The 2025 NFL draft is scheduled for April 24-26 in Green Bay, Wisc. In the preceding weeks, the Post-Gazette is monitoring mock draft selections for the Steelers from various national outlets. Here’s a summary of where things stand this week.
Mel Kiper Jr., ESPN; Pro Football Network
The pick: Emeka Egbuka, Ohio State WR
What they’re saying: The last time the Steelers took a receiver in Round 1 was 2006 when they drafted Santonio Holmes at No. 25. But unless things drastically change in free agency, Pittsburgh has to break that streak. There aren't enough reliable pass catchers in this offense. The Steelers don't have a surefire WR2 behind George Pickens, and the offense isn't going to improve until they do something there, no matter the QB.
Egbuka caught six passes for 64 yards in the national championship win, putting him over 1,000 yards on the season (1,011). It was also the second time in the past three years that Egbuka caught double-digit touchdowns (10). He's a great route runner with speed and would eat up targets in the Steelers' offense.
PG reaction: “We will emphasize the route running here. Diontae Johnson was very good at it. Antonio Brown was an all-time great at it. Even JuJu Smith-Schuster had a knack for finding those soft areas in the defense to convert first downs, despite explosiveness that waned in his later years in Pittsburgh.
It’s a gear this offense clearly missed this year. George Pickens has the range to do a lot of things, from deep balls to contested catches to incredible sideline toe-taps. But workmanlike possession work doesn’t seem to interest him much. Calvin Austin III, likewise, has the speed to stretch the field. But he’s not been beating NFL corners in small windows athletically very often. And should Roman Wilson work out in his second season, he probably profiles more like Austin, given his size.
Maybe he’ll prove us wrong on that, but in the meantime, Egbuka makes sense as a name you’re likely to see again and again over the next couple of months as this process unfolds. Simply because he’s something different than what this team currently has in its arsenal,” - Kiper Jr.
Daniel Jeremiah, NFL.com; Nick Baumgardner and Scott Dochterman, Athletic
The picks: Matthew Golden, Texas WR; Tyler Shough, Louisville QB (Athletic mock only)
What they’re saying: “I don’t think the Steelers could go wrong drafting Golden or Ohio State’s Emeka Egbuka here. They go with Golden in this case, but they are both professional route runners with outstanding hands and toughness,” - Jeremiah
PG reaction: Golden and Egbuka will likely be compared frequently through this process because of the route running, but they were used very differently by the Longhorns and Buckeyes, respectively.
Egbuka was very much a possession guy who used his athleticism to find space in high volume and then add yards after the catch. His average depth of target was 7.9 yards, according to Pro Football Focus, but he made up for it with 81 total catches and 476 yards after the catch that pushed his per-reception average to a healthy 12.5. Golden, by contrast, was a major deep threat. His ADOT was a whopping 13.5 yards on his way to a per-catch average of 17.0. That’s explosive. But he totaled just 303 yards after the catch and 58 total catches. Add it up, and Egbuka was more efficient with 2.51 yards per route run vs. 2.10 for Egbuka.
Given the Steelers’ needs, Egbuka looks like the better fit on paper. But this could be an interesting litmus test of what they value if both are on the board with the 21st overall pick.
With regard to Shough, he doesn’t really fit the profile of QBs the Steelers have valued post-Ben Roethlisberger. The passing stats for the Cardinals were fine this past season — 3,195 yards with 23 touchdowns vs. just six interceptions. But he lacks the athleticism that Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky, Russell Wilson and Justin Fields have all had to some extent. He had just 19 yards on the ground at Louisville, and that’s probably limiting in terms of what Arthur Smith would like to do on offense.
Bucky Brooks, NFL.com
The pick: Luther Burden III, Missouri WR
What they’re saying: “The Steelers' pedestrian offense needs more playmakers to keep up with the high-scoring attacks within the division. Burden is a catch-and-run specialist with the crafty playmaking skills to flourish on the perimeter.”
PG reaction: Put him in the Egbuka mold. The counting stats don’t pop as much because Missouri did not get the benefit of an extended playoff run like Ohio State did. But in terms of efficiency, he’s right there. His ADOT was slightly above Egbuka’s at 9.0. So was the YAC per catch at 6.1. That equated to a healthy yards per route run figure of 2.32. Scouts will probably knock him for the size he’s giving up in this comparison. Egbuka has a couple of inches on him physically. But if he can test well, it’s possible he’d also make sense at No. 21. And if the Steelers are lucky, maybe he could be a Day 2 option if they decide to go somewhere other than receiver in Round 1.
First Published: January 31, 2025, 10:30 a.m.
Updated: January 31, 2025, 5:23 p.m.