Steelers Use Draft For Offensive Retooling

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The on-the-fly retooling of the Pittsburgh Steelers offense is nearly complete. Outgoing general manager Kevin Colbert ended his 20-plus-year tenure with the organization by investing heavily in offensive skill players in his final draft, with the hope that his still-unnamed successor is well-positioned for the future. A potential franchise quarterback in Kenny Pickett? Check. A field-stretching wide receiver in George Pickens? Check. A versatile and speedy slot guy in Calvin Austin III? Check. Throw them into the mix with the top of the 2021 draft class that featured running back Najee Harris and tight end Pat Freiermuth and it’s clear the Steelers have loaded up on young and relatively inexpensive talent (at least in the short-term). Pittsburgh appears to be banking on the return of veteran defensive tackle Tyson Alualu to help shore up a unit that finished last (32nd) against the run in 2021. The Steelers did take Texas A&M’s DeMarvin Leal in the third round, but the 6-4, 283-pound Leal doesn’t fit the mold of a run stopper. That job will likely fall to Alualu, who missed almost all of last season after fracturing his ankle, and Montravius Adams, who agreed to a two-year deal in March after coming over in a trade last fall. The Steelers added Ole Miss linebacker Mark Robinson in the seventh round. Robinson began his college career as a running back at Southeast Missouri State and Presbyterian before moving to the other side of the ball. Eleven years after taking defensive end Cam Heyward in the first round of the 2011 draft, the Steelers selected Heyward’s little brother Connor in the sixth. The younger Heyward transitioned from running back to tight end at Michigan State and is likely to be a hybrid of sorts.