Steelers Draft Quinn Ewers in Way-Too-Early 2025 Mock Draft

After the 2024 NFL Draft, what is next? Well, a wave of way-too-early 2025 NFL mock drafts is one of the things that comes out of the time between the draft and rookie minicamps. And the Steelers have already seen various mock drafts send someone their way. Notably, quarterbacks are being sent to Pittsburgh.

In ESPN’s mock draft, the team selects Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers, who becomes the third quarterback off the board at the 12th overall selection. Inverse Super Bowl odds were used to make the draft order.

“Yes, Pittsburgh just redid its QB room, but Russell Wilson and Justin Fields (declined fifth-year option) are both on expiring deals this season. Ewers is still inconsistent with ball placement and downfield accuracy, but he has all the traits you’d want in an NFL quarterback, and another season in Steve Sarkisian’s offense could help catapult his development. This is a bit of a projection — scouts had Day 3 grades on Ewers for the 2024 class before he decided to return to school — but there is potential here,” draft analyst Jordan Reid wrote.

A separate way-too-early mock draft had the Steelers grabbing Penn State quarterback Drew Allar. So, it seems like quarterback, for now, is the very early consensus pick for the team.

Wilson is on a one-year veteran minimum deal, and it’s not expected that the Steelers will place the fifth-year option on Fields. The Steelers could look to extend Fields’ contract in other ways besides the fifth-year option, which is built into the rookie contract of every first-round draft pick.

The amount of the option is determined by a formula, and in the case of Fields, would cost the Steelers $25 million in guaranteed money to keep him around for 2025. At 35, Wilson is pretty much a stopgap quarterback. If the Steelers want their quarterback of the future, they better hope Fields rises to the occasion and supplants Wilson as the starter. Fields is 10 years younger and has a lot more upside.