Let's get to it:
MARK McCARTHY FROM CALIFORNIA, PA: When the Steelers traded up to draft Broderick Jones in 2023, it appeared to be the consensus that he was going to be the left tackle of the future. What was behind the decision to play him out of position on the right side from the beginning?
ANSWER: When the Steelers made that move up in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, they did so knowing that Broderick Jones was a young player (21 years old when he was picked) who was on the raw side because he hadn't had a lot of playing experience during his college career at Georgia. Their veteran tackles at that time were Dan Moore Jr. and Chuks Okorafor, and because Moore couldn't play a position except left tackle, the Steelers deployed those guys accordingly to start the season with the idea that Jones would learn while serving as the swing tackle. As the season progressed and Okorafor's play was consistently sub-par, Coach Mike Tomlin decided a change was necessary. His choices were the team's reigning No. 1 pick, or Dylan Cook, or reserve utility-man Spencer Anderson. Even I know enough about offensive line play to recognize Jones as the best of those options, and because Moore couldn't play right tackle, Jones was put there. In 2024, as training camp progressed, the idea was for that April's No. 1 pick, Troy Fautanu, to play right tackle and Jones would move to the left side. But Fautanu was injured, and because Moore couldn't play right tackle …
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PERCEVAL SONDAG FROM FLEMINGTON, NJ: I'm confused about the DK Metcalf contract extension. There was one year left on his existing contract, so what was the point of guaranteeing him a huge payday before he proves anything? Couldn't that have been done after the 2025 season?
ANSWER: With the way the salary cap keeps increasing, players' salaries are going to continue to rise with numbers that might tend to boggle the mind. All of the numbers put out there so far on the extension Metcalf signed with the Steelers have been estimates or unconfirmed reports, but when the accurate numbers become known I don't think they're going to be ridiculous when compared to the deals being paid top-quality receivers across the league. And I would qualify Metcalf as being top-quality, and he doesn't have to "prove anything" in what will be his seventh NFL season. Metcalf is big (6-foot-4, 235), physical (just check out YouTube for yourself), and durable (missed only 3 regular season games and played in over 82 percent of the offensive snaps) during his first 6 NFL seasons. During his career, Metcalf has been targeted 726 times (an average of 121 per season, so he's used to dealing with being a No. 1 WR in the NFL), and he has 438 catches for 6,324 yards (14.4 average) and 48 touchdowns. He has been voted to 2 Pro Bowls. DK Metcalf already has proven himself.
JOHN PUHALA FROM SPRINGFIELD, VA: Speculating that when the No. 21 pick in the first round comes up and DT Kenneth Grant from Michigan, QB Jaxon Dart from Mississippi, and RBs Ashton Jeanty from Boise State or Omarion Hampton from North Carolina are available. Who would you pick?
ANSWER: I don't consider myself well-informed about any of those individuals, but I believe the Steelers must treat their defensive line with the same urgency with which they have treated their offensive line over the previous couple of offseasons. That means using premium draft picks to address the unit.
DAVID HAYES FROM HARTSELLE, AL: Looking at last season's struggles, a couple of those positions have seen major upgrades, with quarterback still being worked out. Which positions are still the biggest concerns heading towards the draft based off the way the 2024 season unfolded last year?
ANSWER: As I wrote in the above answer, defensive line has to be a priority and the sensible way to add top-of-the-depth-chart talent there is via the draft. Aside from that, figuring out the quarterback situation has to crystallize soon. There have been some depth signings lately in free agency, but I don't know that there are any more marquee free agents on the market to be signed.
ROBERT FOSTER FROM TAMPA, FL: Is it time to bite the bullet and just lose? Being average is only getting the team mid-level draft pics. The only way to get a good quarterback is to draft him in the top 10 picks. I know there are plenty of busts in the top 10, but it seems to be the only path to a potential franchise quarterback at the moment.
ANSWER: In professional sports, that's a loser's approach. By that I mean playing a game or a season without trying to win, and the players, coaches, and personnel people working in professional sports are aware that if their plan is to have a winner a few years down the road, they might not be around when that happens. Fans have the security of knowing they will still have a job if the team finishes 4-13.
JUAN AGUILAR FROM ATIZAPAN, MX: Who is going to be our QB?
ANSWER: If there was a game this weekend, I'd say the Steelers would roll with Mason Rudolph as the starter. But since there isn't a game until after Labor Day, your guess is as good as mine.
MIKE FOSTER FROM EWA BEACH, HAWAII: Dan Moore Jr. signed a four-year contract that averages out to around $20.5 million per year. Are you surprised he got paid so much money? Is that the new going rate for good but not great left tackles? Is a swing OT a need for the Steelers in the draft this year?
ANSWER: I always have believed that a player's value on the open market is not what he believes (or is told by an agent) it is, but his value on the open market is what some team is willing to pay for his services. The Tennessee Titans showed they were willing to pay Moore that money and so that has become the going rate. The offensive tackles the Steelers currently have under contract are Broderick Jones, Troy Fautanu, Dylan Cook, and utility OL Spencer Anderson. In my opinion there's not a clear option as the No. 3 guy, nor is that a sufficient number of OTs for training camp.
SEAN DELANEY FROM GARDNER, MA: For over a decade, defensive linemen were judged primarily by their ability to pressure the quarterback. Run-stuffing big men like Casey Hampton were dismissed as "two-down" players and having limited value. But with the running game seeming to grow in importance, has the NT position come back into fashion? Any discernable difference between them and today's interior linemen?
ANSWER: What really has changed since Casey Hampton entered the NFL in 2001 is the way offense is played throughout the league. Back then, first and second downs were primarily running downs, and teams didn't routinely throw the ball 40-plus times in a game unless the score specifically dictated such a strategy. Therefore there was some real value in a two-down, run-stuffing NT. But then Tom Brady came along, and his ability to make quick decisions and get the ball out consistently in less than 2.5 seconds made it impossible for the outside pass rush to get to him in time to have any impact. Then the New York Giants showed in their 2 Super Bowl wins over the Patriots that the way to neutralize Brady was to get quick pressure on him up the middle by only rushing 4. That's when the two-down, run-stuffing NT became a luxury teams cannot necessarily afford.
RICHARD SANTRY FROM ALLENDALE, PA: How many times (if any) have the Steelers had the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft? Also, when did the NFL hold its first college draft? Lastly, what draft pick of any round or any year would qualify in your opinion as the best player who contributed to the success of the Pittsburgh Steelers?
ANSWER: The Steelers have made the first pick of the NFL Draft three times, and since the inaugural NFL Draft was in 1936 the franchise has participated in every one ever staged by the league. In 1942, the Steelers selected RB Bill Dudley from Virginia with the first pick; in 1956 they actually earned the sixth overall pick in the draft but picked first overall as well that year by virtue of a since discontinued NFL policy to reward one team on a rotating basis each year the "Bonus Pick," which gave the lucky team the right to make that pick before the rest of the picking began. In 1956, the Steelers used their Bonus Pick on Colorado State DB Gary Glick. And in 1970, the Steelers used the No. 1 overall pick on Terry Bradshaw. As for your last question, my opinion is that Joe Greene is the answer to all such questions about players in franchise history, such as the best, most historically significant, and most impactful.
SAM MIKHAIL FROM BETHESDA, MD: George Pickens is going into the last year of his rookie contract. Without an extension, he would become an unrestricted free agent after the 2025 season, assuming the Steelers do not apply the franchise tag and I doubt they would do that. If Pickens and the Steelers do not agree on an extension this year, then do you believe the team will trade him rather than let him walk free next year?
ANSWER: Or maybe they try something like this: Hold onto Pickens for the 2025 season and look to help him have a big season, because if he does that the Steelers could have themselves a big-time receiving corps. Then if/when Pickens does leave for a big free agent contract, utilize use the compensatory draft pick they would get in return to add a possible second-day pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.
CHRIS LIPPART FROM ST. ROBERT, MO: Seems to me that the QB problem is being way over-analyzed. Everyone saying it hasn't been handled properly, but I haven't heard anything about maybe we wouldn't even be talking about this if Dwayne Haskins hadn't had his accident.
ANSWER: Dwayne Haskins entered the NFL as the 15th overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Washington Commanders, and the Steelers signed him to a futures contract in January 2021. That season he was the No. 3 quarterback behind Ben Roethlisberger and Mason Rudolph and was inactive for all but 1 regular season game. Roethlisberger retired after the 2021 season, and Haskins died on April 9, 2022. Had that not happened, maybe the Steelers go into the 2022 seasons with Mitch Trubisky, Haskins, and Rudolph, and the No. 1 pick used on Kenny Pickett addresses a different area of the team.
