Jerome Bettis advises the Pittsburgh Steelers to draft a quarterback on Day 2 or 3 and to trade up for an offensive lineman in the first round during the 2026 NFL Draft.
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The 2026 NFL Draft has finally arrived, and one Pittsburgh Steelers legend offered his former team a clear-cut strategy ā address the quarterback position and trade up.
Speaking with NFL reporter Jarrett Bailey, Jerome Bettis shared his ideal draft plan for the Steelers, pushing for a quarterback to be drafted on Day 2 or 3. He also called on the Steelers to trade up in the first round for an offensive lineman.
āI donāt have a problem with the Aaron Rodgers project in terms of this year,ā Bettis said. āBut I do believe [the Steelers should] go and maybe in the latter rounds, in the third, fourth, fifth round. Maybe you get one of those quarterbacks and maybe you are able to then develop them to a degree where next year you either have a quarterback or youāre going to get a quarterback [in the 2027 draft]. So, that way, youāre not in the same quagmire that youāre in every year, not having a franchise quarterback. ā¦
"This year, I would love to see if they could move up five or six slots. Thereās a couple offensive linemen that I think they could really utilize. Unfortunately, they may not be there. So thatās my fear is that they miss out on one of these really good offensive linemen."
Some fans are clamoring for the Steelers to move up for a top-tier prospect like offensive guard Vega Ioane or offensive tackle Spencer Fano, especially given Pittsburgh's league-leading 12 picks in the draft. It's clear that if Bettis had his way, this would be the route the Steelers would take.
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Jerome Bettis advised the Steelers to draft a quarterback on Day 2 or 3 and to trade up in the first round for an offensive lineman.
Bettis believes drafting a quarterback this year will help the Steelers avoid being in a difficult situation without a franchise quarterback in the future.
Bettis suggests the Steelers should focus on drafting a quarterback and an offensive lineman in the 2026 NFL Draft.

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This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: Steelers should draft QB, trade up for OL, says Jerome Bettis