The Steelers signed fourth-round draft pick Joshua Dobbs to a four-year contract.
Dobbs, a quarterback out of Tennessee, is the sixth of the team's eight players from the 2017 NFL Draft to sign.
Dobb threw for 2,946 yards and 27 touchdowns last season at Tennessee, finishing his four-year career with 7,138 career passing yards, ranking him second behind only Peyton Manning. He also rushed for 2,160 yards and 32 touchdowns in his career. He also has a great academic track record, majoring in aerospace engineering.
"He has a lot of strengths," said quarterbacks coach Randy Fichtner. "A lot of people are going to talk about his above the neck. I think one of the things that happens when you get to meet the guys, and spend time during the process, you get a chance to feel their love for the game. This is a very sharp young man that loves football."
Dobbs visited the Steelers before the draft and had the opportunity to talk with Ben Roethlisberger, as well as get a quick look at what the Steelers offense is all about.
"There are a lot of similarities, being able to come up to Pittsburgh," said Dobbs. "It's similar plays and lingo that I was familiar with at the college level, similar progressions. Of course, the Steelers are going to draw up different plays for different people, get Antonio Brown the ball. But at the end of the day, it's similar progressions, similar thought process that goes into being successful at quarterback.
"Of course there is going to be a learning curve and whatever you have to do to make yourself polished at the professional level, but it's still in the same category of the stuff I have been doing at the college level, so I feel better prepared to make that jump successfully."
