The 2026 NFL Draft is right around the corner. The last few offseasons, I dove into a Steelers NFL draft classes starting with the longest-tenured draft pick and outlined each successive draft. In doing so, each player selected by the Steelers was highlighted as to how their NFL career, or lack thereof, took shape. Each year was outlined with the last three draft classes all combined into one since a large number of the players were still with the team.
Since it worked before, and since a lot of the research has already been done, let’s look back at the players from these drafts yet again each weekday leading up to the opening day of the 2026 draft. Instead of going all the way back to 2011, I decided to start in 2016 which is the first draft that still has multiple players in the NFL. But before starting, I highlighted players drafted by the Steelers in 2015 and before who were still in the NFL in 2025. For players no longer in the league, a lot of the information will be the same while others will be updated where needed.
Part 6 of 9 will highlight the Steelers 2020 NFL which was the first since 1967 without a first-round pick.
So let’s take a look at the six players drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2020 NFL draft:
Chase Claypool
Wide receiver, Notre Dame
Round 2
Pick 49
After scoring 11 total touchdowns his rookie season, Chase Claypool saw similar numbers in receptions and yards in his first two seasons but had a big drop off in finding the end zone. Going into his third year, his first without Ben Roethlisberger as the quarterback, Claypool only had 311 yards through eight games on 32 receptions with one touchdown in 2022. During the Steelers bye week, which coincided with the NFL trade deadline, Claypool was sent to the Chicago Bears for a 2023 second-round draft pick. Claypool struggled to get going with the Bears only having 140 yards in seven games with no touchdowns. More importantly, Chicago Bears did not win a single game once Claypool was acquired which brought their second-round draft pick to be the first selection in the round where the Steelers landed Joey Porter Jr. Claypool appeared in the Bears first three games of 2023 where he had four receptions for 51 yards and a touchdown but then was inactive for the next two weeks. Traded to the Miami Dolphins for a late-round pick swap in 2025, Claypool appeared in nine games for Miami where he had four receptions for 26 yards. Signing with the Buffalo Bills after the 2024 NFL Draft, Claypool was placed on the Reserve/Injured List (IR) during the preseason with a toe injury and was released several days later. Claypool did not land with another team in 2024. Claypool announced he was seeking a return to the NFL in the summer of 2025, but there were not any takers.
Alex Highsmith
Linebacker, Charlotte
Round 3
Pick 102
After four NFL seasons, Alex Highsmith is the only member of the Steelers 2020 draft class still with the team. Additionally, Highsmith was given a lucrative contract following his third season which came as a $68 million, four year extension. As for on-field production, Highsmith has started 50 games the last three seasons with an additional five his rookie year. Highsmith has 29.5 career sacks with 14.5 coming in 2022 when T.J. Watt missed seven games. Highsmith also had a league-high five forced fumbles in 2022. In 2023, Highsmith pulled in two interceptions, one of which was his first career touchdown on the first defensive play of the Steelers Week 2 matchup against the Cleveland Browns. Under contract through the 2027 season, Highsmith is currently part of one of the best edge rushing duos in the NFL. In fact, they have now been considered more a trio with the emergence of Nick Herbig, which has brought the long-term future of Highsmith in Pittsburgh into question.
Anthony McFarland Jr
Running back, Maryland
Round 4
Pick 124
In his four years in Pittsburgh, Anthony McFarland has been on and off the team’s 53-man roster. Appearing in 11 games his rookie season, McFarland had the largest output of his career with 33 rushing attempts for 113 yards along with six receptions on nine targets for 54 yards. The 2021 season saw McFarland begin the year on the Reserve/Injured List (IR) only to appear in two games. The 2022 was one with McFarland on the team’s practice squad where he was elevated for one game and had six carries for 30 yards. Back on the 53-man roster to start 2023, McFarland was the teams third running back only to be placed on IR following Week 1. After McFarland returned in November, he appeared in a few games as the Steelers kick returner before being inactive but was eventually released and signed to the practice squad in late December. It was the first season of McFarland’s career where he did not have a rushing attempt, although he did have two receptions for 11 yards. Not signing a Reserve/Future contract with the Steelers, McFarland spent the 2024 offseason as a running back for the San Antonio Brahmas of the UFL. Signing with the Miami Dolphins, McFarland spent the 2024 preseason with the Dolphins but failed to make the 53-man roster. After signing with the Dolphins practice squad initially, McFarland was released the next day. Not landing with another NFL team, McFarland was back with the Brahmas for 2025 but was drafted by the Birmingham Stallions for 2026 where he is the team’s leading rusher through three games..
Kevin Dotson
Guard, Louisiana
Round 4
Pick 145
In a draft pick acquired from the Miami Dolphins as part of the Minkah Fitzpatrick trade, Kevin Dotson had a curious career in Pittsburgh. Showing lots of promise his rookie season, he appeared in 13 games with four starts, two of which were the final weeks of the season. Although Dotson played well, he was replaced when Matt Feiler returned from injury for the playoffs. Dotson began the 2021 season as the Steelers starting left guard where he played for nine games before injuring his ankle and being lost for the season. Playing every snap of the 2022 season once again at left guard, Dotson had inconsistent play. One thing that followed Dotson throughout his time in Pittsburgh was the constant rumors about the team being unhappy with his preparation during his first three seasons. After the Steelers signed an upgrade at the position of Isaac Seumalo during the 2023 offseason, Dotson became expendable as a reserve lineman and the Steelers traded him to the Los Angeles Rams along with a fifth-round pick in 2024 and sixth-round pick in 2025 for a fourth-round selection in 2024 and a fifth-round pick in 2025. After getting acclimated to the Rams, Dotson started 14 games for the Rams and finished the year as one of the better offensive guards in the NFL, this time on the right side. With this production, Dotson earned himself a three year, $48 million contract extension with the Rams. In two seasons in L.A., Dotson has not been named All-Pro or even to the Pro Bowl despite many Steelers fans claiming he has done so.
Antoine Brooks Jr
Safety, Maryland
Round 6
Pick 198
Antoine Brooks landed on the Steelers practice squad to start his rookie season. After being elevated four times throughout the season, twice as a regular replacement and twice as a COVID-19 replacement, Books was signed to the 53-man roster prior to the Steelers Week 13 game. Getting the first crack at the nickel cornerback position for the Steelers in training camp in 2021, Brooks was injured and was waived/injured at the end of August. Ultimately released at the beginning of September, Brooks landed on the Los Angeles Rams practice squad. Promoted to the active roster ahead of Week 10, Brooks was waived at the end of January but re-signed to the practice squad for the Super Bowl. Brooks signed a Reserve/Future contract with the Rams for 2022 but was waived in May. Brooks was a member of the Seattle Sea Dragons of the XFL in 2023 and was drafted by the Memphis Showboats in the 2024 UFL dispersal draft when the USFL and XFL merged. Brooks was released by the Showboats in March and he signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the CFL for the 2024 season where he is still on the roster.
Carlos Davis
Defensive tackle, Nebraska
Round 7
Pick 232
Spending his first three seasons in Pittsburgh, Carlos Davis spent the 2022 season on the Steelers practice squad. Elevated for the Steelers Week 8 matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, Davis played 12 defensive snaps and got his first career NFL sack. Following the season, Davis did not sign a reserve/future contract with the Steelers and instead signed with the Atlanta Falcons in June. Failing to make the 53-man roster, Davis signed on with the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL (now UFL) but was released in December in order to join the Falcon’s practice squad. Once again during the 2024 offseason, Davis did not sign a reserve/future contract but instead chose to rejoin the Stallions in the newly formed UFL and was named to the All-UFL team at the end of the 2024 season. Davis landed with the Cincinnati Bengals for the 2024 preseason but did not make the team. Davis was back with the Stallions for 2025 but was drafted by the St. Louis Battlehawks for 2026. Through three games, Davis leads the team with 2.0 sacks.
What players drafted by the Steelers in or before 2015 are still in the NFL?
What happened to the Steelers draft class of 2016?
What happened to the Steelers draft class of 2017?
What happened to the Steelers draft class of 2018?
What happened to the Steelers draft class of 2019?