b. RB Akrum Wadley of Iowa

Also considered: TE Troy Fumagalli of Wisconsin

7a. ILB Joel Iyiegbuniwe of Western Kentucky

Also considered: WR Russell Gage of LSU

7b. OL Jordan Mailata of IMG Academy

Also considered: ILB Matthew Thomas of Florida State