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The Steelers could find themselves in a position in this year's draft where it would make sense to trade back and get some draft capital. The Steelers have a lot of holes in their roster, so they could use as many picks as they can get.
Steve Palazzolo of Pro Football Focus was recently on 93.7 The Fan and endorsed the idea of the Steelers trading out of the first round.
"The trade down is always the best move,” Palazzolo said. “It’s very unattractive for fans, because you usually go back and are like, ‘There were these five great players that I really loved.’ But there’s a quote out there from Eric DeCosta of the Ravens that basically summed up my feelings on the draft: ‘We don’t know anything about these players.’ So dropping 13 spots, you’re not really risking that big of a quality of player.”
Chris Muller noted that outside of Cameron Jordan and David DeCastro, there is virtually no difference between players taken at No. 24 and No. 73 over the last 10 years.
Palazzolo followed up by saying, “The best teams don’t necessarily have the highest hit rates. They take the most swings.”
I don't think there's that much of a gap between the top three running backs in the draft in Najee Harris, Travis Etienne and Javonte Williams, so if the Steelers could trade back to later in the first round or early second round and still get one of the top running backs it wouldn't be a bad move. I'd have no problem with a running back like Williams early in the second round. Depending on how the draft goes, they could still get Harris or Etienne late in the first or early second, as well. The Steelers would probably prefer to trade back in the first round instead of going into the second, so they would still have the fifth-year option on a player.
In addition, they also need an offensive tackle and center in the draft, so getting extra picks could help them address those positions also. And this year's offensive tackle class is really deep and there will be some solid centers to be had in the second or third round.
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