Could Steelers draft their quarterback of the future?
Patrick Mahomes throws a pass during Texas Tech’s pro day at Jones AT&T Stadium Friday in Lubbock, Texas.
Associated PressQuarterback Mitch Trubisky passes during North Carolina’s pro timing football day in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Quarterback DeShone Kizer passes during Notre Dame football pro day inside the Loftus Sports Center in South Bend, Ind.
In this Dec. 31 photo, Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson warms up during the Fiesta Bowl NCAA college football game against Ohio State in Glendale, Ariz.
When Ben Roethlisberger publicly mentioned the word retirement in the days after Pittsburgh’s AFC Championship loss to the New England Patriots in January, it was a jolt to the system of many Steelers fans.
After watching the Steelers wander through the desert of quarterback despair in the years between Terry Bradshaw’s retirement in 1983 and the selection of Roethlisberger in the 2004 draft, fans don’t want to go back to the days of not having a franchise quarterback.
Neither do the Steelers.
“The organizations that have been successful through eras, have been ones that had the (replacement) in place,” said Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert. “San Francisco went from Joe Montana to Steve Young. Green Bay went from Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers. So, if you want to be a continuously successful organization, you should have the successive quarterback planning in place.”
Roethlisberger is signed through 2019 but turned 35 last month. And his talk of retirement could spur the Steelers to make a move to acquire his eventual replacement during this year’s draft, which will be held April 27-29.
Backup Landry Jones was re-signed in the offseason but is not viewed as Roethlisberger’s replacement. Neither is third-stringer Zach Mettenberger, signed last year after being released by San Diego.
The Steelers will add at least one quarterback to the mix for their offseason workouts. The only question is how that player will be acquired.
“Will we add a young one in some form or fashion? Absolutely,” Colbert said. “When? It’s hard to say. Again, we have to balance that class against other positions.”
Pittsburgh has eight picks in this year’s draft, including the 30th selection in the first round.
Typically, the top quarterbacks in a draft class will go quickly because of the importance of the position. This year, however, there is no clear No. 1 prospect at quarterback and several players are viewed as sure-fire stars.
That could mean some of the high-rated quarterback prospects could slide in the draft.
“I don’t have any quarterbacks anywhere near the top 10,” said NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock.
But, Mayock added, “I think there are four quarterbacks who have first-round talent.”
Those four are North Carolina’s Mitch Trubisky, Deshaun Watson of Clemson, Notre Dame’s DeShone Kizer and Patrick Mahomes of Texas Tech. Each has enough attributes to be considered a first-round talent, but also enough minuses to cause concern.
Trubisky, for example, had a stellar senior season at North Carolina but was only a starter for one year, getting stuck behind Marquise Williams. He completed 68.2 percent of his passes last season for a school-record 3,748 yards with 30 touchdown passes and only six interceptions.
“Who’s to say this quarterback class can’t be one of the best?” asked Trubisky, a native of suburban Cleveland. “Only the future will tell. I think there’s a lot of talented guys.”
Many mock drafts have Trubisky being selected by his hometown Cleveland Browns but not with the No. 1 overall pick, rather with their second selection in the first round, pick No. 12.
Watson, of course, led Clemson to the college football championship game in each of the past two years, winning it last season.
A dual threat as a runner and passer, Watson did a lot of winning in college, showing the intangibles necessary to command a huddle. But his accuracy in the pocket can waiver at times and there are questions about whether he benefitted from the outstanding talent surrounding him, much like former Clemson quarterback Tajh Boyd.
Watson went 33-3 as a starter at Clemson after posting a 48-8 record and a state championship in high school.
“One thing that translates from college to the NFL is winners and I think, being a quarterback, that’s the biggest thing being recognized, winning games,” Watson said. “That’s all I’ve been doing.”
Mahomes, the son of former Major League pitcher Pat Maholmes – who spent time with the Pirates – didn’t win as much as Watson but put up monster numbers, including 5,052 passing yards and 41 touchdowns last season. In 32 career games, he threw for 11,252 yards and 93 touchdowns with only 23 interceptions.
But, like other former Texas Tech quarterbacks, he gets tagged with being a product of a pass-heavy spread system.
“I just show them my knowledge for the game,” Maholmes said of those who doubt him. “That’s the only way I can prove it wrong. You look back at the system quarterback, a lot of guys didn’t work out. So for me, it’s just going to be about proving those guys wrong, going out there and really showing my knowledge of the game and just competing. It’ll all show up when you get to the field.”
Kizer’s stock has dropped since the NFL Scouting Combine, but he could still get first-round consideration, as could California’s Davis Webb, who transferred from Texas Tech after losing the starting job to Mahomes.
Pitt’s Nathan Peterman, also rated highly in this draft, should hear his name called no later than the fourth round.
Cornerback Ross Cockrell signed his one-year restricted free agent tender with the Steelers Monday. Cockrell will be paid $1.79 million in 2017 unless he and the team work out a long-term contract. Cockrell, a starter for much of the past two seasons, will be an unrestricted free agent after the 2017 season.