Pittsburgh Steelers: Complete seven-round 2021 NFL mock draft

Pittsburgh Steelers 2021 NFL mock draft: Round 2, 55th overall

With Maurkice Pouncey retiring early this offseason, the center position stands out as a major position of need for the Pittsburgh Steelers. B.J. Finney can be a solid stopgap option for the team but they will likely be looking to address their long-term center need early in the draft. In this 2021 NFL mock draft, Pittsburgh makes the position a major priority with the selection of Quinn Meinerz in the second round.

Meinerz played his college football at the Division III level, shining up front for Wisconsin-Whitewater. He primarily played guard in college but has been working at the center position and played well there at the Senior Bowl. Speaking of the Senior Bowl, Meinerz really jumped on the radar of most scouts in Mobile where he proved himself against high-level talent.

This prospect is a mean and nasty player who fires off of the ball in an instant, consistently plays with proper leverage and displays impressive power at the point of attack. He is a tough offensive line prospect who consistently plays through the whistle and shows impressive on-field awareness. He shows obvious value both in the run game and as a pass protector.

Meinerz is clearly an extremely talented player who appears to have exciting upside as an interior offensive lineman at the next level. That being said, it is fair to question how quickly he can adapt to the speed of the NFL game. The jump from Division III to the NFL is absolutely massive and Meinerz may need some time to adapt. Having Finney around helps in this scenario as Pittsburgh can turn to the veteran as their starting center until the youngster is ready.