2023 NFL Mock Draft: Determining all 7 Pittsburgh Steelers selections

On Tuesday night’s BTSC podcast of The Scho Bro Show, we held a mock draft simulation where those in attendance as part of our live chat on YouTube or Facebook got to chime in to help make the Steelers picks. The simulation was done through profootballnetwork.com and used their predictive rankings to select the other 31 NFL franchise’s picks while we chose those of the Steelers.

Before getting into the selections, we realize the chances of getting any, let alone all, of the selections correct is a very long shot. In last year‘s exercise where the Steelers made seven selections, we got none of the selections correct as they had quarterbacks flying off the board in Round 1 (Malik Willis went 2nd overall). The draft plays out in strange ways, so players who were available in certain positions in this simulation will likely be gone on draft night. This is what makes watching the draft so exciting and entertaining as you never know what is going to happen.

Additionally, remember that this was a simulation and that our options were based off of players who could have already been selected by other teams. In years past, some were quick to comment on the podcast listing out all the players we should have taken in the simulation. To nobody’s surprise, the first five players they listed had already been drafted before the Steelers had the opportunity to take that player where they suggested.

Looking back at last year’s draft, there were a lot of times players a lot of Steelers fans may have looked for in certain rounds were already gone, despite their rankings being lower than where the Steelers were picking. This year, the opposite seemed to be true as players who were considered at certain picks ended up being there when the Steelers were on the clock again.

So here are the seven selections taken by an attempted consensus of BTSC viewers in the live chat. Remember this draft was not including any possible trades.

NOTE: Despite the report of the potential trade for Allen Robinson pending a physical, the transaction had not been made official. For this reason, the Steelers were still picking at No. 234 and not No. 251.

Round 1, pick 17: Joey Porter Jr., CB, Penn St

The way the draft fell is quite interesting. Right off the bat I wasn’t sure what to think as Anthony Richardson went first overall. But after settling down, I wasn’t surprised what was available for the Steelers at pick 17th. With the top three offensive tackles and top two cornerbacks off the board, the main two considerations were Porter and edge rusher Lucas Van Ness out of Iowa. While I thought a player such as Darnell Wright could be considered at 17, I didn’t have him ahead of Porter and ruled it out. After the discussion, it ultimately came down to cornerback was a better position to take in the first round than edge rusher.

Round 2, pick 32: Darnell Wright, OT, Tennessee

A player who I think is still a possibility at 17 ended up available for the Steelers to take it 32. Surprisingly both Anton Harrison and Dawand Jones were off the board as they were players I would be looking for this spot. The fact that Wright, who I have a head of both of these players, was there made the decision easy for me. And the live chat agreed with the only other consideration really going towards linebacker Trenton Simpson.

Round 2, pick 49: Trent Simpson, LB, Clemson

What do you know! It happened again. A player who was considered with the Steelers previous selection, and in this case very heavily considered, was still there for their next pick. This made selecting Trent Simpson a no-brainer for everyone involved. The discussion did not take long as the only other player really mentioned was cornerback Julius Brents but the Steelers had already drafted a CB.

Round 3, pick 80: Julius Brents, CB, Kansas St.

Not again! This was a scenario where the live chat felt it was too good to pass up. So even though they selected Porter in the first round, the Steelers double-dip at cornerback and selected Julius Brents. Thought of by some as a player the Steelers could grab if they don’t go cornerback in the first round, Brents still landed in Pittsburgh but with their fourth pick.

Round 4, pick 120: Zach Harrison, Edge, Ohio St.

This selection took some time and discussion. Being the Steelers fifth selection and the fact that they don’t have another draft pick for another 120 selections makes this one pretty important. Ultimately we filtered things by position to see who all was available. After looking at safeties, defensive tackles, and edge rushers, it was ultimately the measureables of Harrison out of Ohio State which made it seem like a great place for the Steelers to get a potential third player in the rotation at the position.

Round 7, pick 234: Byron Young, DT, Alabama

After the long wait until the Steelers had another selection, albeit seven spots before they actually pick, there were two different defensive tackles that caught the eye of our life chat. Other positions were considered such as tight end, quarterback, and safety. Ultimately, the Steelers taking a defensive lineman from Alabama late in the draft seems to be something they have done in the past so this was the ultimate decision after a consensus could not be reached otherwise.

Round 7, pick 241: Brenton Strange, TE, Penn St.

Not sure where to go with the final pick, one user in the live chat insisted on looking up the Penn State tight end. After circling around at a number of other positions, including quarterback or another offensive tackle both out of Division II Shepherd University, the live chat seemed to settle in on adding another player to the tight end room.

So there are the seven selections from the live chat of The Scho Bro Show this past Tuesday. How do you think we did? How many of these draft picks could you see realistically landing with the Steelers? As always, feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments below.

If you’d like to listen to the entire show to see what other options were available, or just to hear me butcher the pronunciation of players’ names, the podcast is available below: