Fox Sports’ Jason McIntyre had the Steelers addressing the matter with their first-round pick in his most recent mock draft.
McIntyre predicts that the Steelers will take Oregon quarterback Bo Nix with the 23rd pick in his January 10 mock draft.
He had the following to say about his projection:
“He’ll be 24 in February, and you could argue they already tried this with Kenny Pickett.” who started 49 collegiate games (but only had one successful season). Nix has been better for a longer period of time and appears to be a very polished prospect after 61 starts.”
Based on their past offseason decisions, football fans will certainly know what the Steelers are doing at quarterback long before the draft, but if things are still unclear, the team’s QB position may make draft night quite exciting.
The Quarterback Situation in Pittsburgh
Kenny Pickett was clearly the Steelers’ starting quarterback heading into the 2023 NFL season.
That has altered in recent weeks.
Pickett was out for four weeks due to an ankle ailment that required surgery. Mitch Trubisky struggled in the first two weeks and was replaced by Mason Rudolph.
Even with Pickett back in the lineup, Rudolph performed well enough in his first two games at center to earn a third start.
He won that game to secure the Steelers’ postseason spot.
He’ll now begin the playoffs in the first round.
The scenario has created considerable uncertainty regarding the Steelers’ quarterback situation in the future.
The team has made no indication that Pickett’s benching is permanent, and coach Mike Tomlin has stated that he is only using a “hot hand” strategy.
The team may also not have any of the other quarterbacks from this season’s squad on the roster next season.
Trubisky is a likely offseason release candidate after being demoted to backup quarterback duties.
Mason Rudolph will be a free agency, and the Steelers are unlikely to be the only team interested in him as a backup.
The Steelers’ focus right now isn’t on sorting it all out as they prepare for a playoff showdown against the Bills in Buffalo, but they’ll need to figure it out for the quarterback position shortly.
Is Bo Nix the solution?
Nix turned things around after a bad start to his college career at Auburn by transferring to Oregon.
Nix threw for 1000 yards more in his first year with the Ducks than he ever did in a season at Auburn. His 71.9% completion percentage was more than 10% higher than in any of the prior three seasons.
That season, he threw for 29 touchdowns, 13 more than any other college season. He also set career highs with 510 yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground.
His second year at Oregon was even better.
Nix completed 77.4% of his pass attempts while guiding the Ducks to a 12-2 record, with the two defeats coming against the national runner-up, breaking the NCAA single-season record.
He passed for 4,508 yards and 45 touchdowns while only intercepting three passes. Marcus Mariota’s program record of 45 passing touchdowns was broken by him. He rushed for 228 yards and six touchdowns.
His collegiate career came to a close with a Fiesta Bowl triumph, in which he tied the bowl game record for single-game passing touchdowns with five.
Nix finished third in the Heisman vote with those numbers, but there is a case to be made that he was the best quarterback in college football.
Is it enough to entice the Steelers to consider him? Perhaps not.
Someone will most likely take a chance on him in round one. There are a lot of teams who need quarterbacks, and there will be a lot of new coaches in 2024.
Pittsburgh may not be in the right place at the right moment to make a move like this.
Pickett’s career is barely two years old. That suggests they still have hope that he will develop into a starter-level player.
This is also a squad that just won 10 games in the NFL’s toughest division with its quartet of quarterbacks. That could persuade the front office that they can continue to win by being successful in other areas.
This draft class has some good corner options. The Steelers also require one of these.
Would it be surprising if the Steelers drafted Nix in the first round? No.
It would also not be strange if they addressed another position in the first round and gave Pickett another chance to show himself.
In any case, the 2024 offseason will be critical for the Steelers’ future.
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