The latest news suggests the Pittsburgh Steelers have a strong chance to draft the player they've desired all along. Since the beginning of the pre-draft process, Mike Tomlin and Omar Khan have expressed their interest in Oregon Ducks defensive lineman Derrick Harmon. Now, it looks like he could be ripe for the picking with the 21st overall selection in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Unfortunately, there is a catch.
In the week leading up to the draft, sources told me that there are medical concerns for Harmon, but we didn't know exactly what we were dealing with. However, on the eve of the draft, NFL Network insider Mike Garafolo joined Johnny Venerable on the PHNX Cardinals Podcast to discuss what he's hearing just before the draft is about to kick off.
After significant rumblings on Harmon's health drew attention on Tuesday, Garafolo offered news on Harmon and said the Oregon standout is dealing with a shoulder issue.
"You could be looking at [Derrick Harmon] back half of the first round," Garafolo said. "I believe it's a shoulder [injury]... That's kind of how this thing works. All of a sudden, if it's like there's two guys and you've got the tiebreaker, well, one's clean medical and the other is not, so we'll go with the clean medical."
Derrick Harmon's medicals could scare the Pittsburgh Steelers away in Round 1 of the NFL Draft
Garafolo didn't mention any teams by name associated with Derrick Harmon, but the trail of breadcrumbs appears to lead to the Pittsburgh Steelers here in Round 1. Pittsburgh's decision-makers have had their eye on Harmon from the NFL Combine until now, and Harmon was brought in for a top-30 pre-draft visit.
However, the medical concerns could force the Steelers to look in another direction at pick 21.
While Harmon is worthy of being drafted in the middle of the first round, their recent history with Troy Fautanu could scare them away from pulling the trigger on the talented interior defender. There were concerns about Fautanu's knee heading into the NFL Draft, and this caused the 10th overall prospect on the NFL Draft Expert Consensus Board to fall to the Steelers at pick 20.
But after Fautanu's first NFL game, the offensive tackle suffered a knee injury in practice and would miss the remainder of his rookie season. Pittsburgh's first-round pick last year offered no value in 2024 because he couldn't stay on the field. Depending on the severity of Harmon's shoulder injury, the Steelers could steer clear and select a prospect who has clean medicals, as Garafolo suggested.
I still believe the Pittsburgh Steelers will strongly consider Derrick Harmon if he makes it to the 21st overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. He's everything they look for in a defensive lineman in terms of his size profile, motor, athletic traits, and youth. But don't be shocked if the Steelers have Harmon within their grasp and pass on him for medical reasons.
