Brook Priolapul22, 2025, 01:19 pm at
CloseBrooke Pryor is a reporter for ESPN’s NFL Nation, which has been covering the Pittsburgh Steelers since 2019. She previously Kansas City Chief of Kansas City, Kansas City Star, and Oklahoman University at the University of Oklahoma.
PITTSBURGH — Less than two days before the Steelers made their appearance on the watch on the No. 21 NFL Draft Pick in Green Bay, manager Mikutomulin has maintained a firm hold that Aaron Rodgers has no impact on the Steelers’ draft approach.
“Not,” he said when asked at a press conference Tuesday about Rogers’ situation, which will affect the team’s strategy.
However, the results of the three-day draft could take into account the pursuit of the four-time MVP team.
“I think what you’re doing in the draft will affect the talent acquisition that often happens later,” Tomlin said. “We’ll see how the acquisition will progress this weekend.”
Tomlin reiterated that the team does not have a tight deadline that they hoped to make a decision from Rodgers.
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At the NFL’s annual meeting earlier this month, Tomlin said training camp was a “borderline,” but revealed Tuesday that those comments were not mentioned as to acquire any player.
“I don’t know that I meant that in particular for him or the circumstances,” he said. “I generally say when you report to training camps, men, it’s a line of boundaries for developing groups individually and collectively.”
Tomlin also said he had “not thought” whether Rogers was happy with losing an OTAS or a mini-camp.
Rogers appeared on the Pat McCuffy Show on April 17th, saying that the Steelers and all teams interested in the service are transparent about his indefinite timeline working through off-field issues.
“All this time, I don’t feel like I owe anyone any decisions at any time,” Rogers said. “This is my life now. …I was positive with them about it. If you need to move on, if you need to do something, by all means.
“…I don’t think it’s fair while dealing with the Steelers and a lot of the field. I want to keep the lines of communication open. I need to know the people I need to know.”
The Steelers entered the 2025 draft with just two quarterbacks on the roster of Mason Rudolph and Skyler Thompson, with general manager Omar Khan repeating the message that the Steelers are going to go to training camp with their regular four signal characters and two additional players, with “all options on the table.”
These options include drafting a quarterback. The Steelers hosted four on four visits: Chedure Sanders of Colorado, Ole Miss Jackson Dirt, Tyler Schaff of Louisville, and Kyle McCord of Syracuse.
Tomlin said he has a long-standing relationship with Sanders’ father, Dion Sanders, but he said his April 10 pre-draft visit was his first time meeting Chedur.
“To be very honest with you, we didn’t talk much about my relationship with his father,” Tomlin said. “It was a normal, progressive visit to spend time with a young man, talk the ball, get to know him as an individual, see how he handled the game and how he clearly expressed his football experience. From that point of view, it was a very normal visit and a very productive visit.”
For Tomlin, the biggest takeaway from a face-to-face meeting with a Colorado alum was an intangible quality.
“What stood out was clear in the video,” Tomlin said. “There’s toughness that’s not spoken well there. There’s a good enough competitive spirit there. He’s extremely talented and plays a lot for the university and his team, but the intangible qualities that appear on the tape were impressive to me.”
In addition to doing homework at the quarterback in 2025, the Steelers also hosted nine running backs and nine defensive linemen on their pre-draft visits.
“I think it’s probably credited to how deep those positions are,” Khan said. “And for us, it’s important to know as much as we can and really organize how we can stack those guys up and take them.”
While this year’s group of running backs is good, Tomlin said he believes Jalen Warren will become the team’s top back after 2021 first round pick Nezzy Harris set out for the Los Angeles Chargers in free agency.
“I certainly feel happy with his ability to do so,” Tomlin said of Warren. “He was hampered by an injury in 2024. He seems ready to answer that. I know he’s really excited about his opportunity. No one thinks in his talent when it comes to managing myself or his ability to potentially manage that role.”
The Steelers currently have six picks in this week’s draft, but are lacking a second choice after using this year’s No. 52 pick to land Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf.
Khan closed speculation that the team could trade George Pickens, who are eligible for a contract extension this summer, and traded to re-acquire the spot in the second round.
“I’m happy that George and DK are here,” Kahn said. “I think they’re going to be exciting for everyone to see.”
