It’s the first week of April, and information on who the Pittsburgh Steelers could select in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft feels as fuzzy as ever. Normally, by this time of the calendar, a list of 10-ish prospects can be made for the pick. In 2025, it felt like Oregon DL Derrick Harmon was a strong favorite. In 2023 and 2024, the feeling was that it was an offensive lineman of some sort, though it was harder to weed out who.
In 2026? The field seems wide open. A new coaching staff plays an obvious role. As does the team’s lack of Pro Day activity. Decision-makers Mike McCarthy and Omar Khan attended just one of them, Georgia, with other plans apparently interfering with five other planned stops (Ohio State was one of them; we can only make educated guesses about the rest).
That leaves just one tool in our “Blue’s Clues” arsenal. The final and most important piece. Pre-draft visits.
To date, we know just over half the list of either completed or scheduled visits, 16 of 30. There are plenty of notable names, including a trio of quarterbacks: Miami (FL)’s Carson Beck, North Dakota State’s Cole Payton, and Arkansas’ Taylen Green. But none are first-rounders. In fact, of the current group of 15, only one is a likely Day One candidate. Wide receiver Denzel Boston is among the muddied group of receivers looking to go in the Top 32. Perhaps Texas Tech LB Jacob Rodriguez and San Diego State CB Chris Johnson are in the first round discussion, too, but both seem less likely. Especially at No. 21.
If history under Khan remains the same, the first-round pick will come in for a visit. That held true in 2023 with Broderick Jones, 2024 with Troy Fautanu, and 2025 with Harmon. It’s doubly important given the two made just one Pro Day stop. Even knowing there’s a new coaching staff, drafting a first-rounder with little face-to-face time hasn’t been Pittsburgh’s model.
That makes for an important final 14. The list should fill up fast and be full of “headline” names. Who will be among them? More receivers, you’d expect. Omar Cooper Jr., KC Concepcion, Jordyn Tyson, and others could populate it. It’d make sense for safeties to be brought in. Oregon’s Dillon Thieneman, Toledo’s Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, and heck, why not check out Ohio State’s Caleb Downs? Guard from Penn State, Vega Ioane, and perhaps other big guys up front fit.
Pre-draft visits wrap up about two weeks into April. The Steelers list should be complete in short order, with a couple of visits potentially happening the rest of this week. Pay close attention to those names. It’ll likely contain whoever Pittsburgh selects on April 23rd.