NFL Mock Draft 2012: New Five-Round Mock Send Dont'a Hightower To Steelers

Behind The Steel Curtain’s massive multi-round mock drafts are always a lot of fun. The newest one is five rounds long, and it has the Steelers addressing a variety of needs — linebacker, offensive line, nose tackle, and quarterback.

Wait, quarterback? Yes, BTSC has the Steelers taking UT-Chattanooga QB B.J. Coleman in the fifth round, to serve as a potential backup to Ben Roethlisberger.

In the first round, the Steelers take inside linebacker Dont’a Hightower out of Alabama:

With this pick I really struggled between Hightower and UNC’s Zach Brown. Many tab Brown as a 4-3 player only but I look at him and see a potential next Lawrence Timmons. He’s extremely athletic and can cover running backs, tight ends, and even slot receivers across the middle. He has easily been the best linebacker at the Senior Bowl. With the NFL going to a more pass-heavy system with each passing season it’ll be important to have another athlete like Timmons patrolling the middle of the field. Hightower on the other hand is an absolute beast against the run and in the pass rush.

In the second round, the Steelers take Iowa State guard Kelechi Osemele, who some analysts predict will go to the Steelers in the first round. That might be a bit of a reach, but I’m not sure he’ll be around when the Steelers pick in the second round, either. The Steelers take another offensive lineman in the third round, then a nose tackle in the fourth.