Joe Kuzma’s 2023 3-Round Steelers Mock Draft: Defense? Yes please!
It’s that time again Steelers Nation: the 2023 NFL Draft is on the horizon and everyone is making their educated guess as to which teams take which players in the lead-up to next Thursday’s first round of the draft.
Unlike previous drafts where we had a pulse on the Pittsburgh Steelers taking an inside linebacker, running back, or quarterback, the focus of this year’s first round pick has been all over the map. That’s due to a new general manager combo of Omar Khan and Andy Weidl leading the charge, but also due to the Steelers meeting with a vast array of different players who play different positions.
Among those groups, cornerback has been the wider focus with defensive line and wide receivers receiving a decent amount of looks. Offensive tackle has been speculated by fans and analysts alike, but the team has only met with a few of the top prospects in this year’s draft and seem to be uninterested in middle round targets. Yet, they’ve also brought in two quarterbacks and a tight end for a visit, leaving no stone unturned.
I kept these visits to the Steelers facility, past draft history (Mike Tomlin loves Big Ten players), and pro day visits in mind as I ran several simulations to come up with a somewhat realistic approach to my fantasy draft.
So let’s first establish my rules: one thing I loathe when doing these mock drafts is the computer’s insistence on making trades. While enticing, I stuck with the Steelers original picks for this particular mock draft.
Now, within those rules, I only allow myself to take a player that’s available consistently when running several mocks through various services. Every one of these platforms, from Pro Football Network to Pro Football Focus, has a different “big board” which ranks rookie prospects in varying degrees. While it’s happened, it’s not plausible in almost any of these drafts for Ohio State OT Paris Johnson Jr. or Oregon CB Christian Gonzalez to fall to pick 17.
Georgia OT Broderick Jones, and yes, even the “rumored” trade target from Georgia, DT Jalen Carter, were consistently gone by the time I went on the clock with pick 17. Therefore, these are some of the best options based on who was available at the time I made each selection. I also offer some other thoughts based on draft needs, which I established in this article a few days ago.
Now, it’s time for my best guess at being wrong, with some justification as to why I made each selection.
First Round (17): Joey Porter Jr. – Cornerback (Penn State)
The temptation to take an offensive tackle wears off as the top two targets, Johnson and Jones, are both taken.
Scanning the board, the Cowboys moved up to snag Clemson DT Bryan Bresee one pick ahead of Pittsburgh. (Which is unlikely given they traded with division rival Washington, alas why I dislike trades in simulations.)
The Steelers just traded with the Rams for veteran WR Allen Robinson, making USC WR Jordan Addison and Ohio State WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba moot points for pick 17 now. I feel like one of two available offensive tackles I’m targeting will be available at pick 32, but I don’t feel so confident at cornerback, which makes the nepotism/bloodline link to Penn State CB Joey Porter Jr. my choice.
Porter was linked in early mocks, but the noise died down lately. I believe that was to throw other teams off of the Steelers’ scent so they get their guy.
Now, the cornerback class is deep, but just how deep was I willing to risk losing Porter, Maryland’s Deonte Banks, Georgia’s Kelee Ringo, or South Carolina’s Cam Smith? Not deep enough. All are gone by the time we roll around to Pittsburgh’s next pick – and so too would Porter if I don’t take him here.
In Porter the Steelers get their shutdown boundary corner – who doesn’t have to start Week 1. He provides more size as one of the larger, better graded corners in his class. Porter excels in man coverage and can press the line of scrimmage, giving the Steelers another Joe Haden type who can lockdown one side of the field.
Also considered: Anton Harrison (OT – Oklahoma), Kelee Ringo (CB – Georgia)
Second Round (32): Anton Harrison – Offensive Tackle (Oklahoma)
My patience pays off, but the overnight wait for day two of the draft, to see who goes with the top pick of the second round, is going to be a nailbiter. There’s a number of prospects I’d enjoy taking here before pick 49 in the same round.
One of those who may not last until 49 is Georgia TE Darnell Washington, who could provide a blocking element for the Steelers offense that would forego taking an offensive tackle in this spot.
While I pine for the days of a Casey Hampton style nose tackle, Michigan’s Mazi Smith is a bit on the larger side (323 lbs.) than the Steelers are accustomed to playing these days. I also feel pick 32 is a bit rich for a nose tackle who would play, at best, 30% on game days.
I bounced back to the two offensive tackles I passed on in the first round, and to my delight, both were available: Oklahoma’s Anton Harrison and Tennessee’s Darnell Wright. In fact, Ohio State’s massive (6’8”, 374 lbs.) tackle Dawand Jones is here too.
Despite Mike Tomlin’s affection for Andre the Giant-sized human beings, pick 32 is going to be a selection for a future starter. Therefore, I went with Harrison, who was a three-year starter at left tackle for the Sooners who was named to the coaches and AP All-Big 12 First Team in 2022.
According to Pro Football Focus, Harrison allowed only nine pressures on 447 pass-blocking snaps. I’ll take his experience in the pass-heavy Big 12 over Wright and Jones, who both played on the right side last season.
Also considered: Darnell Wright (OT – Tennessee), Dawand Jones (OT – Ohio State), Darnell Washington (TE – Georgia), Mazi Smith (DT – Michigan)
Second Round (49): Felix Anudike-Uzomah – Edge Rusher (Kansas State)
I was hoping for any number of players to drop to 49 from 32, but it didn’t happen here.
Among those I had an eye for included Darnell Washington (noted above) plus inside linebackers from Iowa (Jack Campbell) and Arkansas (Drew Sanders).
I gave some consideration to bolstering the defensive line with Pitt DT Calijah Kancey, but I have doubts to his availability at pick 49. This is one player that is all over big boards – and he’s considered undersized by many, but that wouldn’t be a problem with his weight (281 lbs.) rather his height (6’1”). I think that’s detriment as a 3-4 defensive end in Pittsburgh.
I still have my eyes on some other defensive line help with the third-round pick, so my attention shifted to either doubling up on cornerbacks with Ole Miss CB Emmanuel Forbes, or adding a safety. I can’t get a feel for anyone in the latter group that would fit the Steelers, or even be a contributor as a rookie.
I already got the cornerback and offensive tackle of the future, so this pick feels like it should be used for depth: and what better spot needs depth than edge rusher?
While I’m hopeful for an Alex Highsmith extension this offseason, he enters the final year of his rookie deal after leading the Steelers – and most of the league – with 14.5 sacks. Regardless if he comes to the negotiating table or not, Pittsburgh cannot afford another season with no help behind T.J. Watt or Highsmith. Enter a Highsmith-like pick with Kansas State’s Anudike-Uzomah.
Over his last two seasons, the collegiate defensive end had 21 sacks and 89 pressures. He hurried opposing quarterbacks a combined 54 times in those 27 games while primarily lining up outside the tackle, where he’d be positioned as an outside linebacker in Pittsburgh.
His selection would not only give a fresh, hungry body to spell Watt and Highsmith, but potentially be the heir apparent for Highsmith, should the latter move on after this season.
Also considered: Emmanuel Forbes (CB – Ole Miss), Calijah Kancey (DT, Pittsburgh)
Third Round (80): Keaanu Benton – Defensive Tackle (Wisconsin)
The final pick of my three-round mock is a four-year starter from, you guessed it, a Big Ten school.
Wisconsin’s Keeanu Benton can fit anywhere along the line, but can win a starting spot this season at nose tackle, where the Steelers are taking flyers on several players to fill a role in what has become a porous run defense over the last two seasons.
Benton could become the successor to Tyson Alualu, who was injured in the first of those last two seasons and then saw his playing time dwindle after age and injury recovery cost him his starting spot. Alualu was 6’3” 304 lbs. while Benton is an inch taller and five pounds heavier.
His versatility would be coveted by the Steelers in the event to injuries with Heyward or Ogunjobi, and he can easily work into the mix on the ends with DeMarvin Leal or Isaiahh Loudermilk. This is why I chose him over linebacker depth with Washington State’s Henley or yet another cornerback, with Miami’s Stevenson.
Benton would compete immediately with incumbent Montravius Adams and offseason acquisitions Breiden Fehoko and Armon Watts, none of whom should be considered roster locks at this juncture, and should be a first year contributor if the Steelers select him.
Also considered: Tyrique Stevenson (CB – Miami), Daiyan Henley (LB – Washington State)
