When you read any sort of mock draft, you have to judge it based on the perspective of the person who wrote it. There are two ways to put together a mock draft. It can be a prediction, of what you think the team will do. Or it can be your own projection, more of what would you do if you were in charge of every NFL team.
For Mark Schofield at Touchdown Wire, he took the latter approach and did his latest one-round mock draft based on assuming the role of each team’s GM.
Schofield went on the clock for the Pittsburgh Steelers and he decided the “should” pick was Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett. Here’s what Schofield had to say about the pick:
The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the handful of teams expected to address quarterback in the first round of this draft. With Pittsburgh’s Kenny Pickett falling to them, they can do just that. While he might not have the upside of Malik Willis, Pickett is an NFL-ready quarterback who has shown great growth and development during his time in college.
Yes, there are concerns about handsize that make him an outliner from that perspective, and yes he will need to shore up his responses to unexpected pressure in the pocket, but Pickett attacks all areas of the field well, is ready to handle NFL progressions and concepts, and has the athletic ability to survive in the modern NFL.
Let me be clear that I understand how loved this pick would be by the fanbase. Pickett is a local star and very talented. The good thing about drafting Pickett or any quarterback this year is there is no rush to get them on the field. Mitch Trubisky and/or Mason Rudolph are fully capable of carrying the water for the 2022 season for better or worse.
The way this first round fell was about as bad for the Steelers as could be if the team was considering any position other than quarterback, which makes this pick even more reasonable.
Let us know in the comments if there’s a guy you think would have been a better pick for the Steelers and get in the conversation.
