Friday’s “First Call” wraps up Day 1 of the NFL Draft with some additional Pittsburgh Steelers rumblings after they passed on Shedeur Sanders in Round 1.
The Steelers are being linked to a veteran QB not named Aaron Rodgers. Joe Flacco discusses his desire to continue playing in Cleveland.
And Marc-Andre Fleury reflects on some tough times from his days in Pittsburgh.
Mad Mel
Veteran ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper is upset the Steelers didn’t take Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders at pick No. 21 in the first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday night.
“They haven’t won a playoff game in (eight) years,” Kiper said. “In this division, with (Joe) Burrow and Lamar (Jackson) and the AFC loaded with great quarterbacks, you have Mason Rudolph. And there’s Shedeur sitting there, and you have no second-round pick. Where is the young quarterback coming in? I’m taking Shedeur Sanders … if I’m Pittsburgh — Shedeur Sanders — to pass on him — At this stage? At pick 21? Come on.”
Kiper intimated that there is an inherent bias against pure pocket passers in the draft, likening Sanders to Johnny Unitas, Dan Marino, Kurt Warner and Tom Brady for how he was being passed over.
ESPN shows that its Draft Day predictor thought there was a 96% chance Shedeur Sanders would go by the 21st pick.
Mel Kiper then names numerous star/Hall of Fame quarterbacks that were passed over in the draft. #NFL #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/2DnHa4hjEI
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 25, 2025
Despite making those comments, Kiper still had good things to say about Derrick Harmon, the Oregon defensive lineman who the Steelers did select at No. 21 instead.
“He really, this year, took his game to a new level,” Kiper said of Harmon.
Were they close?
If it makes Kiper feel any better — and it probably doesn’t — the Steelers were reportedly considering Sanders at No. 21. That’s what the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said right before the Steelers selected Harmon in that slot.
“We know (Sanders) had a good visit. We know he is now available,” Rapoport said. “My understanding is, as of yesterday, they were going back and forth. Is the value worth that split in the room?”
Apparently, it was not.
From our NFL Draft coverage: All eyes are now on the #Steelers and Shedeur Sanders. pic.twitter.com/IKO7657R48
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 25, 2025
Rapoport did not specify where the “split” of opinions was within the Steelers front office.
As for Sanders, he did not get selected in the first round. After Cam Ward went No. 1 overall to the Tennessee Titans, Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart was picked at No. 25 by the New York Giants as the only other QB drafted Thursday night.
Considering Cousins
In advance of Thursday night’s first round of the NFL Draft, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reported the Steelers had been talking to the Atlanta Falcons about a potential trade for quarterback Kirk Cousins.
“The Atlanta Falcons are having conversations with the Steelers, with the Browns, with the Vikings about what this could look like,” Russini said via Maggie & Perloff at 2:09:10 of the YouTube clip below.
Cousins is coming off a bad 2024 when he tied for the NFL’s interception lead with 16 and posted a passer rating of 88.6, 22nd in the league. The Falcons also selected his presumptive replacement in Michael Penix during last year’s draft.
“Kirk has that no-trade clause, so he’s got to be OK with it,” Russini said. “So he’s going to want to talk with the team that is interested in trading for him and see what the situation is. Are they going to be going for a young quarterback? And is he going to want to put himself back in a situation like we just saw in Atlanta?”
After the Steelers bypassed quarterbacks Sanders and Dart in the first round, that situation is a lot less likely to present itself now.
Pittsburgh only has Rudolph and Skylar Thompson in the quarterback room.
More sports
• Steelers select Oregon defensive tackle Derrick Harmon in 1st round of NFL Draft
• Tim Benz: Blissfully boring Steelers pick the right draft to play it straight with Derrick Harmon
• What might the Steelers do on Day 2 of the draft?
Flacco factor
If Kenny Pickett is going to be the Cleveland Browns’ starting quarterback, it certainly sounds like Joe Flacco is unwilling to simply hand him the job.
“Players ask a lot, ‘Why are you still doing this?’” Flacco said via Pro Football Talk. “I want to play. It’d be easy to say, ‘I’ve done enough.’ But I made a decision that I’m going to do this. I feel like once I made that decision, in my mind, then I didn’t give myself an out, and I want to play, and I’m going to play until I can’t.”
Without Deshaun Watson (still coming off of an Achilles injury), the Browns traded for Pickett in a deal that they pulled off with the Philadelphia Eagles on March 12. On April 11, the club signed Flacco as well. That was after Jameis Winston signed a deal to become a New York Giant.
Flacco appeared in eight games with six starts for the Indianapolis Colts in 2024. The 40-year-old completed 65% of his throws for 1,761 yards and 12 touchdowns to go along with seven interceptions.
This is Flacco’s second stint in Cleveland. He helped lead the Browns to the playoffs in 2023 when he completed 60% of his passes for 1,616 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Fleury flashes back
Marc-Andre Fleury spoke with GQ Sports for an extended interview. The former Penguins goaltender reflected fondly on his time in Pittsburgh, particularly playing with Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby.
He also spoke about the difficulty of having to back-up Matt Murray during the two Stanley Cup runs in 2016-17.
“It was the first time in my career where I wouldn’t play very often, and I found it really hard actually,” he said of watching Murray take the job. “I love to compete and go out there and battle with the guys, so it’s sometimes frustrating just to sit on the bench and do nothing,” Fleury admitted.
However, the 40-year-old spoke about the importance of what he learned from those years and how he has applied it to splitting time with former Pens prospect Filip Gustavsson in Minnesota the past few years.
“Now, playing with Gus — who’s been fantastic, such a great guy — but he’s also a fantastic goalie,” Fleury said. “I love cheering for the guy. I wish him all the best, and we have a great relationship. So, I think it’s gotten easier with time.”
The 21-year veteran is expected to retire at the end of this season. He’ll do so with 575 regular season wins, the second most in NHL history behind Martin Brodeur (695). He’s also second behind Brodeur (1,266) in games played (1,051).
After Friday’s 5-2 win versus Las Vegas, the Wild lead their first-round playoff series against the Golden Knights 2-1.
Listen: Tim Benz and Jeff Erickson talk fantasy sports in this week’s fantasy sports podcast
Categories: Sports | Steelers/NFL | Breakfast With Benz | Tim Benz Columns
