ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. gives the Steelers a B for 2026 NFL Draft class

The 2026 NFL draft was a series of ups and downs for the Pittsburgh Steelers. We went through each pick and handed out our own individual grades for all the Steelers picks. ESPN's NFL draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. handed out team picks for all 32 teams and he handed the Steelers a solid B overall.

Here's a bit of what Kiper had to say about the Steelers' picks:

But the Steelers are in a weird place (again) at quarterback. They didn't make any additions at the position in free agency, waiting to see whether Aaron Rodgers is coming back for another season at 42 years old. Mason Rudolph and Will Howard were the only two passers on the roster before the draft. Fernando Mendoza (obviously) and Ty Simpson (not so obviously) were off the board by the time Pittsburgh was picking at No. 21. It's pretty clear that general manager Omar Khan believes Rodgers will return. But adding Drew Allar -- a big, strong-armed passer from down the road at Penn State -- in Round 3 was a good hedge, with one eye to the future.

Neither Howard (a fifth-rounder last year) nor Allar project as surefire starters, but Pittsburgh at least has a few developmental options now, with the assumption that Rodgers is in black and yellow once more.

We said that the pick of Allar is going to be the one that makes or breaks this draft class. This is the best effort the Steelers have made to replace Ben Roethlisberger and this includes taking Kenny Pickett in the first round. If Allar turns into a quality starter, the fact that they drafted UDFAs on day three and might have reached for an offensive tackle in the first round won't matter. But if Allar fails or Will Howard outplays him, critics will point at this first draft without Mike Tomlin a failure.