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Mel Kiper NFL Mock Draft For Second Round Has Steelers Taking Ben Ijalana

Mel Kiper’s mock draft for round two of the NFL Draft has a series of cornerbacks going early, with the Broncos taking Aaron Williams at No. 36, the Cowboys grabbing Brandon Harris at No. 40, the Lions taking Curtis Brown at No. 44, and the Eagles snagging Brandon Burton at No. 54. A number of offensive linemen (Jah Reid, Orlando Franklin, Rodney Hudson) come off the board before the Steelers pick as well. Ras-I Dowling almost makes it to the Steelers, but the Chargers grab him at No. 61. Still, that leaves the Steelers with a pretty terrific consolation prize, as offensive lineman Ben Ilajana, who a lot of folks considered to be a first-round pick, falls to them at No. 63.

The Packers take Louisville corner Johnny Patrick at No. 64, which will have Steelers fans a little worried if that’s how it goes down. To get Cameron Heyward and Ilajana at the ends of each of the first two rounds will be terrific for the Steelers in terms of value, but Pittsburgh has scarily little depth at corner, and there just aren’t a lot of great corners in the draft. They would probably need to pick one in the third round, but I’m not sure who would be available.

Photographs by dizfunk used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.