The Pittsburgh Steelers wrapped up the 2026 NFL Draft having added 10 rookies to their roster. With the draft now wrapped up, our staff gives their final overall grades on the Steelers\u2019 2026 draft class.<\/p>\n
Ryland Bickley: While I didn\u2019t hate any of the Steelers\u2019 picks, my overall takeaways from this class are that it\u2019s mildly underwhelming. Granted, the one-two punch of Iheanachor in the first and Bernard in the second both made a lot of sense given the available board and the team\u2019s short- and long-term goals. Allar, who I\u2019m not very high on, was a defendable quarterback swing for a team that desperately needs one.<\/p>\n
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The Everette and Dunker picks were both at positions of need, but there were several names at offensive line and defensive back I had rated higher.<\/p>\n
The team\u2019s Day Three hall was fine. Wetjen is obviously a great returner, but the fourth round felt a bit rich given that the team has found quality contributors on offense and defense (Nick Herbig<\/a>, Darnell Washington<\/a>, etc.) there in recent years. Also, the team\u2019s three wide receiver-adjacent picks (Bernard, Wetjen, Heidenreich) were all gadget guys to various degrees in their college offenses \u2014 all awesome players, but that\u2019s a lot of redundancy for a team that could still use some vertical talent in the passing game.<\/p>\n I liked aspects of all of the team\u2019s Day Three picks, especially Nowakowski, who isn\u2019t at the highest value position but is a perfect fit for the new-look Pittsburgh offense.<\/p>\n Still, the Steelers entered this draft with 12 picks and a chance to really replenish the roster depth. I don\u2019t think they accomplished that goal to its full potential, but I\u2019d be lying if I didn\u2019t say there\u2019s still a lot to be exciting about. Grade: B<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Mike Nicastro: The Steelers first draft in nearly two decades without Mike Tomlin definitely felt different.\u00a0For starters, they selected a player in the first round who they were barely connected to in Arizona State offensive tackle Max Iheanachor, who felt like a panic reach after the Maki Lemon debacle.\u00a0 He has a high ceiling \u2013 but it was a strange tone given the team\u2019s general \u201cwin-now\u201d demeanor.<\/p>\n Their best picks came on day two in my opinion, in steady eddy Alabama wideout Germie Bernard<\/a>, and my favorite choice \u2013 their left guard for the next decade, Gennings Dunker out of Iowa. Neither of those will be Hall of Famers, but both should be above average pros for a long time.\u00a0 Although I don\u2019t think Drew Allar<\/a> will be their franchise guy, I don\u2019t hate the idea of using one of their many picks on a dart throw. If it doesn\u2019t hit, whatever.<\/p>\n Day three was all over the place, but the Eli Heidenreich selection in round seven put a bow on an otherwise sloppy gift wrapping to the city of Pittsburgh \u2013 which by the way, did a phenomenal job hosting an epic NFL Draft weekend. I know that doesn\u2019t factor into the grade, but it should. Grade: B <\/p>\n Ryan Parish: I know there will be those who disagree with me, but I felt the Steelers crushed the first two picks of this draft \u2013 I and flatly reject the notion that the Iheanachor selection was a panic pick \u2013 before drifting into some odd choices in the middle and late rounds. Overall, I\u2019m really pleased with the prospect of finding the two missing starters for the offensive line, a do it all receiver with blocking chops, and a butt-kicking fullback who will really tie the new power running game together. With the exception of spending a fourthth rounder on a special teams only player, I also can at least see the reasoning behind some of their other picks, even if there were other prospects at those positions I preferred. Grades are always tough until we see how it plays out on the field, so just know my grade has room to grow if several of these picks turn into quality starters. Grade: B<\/p>\n Jarrett Bailey: The Makai Lemon debacle is far too embarrassing to just overlook. The Steelers had a chance to move up for the guy they wanted, and sat on their hands instead. For their sake, hopefully Max Iheanachor and Germie Bernard end up being very good.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n