Indianapolis – It is 2025 NFL Scouting Combine. Today was dedicated to the big uglies along the offensive line of the interview room, with a group of interviewees on the field for their workouts, including yesterday’s running backs, wide receivers and quarterbacks.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have invested much in offensive lines over the last few years, but they are by no means finished products. It’s not so surprising that they add another piece to the trench while building another piece from within.
When our crew gets home, this will be the final “Five Steelers Takeaways” post, but there will be countless interviews that will flow over more than next month.
I’m taking home the five Steelers on the fourth day of the combined from Joe Clark and Jonathan Heitritter. Enjoy this year’s report! We are grateful to everyone who is engaged in the comments and engaged in X. We couldn’t do it without you.
If Speed is killed, this draft class is fatal
The Steelers can use more speed on either side of the ball. They took the right direction last year with guys like Donte Jackson and Patrick Queen, but Jackson may not return in 2025 and will need to get a young speedster on both sides of the ball.
Multiple Steelers insiders have the idea that the Steelers are trying to find a speedster running back, allowing them to gain edge and create more explosive plays. There was a 40-yard dash in 4.44 seconds or a faster 10 running backs. This includes four that ran speeds below 4.40.
– UCF RJ Harvey: 4.40
– SMU Brashard Smith: 4.39
– Texas Jadon Blue: 4.38
– Virginia Tech Bhayshul Tuten: 4.32
They met the majority of its top 10 list last month, either at the Combine or Senior Bowl.
The WR group also had enough speed. Of the top 10, the most interesting to me was Texas WR Matthew Golden in 4.29 seconds and Jaylin Noel in 4.39 seconds. The Steelers met both between the Combine and Senior Bowl. Elic Ayomanor also posted a solid time of 4.44. At his size, it definitely works.
This also happened after the very fast DB group on the third day. This draft class has a lot of speed.
– Ross McCaulk
Check out our tracker for a complete list of live combine results.
Quarterback class was barely tested
This is nothing really new in the combine in recent years, but the quarterback class has been hardly tested on any of the drills. Props to Brady Cook, Seth Henigan, and Tyler Shough run at least 40 and do some jumps.
Shough is an interesting QB in this class. He looked pretty good on mobile, but he is also one of the oldest QB prospects to graduate from college in quite some time, and has a history of injuries.
Most outlooks say this, but he told the media he is the best QB in his class. Some analysts have gone as far as they say he could be the best QB other than CAM Word in this class.
I wanted to see this weak QB draft class compete a little more. Ward and Shedale Sanders, I understand. The rest should definitely do everything you can to stand out. It was a bit disappointing that Jaxson Dart, Dillon Gabriel, Jalen Milroe, Will Howard, Quinn Ewers and Kyle McCord didn’t take part in many of the drills.
A lot of them threw, but I wanted to see them compete in all areas!
The Steelers wanted to see more as they could be in the quarterback market in the middle round. We have to wait until our professional days to see some of their numbers.
– Ross McCaulk
Limited attack line interest
It was a surprise that the Pittsburgh Steelers and many offensive linemen had never met on Saturday morning. William and Mary Ott Charles Grant served as a formal with Pittsburgh, but no one else we spoke to did. The Steelers have invested their first round picks in the offensive line for each of the last two years, and may not be trying to add a starter through the draft, but it is a room where they can use some depth.
It is noteworthy that a few prospects weren’t sure who they would meet, but they said they had an informal meeting later in the day. But the lack of formalism we learned was the biggest point from the day, especially with the topic of discussion that the Steelers could target the offensive line early in the draft.
The lack of formality threw a bit of cold water on the topic. And it’ll be interesting to see from here how the Steelers deal with this offseason position.
– Joe Clark
Ideal Wide Receiver Measurement
The Pittsburgh Steelers were able to target receivers early in the draft, with several players their team met making eye contact in several ways. Texas’ Matthew Golden was the biggest winner, measuring at 5,110 pounds and 191 pounds, leading all receivers with a 4.29 40 yard dash. Ohio’s Emeka Egbuka didn’t run, but he measured at 6,007 pounds and 202 pounds.
It’s good to see some validated measurements of some of these people come in and have the measurements that the Steelers are looking for, as they are listed as larger/small than they actually are.
It was also a strong day for Eric Ayomer, who ran the 4.44-yard dash, and Torrey Horton, who ran the 4.41. Horton measured at 6024 pounds and 196 pounds, while Ayomanor came at 6016 and 206 pounds. Both also have formal meetings with Pittsburgh, which could be an option for the second day, but Ayomanor had the topic of the first day.
Anyway, it was good that I wasn’t surprised when it came to measurements of some of Pittsburgh’s potential top targets.
– Joe Clark
Running backs will be displayed
The Steelers showed genuine interest in the running back position during an interview yesterday, and conducted at least eight formal interviews with the group. They were not disappointed when the group hit the grass at Lucas Oil Stadium. They lived up to the hype.
Virginia Tech RB Bhayshul Tuten took home the gold on a 40-yard dash and ran the official 4.32 40. The Texas RB Jadon Blue finished second with 4.38 on the 40, while the SMU RB Brashard Smith also ran under 4.4 on 4.39.
The entire top back was very well tested. Ohio’s RBS Tre’veyon Henderson (4.43) and Quinshon Judkins (4.48) both had under 4.5, while Judkins came in first place with Broad Jump (11’0″) and Henderson third (10’3″). North Carolina RB O’Mallion Hampton officially ran for 4.46, jumping 38.0 inches at the top and 10’10 inches at the broad.
The Deep RB class was absolutely as advertised.
– Jonathan Heitritter
