PITTSBURGH - The Pittsburgh Steelers - not accustomed to choosing alongside less-successful teams such as the Lions, Falcons and Bills - are signaling that they might be willing to trade down in the NFL draft.

The Steelers own the No. 11 choice, only the second time since 1992 they have had a Top 15 pick. But with so many needs - offensive tackle, cornerback, running back, quarterback among them - they might choose quantity over quality during the Saturday-Sunday draft.

By trading down eight or nine spots in the first round, the Steelers conceivably could land an additional second-round pick. That would give them three picks among the top 60 of a deep draft and possibly allow them to solve multiple problems without having to sign expensive free agents.

"We're very open to anything," director of football operations Kevin Colbert said Monday. "We're most likely to sit where we are and pick, but trading down would definitely be a possibility. ... I think the depth is good enough that you're going to get some starters out of the second round"

The downside to dealing an upper-tier pick is they would likely miss getting a premier player in a draft pool that, in Colbert's mind, drops off after about 15 players.

Stay at No. 11, and they could get a potential star in North Carolina State quarterback Philip Rivers or one of the top two cornerbacks, Virginia Tech's DeAngelo Hall or South Carolina's Dunta Robinson.

"There have been tons of speculation, tons of rumors, tons of predictions, but I think we're going to have a lot of choices at No. 11," Colbert said. "But if somebody is real interested in coming up to that spot, we have to be open and say 'Wait a minute, we can get whatever picks we're going to get and still get somebody.'

"Obviously, it's not the same quality you'd get at No. 11, but at least down to No. 20, you've got to be open minded. There's enough depth in that first round that you won't hurt yourself significantly."

If the Steelers trade down, they conceivably could get offensive tackle Shawn Andrews of Arkansas or Virginia Tech running back Kevin Jones in the first round and a cornerback in the second round, possibly Ohio State's Chris Gamble or Oklahoma's Derrick Strait.

"The thing is, once you get down past three quarters of the first round, you're getting into a lesser level of a player," Colbert said. "You don't want to trade yourself out too far because the top players are still the guys we've got to get. They're going to be the guys who are going to be the difference-makers."

Another potential problem: If they stay at No. 11 and Rivers is available, can the Steelers afford to draft a quarterback for the future when there are more immediate needs to address?

Even if the Steelers draft Rivers, Tommy Maddox likely would be their starting quarterback this season and, possibly, in 2005.

"We don't like to think we're going to be up this high that often, and if you are up this high, you're going to get a top player," coach Bill Cowher said. "We're not going to bypass a good football player, regardless of the position."

Conversely, the Steelers have found that taking the safe, let's fix-it-now route isn't always the best one, either.

In 2000, they chose Michigan State receiver Plaxico Burress rather than Marshall quarterback Chad Pennington with the No. 8 pick, going for the player who was ready to start immediately over one who needed time to learn his position.

Now, Pennington is a star for the Jets after sitting for two seasons, while Burress has had one big season in between several disappointing ones. Burress is unsigned after this season and the Steelers have given no signs that they want to discuss a new contract with him.