Steelers NFL Draft winners and losers include Aaron Rodgers, Drew Allar

Rarely has there been this much disagreement about a draft class as there has been with the Pittsburgh Steelers 2026 draft class. The Steelers either had a terrific or awful draft, depending on who you ask. 

While the opinions have been extreme, there are a few things that everyone can agree on. The Steelers added depth on the offensive and defensive lines, got a much-needed receiver to complement DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. and added another project to the quarterback room. 

Pittsburgh also chose not to add depth at inside linebacker, which was something they were expected to do heading into the draft. The Steelers also passed on the chance to add a potential impact player with the 85th overall pick to select a quarterback who may never take a meaningful snap for them.  

It should also be noted that the Steelers had one of the draft’s most memorable moments when they drafted a Pittsburgh native and longtime Steelers fan in the seventh round (more on that later). 

Now that the dust has settled, let’s take a look at the Steelers’ biggest winners and losers from a draft that won’t soon be forgotten in Pittsburgh. 

Winner: Omar Khan 

Khan deserves credit for getting off the mat after the Eagles and Cowboys blindsided him when Philadelphia traded picks with Dallas to draft receiver Makai Lemon, whom Khan was on the phone with before the Eagles intervened. 

If Philadelphia’s move wasn’t bad enough, adding insult to injury was the fact that Khan’s phone call to Lemon was captured by cameras and quickly released to the public. The scene led to immediate criticism of Khan for lacking the foresight to trade up for Lemon, knowing the Cowboys weren’t interested in taking an offensive player with the 20th pick. 

To Khan’s credit, he made sure that history wouldn’t repeat itself on Friday when he traded up six spots to draft wideout Germie Bernard, a player who has been lauded for his versatility and reliability. Before the draft, CBS Sports NFL Draft analyst Ryan Wilson lauded Bernard as possibly the safest pick in this year’s draft. 

Khan didn’t get Lemon, but Bernard may have acquired a receiver who will be a better fit for new offensive coordinator Brian Angelichio’s offense. 

“We’re very excited,” Angelichio said of the pick of Bernard. “Germie is a tremendous person. I was really impressed with him on his 30 visit. His energy, his character, his makeup, who he is as a person. … More than anything else, he’s a clutch player. He’s made a lot of big catches for Alabama in critical moments.”  

Loser: Roman Wilson 

Wilson’s lack of production during his first two seasons was among the main reasons why the Steelers needed to draft a receiver in the early rounds. Following a successful career at Michigan, Wilson caught just 12 passes during his first two seasons with Pittsburgh. 

While he now has more players to compete with, the good news for Wilson is that — despite Pittsburgh’s new additions at receiver — the Steelers are still not terribly deep at receiver, which means that he still has a chance to earn a spot on the 53-man roster this summer. 

For that to happen, though, Wilson will need to make significant strides, especially when it comes to his consistency. 

“Every play is watched from practice, so it’s the attention to detail on the routes,” Aaron Rodgers said of Wilson during the 2025 season. “I think that’s sometimes lost. You might, even in a game situation, get so enamored with what a guy’s doing, who’s around the ball, getting targeted, but a lot of times things that happen in the succeeding weeks are because of things you’ve seen on film, on the backside of plays where a guy’s not getting the ball, and you see the detail in the craft in the routes.

“The other day, he got the ball on Thursday, on a number of plays and that was positive. But there were some other routes on the backside when he didn’t get the ball, where you started to see some of the craft show up, some of the detail in the routes that gives you confidence that you can trust. And so that’s what it is.”

Winner: Aaron Rodgers 

Pittsburgh has aggressively improved the offensive side of the ball this offseason, including during the draft. This is obviously great for Aaron Rodgers, assuming the future Hall of Fame quarterback plans to play this season. 

The Steelers specifically strengthened their receiving corps this offseason with the acquisition of Pittman and the drafting of Bernard, whose excellent hands and fluid route running (especially over the middle) should help him develop a quick rapport with Rodgers, who will need another reliable target after Kenneth Gainwell — the team’s MVP last season — signed with the Buccaneers during free agency. 

Loser: Mason Rudolph 

How does the Steelers’ draft of Allar impact Rudolph? Mere moments after the Steelers drafted Allar, a report surfaced stating that the Steelers are open to trading Rudolph, the steady veteran who has never had a legitimate opportunity to be a team’s starting quarterback since being drafted in 2018. 

If Rodgers returns, it appears the only way Rudolph stays on the Steelers is if Howard either gets injured or struggles to live up to the hype. Pittsburgh could try to stash him on the practice squad, but that seems unlikely, as another team would likely pick him up. 

Things will get very interesting, though, if Rodgers doesn’t choose to come back to Pittsburgh. That could open up a three-man position battle for QB1. But even in that scenario, it’s hard to envision Rudolph getting a fair shake. 

Winner: Drew Allar 

While consistency issues plagued him at Penn State, the Steelers brass clearly feels they can help Allar improve that facet of his game while also helping him build on his strengths, including a cannon right arm.  

One of the biggest things that Allar has going for him is that he is going to a team — and more specifically, a head coach — that is very invested in his success. Mike McCarthy has largely built his career on being a successful quarterback developer; that was one of the main reasons Steelers president Art Rooney II hired him. McCarthy will go to great lengths to help Allar reach his potential, whatever that is. 

The same can be said of Pittsburgh quarterbacks coach Tom Arth, who recruited Allar when he was the head coach at Akron. 

“He’s 6-5, 235 pounds and he has big hands,” Arth said of Allar. “I think what’s most exciting when you’re talking about the quarterback position is can this guy throw the football and I think he throws it as well as any quarterback in this draft class. He has an effortless arm. He can make every single throw on the field and he’s a better athlete than I think he’s given credit for.”  

Despite some consistency issues in college, Allar still put together an impressive career at Penn State before an injury prematurely ended his senior season. As a sophomore, he led the entire Big Ten with 25 touchdown passes. As a junior, Allar saw a significant jump in his accuracy, which contributed to Penn State reaching the College Football Playoff semifinals. He threw three touchdowns (and no interceptions) during Penn State’s 31-14 win over Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. 

“To see what he’s accomplished and how far he’s come is really special for me,” Arth said. “Now to have the chance to have him here in Pittsburgh and in our quarterback room, I think is outstanding.”  

Loser: Will Howard

Howard went from being the favorite to become Rodgers’ heir apparent to being in a position battle with Allar. Howard may still end up being Rodgers’ successor, but the road towards accomplishing that just got considerably more challenging. 

While McCarthy is high on Howard, the fact is that McCarthy drafted Allar, while Howard was part of Mike Tomlin’s final draft class. McCarthy has vowed to “coach the hell” out of each of his quarterbacks. Still, for reasons explained above, McCarthy has more invested in Allar, given (among other things) that the Steelers gave up a third-round pick (the pick that came out of the George Pickens’ trade to Dallas) to acquire him. 

This situation is anything but new to Howard, who has made a career out of overcoming obstacles. Let’s see if Howard can rise to the occasion once again. 

Winner: Patrick Queen 

There were rumblings before the draft that the Steelers could trade Queen while finding his successor during the draft. That clearly didn’t come to fruition, though, after the Steelers went the entire draft without drafting an inside linebacker. 

It now appears that Queen isn’t going anywhere this offseason, unless a team offers the Steelers an inside linebacker of similar ability in exchange for Queen, who is entering the final year of his contract. 

While Queen appears to be staying put, this will still be a critical season for the two-time Pro Bowler. You could argue that the Steelers — by not selecting a linebacker in the draft — are banking on Queen having a big season in what will be a contract year. 

Queen would help his cause by making more splash plays, something that largely alluded him during his first two seasons in Pittsburgh. It’ll be interesting to see how/if Queen’s production changes under new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. 

Loser: Broderick Jones 

It wasn’t a surprise that the Steelers drafted an offensive tackle in the first round after it was recently reported that Jones is still dealing with issues relating to last year’s season-ending neck injury. That said, the selection of Max Iheanachor has raised questions about the future of Jones, who is entering the final year of his rookie contract. 

If Jones isn’t physically ready to go by the start of training camp, that will allow Iheanachor and veteran Dylan Cook (who made four starts last season) to compete for a spot in the starting lineup alongside Troy Fautanu, who, like Jones, is a former first-round pick. 

Winner: Eli Heidenreich

There may not have been a bigger draft winner than Heidenreich, a Pittsburgh native who was reduced to tears when the Steelers selected him with the 230th pick. 

Outside of being an awesome story, the Steelers’ selection of Heidenreich is notable because of Heidenreich’s versatility and potential. At Navy, Heidenreich averaged a whopping 6.8 yards per carry. Last season, he caught 51 passes for 941 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 18.5 yards per catch. 

“Obviously I have a lot of respect for what he’s done the last four years,” McCarthy said of Heidenreich. “We talk about how many downs a player plays. Does he play all four downs, his ability to play multiple positions? I think Eli definitely brings that to the table.”