:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70711343/usa_today_17870606.0.jpg)
It has been roughly two years since NFL teams have been permitted to have official pre-draft visits in a team facility. For the past two seasons, due to COVID-19 protocols, teams were forced to have these visits virtually.
In the past, teams would host players, making their list of players who came to town on a visit public considering they were only allotted so many visits per year. At these visits players can have a medical examination, be interviewed and given a test, but not physical tests or drills can be performed.
The specific number of visits are 30, with a major caveat for a team like the Pittsburgh Steelers. This caveat would be a visit which is deemed “local”.
“Local” visits don’t count towards the team’s 30 visits, and players who attend college or reside in a team’s “metropolitan area” can be given a physical examination without counting against the 30-player limit, unless the club provides transportation for the visit.
What is a “Metropolitan area”? “Metropolitan area” is defined as contiguous suburbs. There isn’t a 25-mile, 50-mile, or any other type of mileage radius rule. The league office uses the Rand-McNally Road Atlas to determine the metropolitan area of a city.
With that out of the way, Aditi Kinkhabwala of the NFL Network reports the Steelers are getting ready to kick off these pre-draft visits this week. You’ll be stunned to know who is on the docket for this week, and the coming weeks.
Quarterbacks.
#Steelers QB draft visit train starts Thurs w/ Desmond Ridder. Sam Howell follows Fri, Carson Strong and Matt Corrall in next week and Malik Willis is slated to come to town the week after, per source w/in org. (Kenny Pickett, considered local, already met w/ OC Matt Canada.)
— Aditi Kinkhabwala (@AKinkhabwala) April 4, 2022
According to Kinkhabwala, the Steelers schedule will be as follows:
Cincinnati QB Desmond Ridder — Thursday
North Carolina QB Sam Howell — Friday
Nevada QB Carson Strong and Ole Miss QB Matt Corral — Next Week
Liberty QB Malik Willis — The week after
Pitt QB Kenny Pickett — Local visit, already met with Matt Canada
These won’t be the only names who come into the facility on those days, so be sure to stay tuned to BTSC for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the rest of free agency and the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft.
Loading comments...