Should the Steelers draft a safety in the 2023 NFL Draft?

With each Big Board article this spring, the BTSC crew will be publishing a second article complementary to that respective portion of the board. This week, we are going over the safety position and whether or not the Steelers will want to draft one in April.

If you have thoughts as to whether or not the Steelers should draft a safety this year, let us know in the comment section below. Let’s see what our resident draft analysts have to say.

Ryland B.: To me, it’s pretty simple. If the Steelers can bring back both Terrell Edmunds and Damontae Kazee, combined with Minkah Fitzpatrick, Pittsburgh has one of the strongest safety rooms in the league. There’s no offseason need there in the least. If only one of Edmunds or Kazee return, I’d be comfortable with whoever that is starting opposite Fitzpatrick, but I’d want a veteran brought in as depth in free agency (much like the Kazee signing last season). I just don’t have a lot of confidence in Tre Norwood at this point, although it would be great if he could prove me wrong.

The only way in which I could see Pittsburgh drafting a safety is in the unlikely scenario of both Edmunds and Kazee leaving town. At that point there would be a gaping hole on the roster, and I wouldn’t mind the Steelers addressing the need as early as the first round. A high-level free agent could be an option there as well, especially as it isn’t a very strong draft class at the position this year. That being said, the odds of the Steelers not bringing back either of Edmunds or Kazee seem very low. Free agent safeties usually don’t generate huge markets so I think it’s safe to say one or both return.

One caveat is that a number of safeties in this year’s class (Brandon Hill, Avery Young, etc.) could project better as cornerbacks in the NFL. So, even if the Steelers don’t see safety as a need this year, some of the names listed on BTSC’s safety big board could still be a live option for the team, just at another position.

Noah_E: Last offseason the Steelers signed Damontae Kazee to compliment Terrell Edmunds and he was a productive player once he got healthy. Now this offseason both players are scheduled to be free agents. The 3-Safety defense the Steelers deployed at times this past year seemed to be pretty effective and I would love to see both guys back in a Steelers uniform, but it’s not likely. Let’s say one of them returns, leaving Tre Norwood as your third safety, which isn’t terrible as he had a solid rookie year but this past season his play was subpar at best. I think taking a safety with one of Pittsburgh’s two 7th round picks would be beneficial, unless both Edmunds and Kazee return to Pittsburgh.

Do you think the Steelers should acquire a safety this offseason? If so, when and how should they do it? Let us know your thoughts by voting on the poll and commenting down below.