Denzel Boston — Washington Athletics
The Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t drafted a receiver in the first round since 2006. NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah decided to change that in his first mock-up leading up to the 2026 NFL Draft.
Jeremiah had the Steelers selecting Washington wideout Denzel Boston with the No. 21 overall pick in April, passing on Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson, who fell out of the first round in the projection.
“The Steelers must find someone to complement DK Metcalf,” Jeremiah wrote Monday. “Boston is another big, physical receiver to play opposite the two-time Pro Bowler.”
Boston was the fourth wideout taken off the board, after USC’s Makai Lemon (No. 13, Los Angeles Rams), Ohio State’s Carnell Tate (No. 16, New York Jets) and Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson (No. 19, Carolina Panthers).
Boston pulled in 62 passes for 881 yards and 11 touchdowns for the Huskies this season. He also brought back eight punts for 104 yards and a score. Boston will follow former Washington wideouts Rome Odunze (Chicago Bears), Ja’Lynn Polk (New Orleans Saints) and Jalen McMillan (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) to the NFL.
October 25 2009: Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Santonio Holmes (10) carries the ball. The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Minnesota Vikings by a score of 27 to 17 at Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, PA.
Since taking Santonio Holmes with the No. 25 pick in 2006, the Steelers have drafted 11 receivers in the second or third rounds.
That group includes Limas Sweed (No. 53, 2008), Mike Wallace (No. 84, 2009), Emmanuel Sanders (No. 82, 2010), Markus Wheaton (No. 79, 2013), Dri Archer (No. 97, 2014), Sammie Coates (No. 87, 2015), JuJu Smith-Schuster (No. 62, 2017), James Washington (No. 60, 2018), Diontae Johnson (No. 66, 2019), Chase Claypool (No. 49, 2020) and George Pickens (No. 52, 2022).
Mentioned In This Article: 2026 NFL Draft Daniel Jeremiah Denzel Boston Pittsburgh Steelers Steelers