Drafting in the NFL is a crapshoot. Everyone knows it. But for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the second round isn't just a consolation prize for missing out on the "blue chip" stars of the first round. It’s basically where the team's identity gets forged. You've seen the names. You’ve seen the production. While other teams are busy reaching for quarterbacks or over-hyped speedsters, the Steelers have quietly turned their Friday night selections into the actual heartbeat of the locker room.
Honestly, the "Steelers Way" is built on the backs of guys taken between picks 32 and 64.
Think about the recent impact. We’re talking about players who didn’t just make the roster—they became the standard. From Joey Porter Jr. essentially erasing WR1s to Zach Frazier acting like a ten-year veteran from his first snap at center, the success rate is kind of ridiculous.
The Recent Run of Dominance: 2023 to 2025
If you want to see a masterclass in value, look at the last three years of Steelers 2nd round picks.
In 2023, the Steelers didn't even have to wait long. They owned pick 32—the first pick of the second round—thanks to the Chase Claypool trade. They took Joey Porter Jr. It was poetic, sure, but it was also a massive win for the secondary. He wasn't just a legacy pick; he was a shutdown corner from day one. But they weren't done. Later in that same round, at pick 49, they grabbed Keeanu Benton.
Benton is a monster. He’s the kind of interior defensive lineman that makes life miserable for opposing guards. Having two starters from the same round? That's how you rebuild a defense without spending $100 million in free agency.
Then came 2024. The Steelers needed a center. Badly.
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They waited until pick 51 and snagged Zach Frazier out of West Virginia. If you followed his college career, you know he’s the guy who crawled off the field with a broken leg just so his team wouldn't lose a timeout. That’s "Steelers DNA" in a nutshell. He stepped in and immediately stabilized an offensive line that had been a mess for years.
Wait, What Happened in 2025?
This is where things get interesting and a little controversial for some fans. If you look at the 2025 draft board, you won't see a rookie name next to the Steelers in the second round.
Why? Because Omar Khan went hunting for a superstar.
The Steelers traded their 2025 second-round pick to the Seattle Seahawks as part of the massive deal to land DK Metcalf. Now, some purists might hate giving up a premium pick, but Coach Mike Tomlin was blunt about it: they wanted to "retool physicality." Adding a specimen like Metcalf—who is essentially a walking 2nd-round success story himself—fits that bill.
It was a bold move. It meant the team had to rely on their first-round pick, Derrick Harmon (the DT out of Oregon), to carry the rookie load, while the second-round value was already sitting in the wide receiver room wearing #14.
The Hits and the Occasional Misses
Nobody is perfect. For every George Pickens (pick 52 in 2022), there is a Senquez Golson.
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You remember Golson? Picked in 2015, the guy never played a single regular-season snap due to a string of some of the worst injury luck I've ever seen. It happens. But look at the hit list over the last decade:
- George Pickens (2022): A literal highlight reel who should have been a first-rounder if not for an ACL injury in college.
- Pat Freiermuth (2021): "Muuuuuth." He’s a top-tier safety valve at tight end.
- Chase Claypool (2020): Say what you want about how it ended, but his rookie year was electric (11 touchdowns!), and they eventually flipped him for the pick that became Joey Porter Jr.
- JuJu Smith-Schuster (2017): A massive part of the offense for years and a fan favorite.
- James Washington (2018): Maybe not a superstar, but a solid contributor.
The trend is clear. The Steelers use the second round to find "dogs." They look for the guys who might have one flaw—maybe they're a "step slow" on paper or have a "character concern" that is actually just a high-alpha personality—and they bring them into a culture that knows how to use them.
Why the Second Round is the "Sweet Spot"
There’s a specific science to why Steelers 2nd round picks work so well. By the time the second round starts, the "freaks" are mostly gone. What’s left are the football players.
The Steelers front office, led by Omar Khan and Andy Weidl, seems to value high-floor guys in this range. They want the three-year starters from the Big Ten or the SEC who have seen everything. Zach Frazier had 46 starts in college. Joey Porter Jr. grew up in an NFL locker room. These guys don't get "starstruck" when they get to Latrobe for training camp.
They also use this round to address the "unsexy" positions. Tight ends, centers, and interior defensive linemen. These aren't the picks that sell the most jerseys on draft night, but they’re the ones that win games in December when it’s 20 degrees at Acrisure Stadium.
Correcting the Misconceptions
People often think the Steelers are "conservative" in the draft. That’s sort of a myth.
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Trading for Metcalf using a second-rounder? Not conservative. Drafting a wide receiver like Pickens who had "first-round talent but second-round baggage"? Not conservative. The Steelers are actually quite aggressive in the second round; they just do it with a very specific type of player in mind.
They don't draft for depth here. They draft for immediate impact. If a Steelers second-round pick isn't starting or playing 40% of the snaps by October of his rookie year, something went wrong.
What’s Next for the Front Office?
As we look toward the 2026 cycle, the strategy likely won't change, even if the needs do. With the quarterback room still in a bit of a transition—Aaron Rodgers joined in late 2025 to bridge the gap, and rookie Will Howard is waiting in the wings—the second round will likely be used to find more protection or another playmaker.
Rumors are already swirling about Texas A&M wideout KC Concepcion as a potential target if they want a shifty complement to Metcalf's size. Or maybe they go back to the trenches. They always seem to find a way to get a guy who looks like he should have been picked 20 spots earlier.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Analysts
If you're trying to predict who the next big Steelers 2nd round picks will be, stop looking at 40-yard dash times. Start looking at these three things:
- Sticking Power: Does the player have 30+ starts at a major program?
- The "Wrestler" Factor: The Steelers love O-linemen and D-linemen with wrestling backgrounds (see: Zach Frazier). It’s about leverage and hand fighting.
- Bloodlines: They aren't afraid of legacy. If a guy's dad played in the league, the Steelers assume he already knows the work ethic required.
Keep an eye on the Senior Bowl. That is usually where the Steelers fall in love with their Friday night targets. When you see a guy winning the "toughness" drills in Mobile, Alabama, you might as well start stitching his name onto a black and gold jersey.
The second round isn't where the Steelers find "projects." It’s where they find the players that make the team work. While the first round gets the headlines, the second round is what keeps the playoff window open year after year.
Watch the snap counts for the young guys like Frazier and Benton as the 2025 season wraps up. Their growth is the best indicator of where this team is headed in 2026.