The Pittsburgh Steelers have a dozen draft picks entering the 2026 NFL Draft. It\u2019s doubtful the franchise makes all 12 picks. Meaning, GM Omar Khan will wheel and deal at some point along the way, including possibly big first-round moves.<\/p>\n
Predicting a trade is nearly impossible. So many variables are involved that even teams don\u2019t have a good idea of what will happen. Still, below are three scenarios that make sense for Pittsburgh to explore on draft night. I am using DraftTek\u2019s trade value chart to make the deals equitable.<\/a> I understand there are other trade value charts, and everyone has an opinion over which is best, but this provides a rough idea of what would be considered fair value.<\/p>\n Trade Scenario No. 1<\/p>\n Pittsburgh Sends: No. 21 overall (800 points) I make mention of the Buffalo Bills for two points. One, they\u2019re in the basket of teams that don\u2019t care how good the 2027 quarterback draft class is. Buffalo has Josh Allen. They have no intentions of considering any top passer. Whether next year\u2019s class turns out great, terrible, or somewhere between is irrelevant to them. Therefore, they could be more willing to trade future capital than quarterback-needy teams, like Pittsburgh.<\/p>\n Two, Bills GM Brandon Beane loves his first-round trade-ups. He\u2019s made three of them: 2018, 2022, and 2023. In 2018, he made a series of big moves to land Allen eventually. In 2022 and 2023, he moved up two spots (25 to 23 and 27 to 25), giving up a fourth-round pick in the process. Beane traded up early in the second round in 2025,<\/a> again showing he likes to be aggressive early.<\/p>\n In this scenario, a 2027 third-rounder acts like a fourth-round value. Pittsburgh moves down five spots, not a terrible drop, while getting a Day Two pick for next season as potential ammunition to move up for a quarterback. The Steelers could trade down and still land a top safety like Toledo\u2019s Emmanuel McNeil-Warren. I\u2019m less plugged into who the Bills may be targeting, but Beane usually has eyes on someone. They could target another receiver or a pass rusher should one slip.<\/p>\n Trade Scenario No. 2<\/p>\n Pittsburgh Sends: No. 21 overall + No. 85 overall (965 points) A move similar to what GM Omar Khan made in 2023, moving up three spots from No. 17 to No. 14 to land Georgia OT Broderick Jones. Pittsburgh has a trio of third-round picks and can feel \u201cfree\u201d to give one of those up. Detroit has an incentive to trade down. The Lions have just two picks in the top 117. Adding No. 85 bridges a long gap between No. 50 and No. 118. Pittsburgh gets back a fifth-rounder to sweeten the deal.<\/p>\n
Buffalo Sends: No. 26 overall + 2027 3rd round pick (approximately 800 points)<\/p>\n
Detroit Sends: No. 17 overall + No. 157 overall (978.6 points)<\/p>\n