Germie Bernard Detailed How Steelers Screwed Over Falcons On Draft Night

The Pittsburgh Steelers seem to have a much better roster than the franchise did at this time prior to the 2025 season. A big reason for that is the additions made on offense, specifically at wide receiver. DK Metcalf and Roman Wilson are still here, while the franchise went out and added another reliable veteran in Michael Pittman Jr. The Steelers also added Germie Bernard in the second round of the 2026 NFL Draft, as well as return specialist Kaden Wetjen in the fourth round. Adding more to the wide receiver room was a clear goal of the front office in 2026.

Bernard has looked good so far for the Steelers in training camp and the preseason, but he might not have been Pittsburgh's first choice at wide receiver in the draft. The franchise initially tried to draft Makai Lemon in the first round, but Pittsburgh was leapfrogged at the last second by the Philadelphia Eagles. This was an embarrassing moment for the Steelers as General Manager Omar Khan already had Lemon on the phone when the Eagles moved up to grab him. Pittsburgh then pivoted to tackle Max Iheanachor.

The Steelers grabbing Iheanachor instead isn't a bad thing. He has looked good in training camp so far, and Lemon has had mixed reviews out of Philadelphia. The Steelers made up for missing out on Lemon by drafting Bernard, but he revealed on Not Just Football With Cam Heyward that it almost didn't happen.

"Draft day comes, I think they were at like pick 53 or whatever," Bernard said. "I'm just sitting on my couch and stuff, my agent's texting me like, 'Well this team's here, this team could pick you up, they might need a receiver.' Then they traded up to pick, what, 47? Because I ain't going to lie, if I got to pick 48, the Falcons, I probably would have gotten taken there. But they traded up and they took me."

The Steelers entered the 2026 NFL Draft with a ton of draft capital. The franchise had 12 selections in the event, which meant Khan had a bunch of picks at his disposal to move around the draft board, which is a big reason fans were so upset about the first round debacle. However, Khan and the front office were maybe concerned that Bernard would not make it to the 53rd overall pick, so Khan made a deal to move up to 47 and select the wide receiver.

Bernard must have made a good impression on the Atlanta Falcons during the pre-draft process, because he seemed confident that they would take him with the 48th overall pick had he not been drafted by Pittsburgh at 47. In the deal to move up to draft Bernard the Steelers swapped seventh-round picks with the Indianapolis Colts while also giving up a fourth-round pick. Only time will tell if the trade was worth it, but the Steelers could not allow the receiver they wanted to slip away from them for the second round in a row.

Steelers' Germie Bernard Should Have A Chance To Make An Impact In 2026

Bernard had a solid debut in the preseason when the Steelers beat the Green Bay Packers. He played in the first half and caught four passes for over 50 yards, including an impressive 25-yard catch and run where he broke a few tackles.

The rookie had a quieter performance in the loss to the New York Jets as he played less and only saw one target. He is currently battling with Roman Wilson for snaps, but he will either be the third or fourth wide receiver for the Steelers in 2026, and he should have a chance to make an immediate impact.

Please feel free to share your Steelers takes with me on X (@brogannoey) and consider following for more Steelers-related content and discussion. I’m always open to hearing different perspectives, breaking down games, and talking all things Pittsburgh football. 

#SteelerNation