In just 10 days the 2025 NFL Draft will get underway in Green Bay. There, all the speculation, debates and discussions will shift from hypotheticals to actual analysis as teams and players will be paired up officially.

That said, there’s still some time for speculation and debate, and the 33rd Team’s Kyle Crabbs created more with his latest seven-round mock draft that dropped Monday morning.

In it, Crabbs had the Steelers adding a pair of big-name offensive pieces early on in the draft, addressing a position not exactly thought of as a need at this point after free agency, and passing on addressing a major hole on the roster until late.

In Crabbs’ mock, he went quarterback in the first round at No. 21, pairing the Steelers with Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart, before then going offense again in the third round at No. 83, selecting Tennessee running back Dylan Sampson for the Steelers. After that, Crabbs went to the defensive side of the football, but instead of addressing defensive line, he paired the Steelers with California cornerback Nohl Williams in the fourth round.

Then, Crabbs addressed defensive line for the Steelers in the fifth round with SMU’s Elijah Roberts, before then grabbing Toledo safety Maxen Hook in the sixth round and Iowa offensive lineman Connor Colby in the seventh round.

Here’s how it looks, top to bottom:

• Round 1, Jaxson Dart, QB, Ole Miss
• Round 3, Dylan Sampson, RB, Tennessee
• Round 4, Nohl Williams, CB, California
• Round 5, Elijah Roberts, iDL, SMU
• Round 6, Maxen Hook, S, Toledo
• Round 7, Connor Colby, iOL, Iowa

Not exactly an exciting draft for the Steelers, especially the last three picks. As for the first two on offense, they make sense considering the needs and the team’s connections to the two players so far this offseason.

With Dart, where there’s smoke there’s bound to be fire, and there has been quite a bit of smoke regarding Dart and the Steelers.

“Pittsburgh is the latest team to get roped into the annual Aaron Rodgers drama tour. There’s hope that Rodgers will join the team, but until anything is finalized, the Steelers ought to be keeping a close eye on whether Dart makes it to their pick,” Crabbs writes. “And, even if Rodgers signs in Pittsburgh, he’s no more of a long-term option than the likes of Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson are.”

The Steelers still find themselves waiting for a decision from Aaron Rodgers, but they’ve been doing their due diligence on the quarterback position in the NFL Draft class throughout the pre-draft process. Dart is a player they’ve met with extensively, from the Senior Bowl to a formal meeting at the Combine, to an official pre-draft visit.

The Steelers’ interest is real. The question becomes, do they pull the trigger on him at No. 21 if he’s there? Crabbs believes they will.

After landing Dart, the selection of Sampson at No. 83 makes sense. The Steelers hosted him for a pre-draft visit, and they have a significant need at running back in the room with Jaylen Warren, Kenneth Gainwell and Cordarrelle Patterson.

Following the Sampson selection, though, things got off the rails a bit.

After signing Darius Slay and Brandin Echols in free agency at the cornerback position and re-signing James Pierre, plugging key holes at the position on the roster, the selection of Nohl Williams is a curious one.

Williams is a long, physical corner with good size, solid length, and good athleticism. Steelers Depot’s Tom Mead compared him to veteran NFL CB Kristian Fulton in his scouting report for the site, giving him a fourth-round grade.

Good player, good fit, but with other needs elsewhere, drafting a developmental cornerback who might not see the field all season seems like a bit of a rich pick for the Steelers, especially passing on defensive line there.

In the fifth round Crabbs addressed DL for the Steelers with the selection of Elijah Roberts.

The Steelers hosted Roberts for a pre-draft visit, but he profiles as more of an OLB than a true 3-4 defensive lineman for the Steelers, and is more of a ‘tweener than anything, which doesn’t exactly address the need for the Black and Gold, especially since they already have a similar player on the roster already in DeMarvin Leal.

Round six the Steelers land a safety, just not one they’ve shown much interest in with Toledo’s Maxen Hook. The Steelers quietly have a need at safety, and Hook brings great experience as a four-year starter for Toledo and a team captain in 2023 and 2024. 

Last season at Toledo, Hook led the Rockets with 107 tackles, two interceptions, a forced fumble and four pass breakups.

Closing things out, the Steelers were paired with Iowa interior offensive lineman Connor Colby in round seven at No. 229 overall, addressing depth in the trenches.

Steelers Depot’s Nate Kosko stated in his scouting report of Colby that he’s a good run blocker in zone schemes, which fits the Steelers, and compared him to NFL guard Zak Zinter.

There are some good picks in Crabbs’ seven-round mock, but there are also some head-scratching ones that leave much to be desired, not only for 2025, but beyond. We’ll see how things shake out for real later this month for the Steelers across the seven-round draft in Green Bay.