The Super Bowl champions have been crowned, and the football sphere’s focus has swiftly pivoted towards the NFL Draft. But the Eagles are a lesson headed into April. Philly’s success was largely down to the sum of their parts. Hindsight is 20/20, but the consensus notion throughout was that their roster was the most stacked in the league. Not dependent on one player, unlike the opposition, whose one key player laid a bit of an egg. That said, the MVP in the Super Bowl was still the QB. Which remains a requisite need no matter how good the rest of your team is. Jalen Hurts was a run-centric, Day 2 quarterback who was deemed replaceable by Alabama and came in with more questions than answers. Those 3 facets are all directly transferable to Jalen Milroe.

With merely 2 years atop the depth chart and 27 total starts for Alabama, Jalen Milroe is an unknown quantity. He’s projected to be picked anywhere between rounds 2 and 3. However, a more specific answer to where Roger Goodell will take his name is far from set in stone. Owing to his inexperience and liquid NFL grade, Milroe was one of the biggest stories at the Senior Bowl. He was being weighed up by franchises with extra scrutiny down in Mobile, Alabama. How’d he take this opportunity to make inroads with scouts and the front-office powers that be? Well, let’s just say he didn’t quite “let the naysayers know.” In fact, one person in attendance reckons even his best attribute is a bit of a mirage.

Jalen Milroe can leg it for a first down almost any time; such is his burst of pace from in and out of the pocket. However, his arm is still a work in progress, to put it lightly. The ceiling is high, though, if he’s developed properly. As such, Milroe presents as a project that teams could draft and then stash as a backup as he learns the ropes. The Pittsburgh Steelers are reported to be weighing him up in a similar capacity. However, Christopher Carter of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette thinks they ought to reconsider. Carter raises concern that the tools that make Milroe a project worth investing in have been overstated.

Speaking over the Post-Gazette Sports YouTube channel, Carter said, “[Jalen Milroe’s] hands, I believe, are smaller than Kenny Pickett’s. Like, if that was a complaint of yours, that’s a complaint for [Milroe too].” Jared Goff has dispelled some of the misnomers about QBs with small hands, but it’s a fair point of concern. An inability to grip the football, especially in the elements, can be an issue. Milroe hasn’t shown prowess in his passing game anyway, so the doubt is only amplified. Carter proceeded to speak about the most widely acknowledged trait in Jalen Milroe’s arsenal—his speed. Or as Carter thinks, lack thereof.

“People compare [Milroe] to Justin Fields, and that’s the reason why he’s getting linked to the Steelers a lot. But I don’t think he’s as fast as Justin Fields. I don’t think he’s as much of a playmaker as Justin Fields was at Ohio State,” he claimed. The latter bit about playmaking is validated by the film. In terms of speed, the Combine will go a long way for Jalen Milroe to gain back the traction he lost during Senior Bowl week. He’ll hope not to have burnt too many bridges with the Steelers. That said, the contradictory reporting around him does suggest Mike Tomlin’s outfit is backtracking already. 

Steelers reporters have already changed their tune pertaining to Jalen Milroe

Just over a fortnight ago, Pittsburgh-based reporter Andrew Fillipponi stated, “Source: There are Steelers scouts who ‘love’ Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe. Believe he’s a 1st-round talent. And potential franchise quarterback. Mike Tomlin will see him next week at the Senior Bowl. Stay tuned.” As this was relayed to his over 100k X followers, it instigated discourse around whether this was a good move for the Steelers.

They have Russell Wilson on a very cheap deal (for them at least, sorry, Broncos) as well as Justin Fields after all. Who’s of a similar archetype? That wrinkle makes this either off-putting or more fascinating for a Steelers fan, depending on your thoughts on Justin Fields. Sitting Milroe for a year while he learns the ropes is a viable route with 2 starting-caliber QBs already in the building. Alas, a massive spanner got thrown in the works. In the aftermath of the Senior Bowl, the Athletic’s Mike DeFabo reported something that almost does a full 180 on Fillipponi’s reports.

DeFabo has heard from inside the Steelers’ camp that they believe Jalen Milroe will be off the board well before they’ll be willing to pick him. The glass-half-full perspective on that shall be, ‘Hey, that means they’re interested for real,’ which relates to Fillipponi and Carter’s info. Conversely, the other perspective dictates that they don’t consider him a must-have or someone worthy of the price he’s commanding right now. Whatever the case, Jalen Milroe now stands on the precipice of a huge day out in Indy. The Combine will bring all his tangible skills that make him an asset to the test. Interestingly, the guy who brought Jalen Hurts to the Eagles, Andy Weidl, is now assistant GM for the Steelers. Maybe this becomes the 4th transferable between the pair. Milroe will just hope a franchise with a stable environment conducive to his growth drafts him.