Brian Baldinger On Steelers’ First-Round Pick: ‘Center Is The Position They Need To Get Fixed’

The Pittsburgh Steelers are in a bit of a predicament going into the 2024 NFL Draft. They stand with just one pick in the top 50, No. 20, and have a handful of big-time needs.

Taking a cornerback or a wide receiver with the 20th pick has been discussed, and is certainly within the realm of possibility. However, both those positional classes look to be quite deep this year, and there should be some quality prospects into Day 2 and even Day 3.

That would leave two main needs for the Steelers: tackle and center. It’s looking increasingly likely that the Steelers use the 20th pick to bolster an offensive line with two clear holes, as there is much less depth at these positions.

The question then becomes: which one should they take? Former NFL offensive lineman and current analyst Brian Baldinger was asked this same question on 93.7 The Fan today.

“I know Nate Herbig is there, and I like Nate and he’s a swing guy. Dan [Moore Jr.] got better and he keeps getting better.” Baldinger said. “Dan Moore is a great kid. He’s a worker. He’s just stiff. And he goes up against the elite guys. He struggles, that’s real. But I feel like center is the position they need to get fixed. And I don’t know that anybody in this league drafts centers better than the Pittsburgh Steelers over the last 60 years.”

The Steelers likely address both positions of need, at least in some capacity, before the 2024 regular season begins. But Baldinger makes a good point. The contingency plan of Moore is a lot better at left tackle than the contingency plan of moving Nate Herbig to a new position at center.

While it’s easy to try and lock in on a specific position going into the draft, the board will dictate some of this decision for the Steelers and take it out of their hands. For example, if Graham Barton is their guy at center and he’s off the board at 18, they could just pivot and take someone like offensive tackle Amarius Mims.

“Starting with Pittsburgh at 20, I can see a run on centers,” Baldinger said.

There are a few centers who have been mocked in that late-first range as of late: Duke’s Barton, Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson, and West Virginia’s Zach Frazier. All could go right in a row at the end of Day 1.

There could always be the scenario where there’s an early run on something like wide receivers, leaving all of Pittsburgh’s offensive line targets on the board. In that case, the team will have to think long and hard regarding who it wants as a potential long-term staple on the line with Broderick Jones.