Steelers Redraft Lands Them Super Bowl-Winning QB Years Ago

A redraft could have changed the quarterback position for the better for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Jan 11, 2026; Philadelphia, PA, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) meet on the field in an NFC Wild Card Round game at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers are in a long-running rut.

With a lack of playoff success in nearly a decade and no promise of future playoff success, it has been tough to look back on what could have been possible with the team. That being said, one analyst offered up an alternate situation in a redraft of the 2020 NFL Draft first round.

Bill Barnwell, known for the most part for his work covering the NFL for ESPN, took to his podcast to do a redraft where the Steelers took a quarterback, opting for current Philadelphia Eagles quarterback and Super Bowl Champion Jalen Hurts.

"2020, the Pittsburgh Steelers do not take Chase Claypool," Barnwell said. "They take Jalen Hurts. Imagine the Jalen Hurts-Mike Tomlin combination in Pittsburgh. Just winning every week, it's ugly every week. It's just Jalen Hurts throwing for 140 yards and getting those dubs every single week... The Steelers famously had Kordell Stewart at quarterback."

Then he spoke about why he believes the Steelers would have been a team and scheme fit for Hurts.

"They were open to different ranges of quarterbacks before other teams. Jalen Hurts coming out of the draft was seen as he might have to be a hybrid quarterback to succeed at the NFL level... I just think that [he] was a perfect fit [for a] team who's completely dedicated to winning, even if they're not actually doing the things we associate with winning, in terms of production, and a quarterback who does that as well."

If this were to occur, the team would have gone into the 2020 season with a receiving core of Diontae Johnson, JuJu Smith-Schuster and James Washington, with James Conner receiving passes as a running back as well.

Dec 15, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) and Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (39) meet on the field after game at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

The biggest issue with this theory would be what would happen with Ben Roethlisberger. Considering this is the same draft as Jordan Love, we can use him as an example. In Love's case, incumbent quarterback Aaron Rodgers was not particularly happy with the Packers drafting his replacement, and it is possible that Roethlisberger would issue a similar reaction.

Would Hurts Be the Answer?

Outside of that, it is interesting to think about where the Steelers would be if they had Hurts around all this time. They might have a playoff win since then, or the roster construction issues and developmental hurdles the team has faced may have stunted Hurts' development into the elite quarterback he is today.

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