Report: Steelers Have Heavy Interest in Ole Miss QB

The idea of the Pittsburgh Steelers taking a quarterback in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft has long been discounted, but such a scenario playing out now appears plausible.

On ESPN Cleveland's The Really Big Show, host Tony Rizzo first shared that he heard Ole Miss signal caller Jaxson Dart has boosted his stock considerably before driving a connection between him and Pittsburgh.

"I'm hearing the fastest-rising player, not only quarterback, in this whole process of underwear Olympics is Jaxson Dart," Rizzo said. "Guess who likes Jaxson Dart, Chris?"

After the Steelers were correctly offered as a guess, Rizzo went so far as to state that the organization is attempting to conceal its true interest in Dart and that he could be paired with Justin Fields as the team's two additions at the position this offseason.

"That's exactly right," Rizzo said. "And they are doing everything they can to not let that out of the bag. Don't be surprised if the Steelers keep Justin Fields and draft Jaxson Dart."

Most recent reports have indicated that Pittsburgh's focus is on choosing a quarterback towards the middle of the draft, so shifting and coveting Dart to the extent that it would expend a top pick on him would represent quite the heel turn.

In a weak class of signal callers, it comes as little surprise that Dart's value has ostensibly ballooned. At 21-years-old, he is coming off a productive collegiate career in which he threw for 11,970 yards and 81 touchdowns in 45 games while showcasing impressive accuracy and athleticism.

The Steelers formally met with Dart at the combine, and it's not difficult to envision them truly being enamored with him as the potential long-term solution at quarterback.

The front office understands they need to find a difference-maker at the position in order to keep pace with the premier teams in the league, and while selecting Kenny Pickett in the first round three years ago came back to bite them, that wouldn't deter them from taking a similar swing on Dart if they feel strongly about him.

When it comes down to it, however, the question marks surrounding his pocket presence, arm strength and ability to translate to the next level from Ole Miss' offense make drafting Dart a risk that's not worth taking for Pittsburgh, especially in the first round.

The team has too many roster holes, and they'd be better served addressing them in the early goings of the draft rather than spending a premium pick on Dart, whose development is far from a sure thing.

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