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Pittsburgh Steelers Column
By: Dave Savolaine |
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5/6/11 You Gotta Have Faith
What’s the Steelers’ 2011 draft grade? It strongly depends on your faith in the Steelers’ coaches and scouts.
Here’s a recap of the picks:
The Steelers’ 2011 draft class has received moderate praise as being non-flashy but effective in meeting the team’s needs. One certainly can’t argue that the team met its biggest needs position-wise: an OT, an OG, two CBs, a DE, a developmental OLB, and a possible replacement for FA RB Mewelde Moore. The team could have used another TE (little depth behind Heath Miller), a developmental NT (looks like we’re sporting the aging Hampton-Hoke tandem again next season), a tall WR (only the oft-injured Limas Sweed and PS player Wes Lyons are above 6’ tall) and/or a developmental ILB (to eventually replace James Farrior). But with the seven picks, each near the end of the round, the team covered their most pressing bases.
But did they draft the right players at those positions? After the Steelers’ pick was announced in most rounds, I was left feeling like they might not have gotten the best player they could have at that position, or that they weren’t picking the BPA. The two biggest exceptions were Curtis Brown and Chris Carter, both of whom the Steelers were very fortunate to get when they did. I’m not so sure about the rest.
DE Cameron Heyward
It’s clear the Steelers had an interest in him: they sent a bunch of staff to Ohio State’s pro day & he was the most obvious player of interest for them amongst the Buckeyes. In watching Ohio State last season, Heyward had flashes of greatness followed by periods of not-so-greatness. In addition, those who may have considered cornerback or the offensive line as greater team priorities than defensive end may have preferred the team take either CB Aaron Williams, CB Ras-I Dowling, or OT Derek Sherrod. Finally, the Steelers’ habit of filling DE positions with mid-to-late round picks netted them their current starters Aaron Smith and Brett Keisel, so why buck a winning strategy? Prospects like Karl Klug and Brandon Bair may have been viable alternatives.
However, upon further reflection on this pick, there are a few factors that make the pick look better: 1) the team’s talent evaluators must have considered Heyward the BPA at the time over players like those I mentioned; 2) the team may have considered the D-line a top priority considering how the defense suffered last season during Aaron Smith’s absence & the dropoff for 3-4 DEs after Heyward was pretty big; 3) the defensive line certainly needed more youth & now it has it with Heyward and Ziggy Hood; and 4) Heyward may be a better 3-4 DE than he was a 4-3 DT for Ohio State. Considering how the Steelers use their DEs, Heyward’s ability to stuff the run, take up blockers and still get some pressure on the pocket may suit the Steelers’ scheme better than when Jim Tressel & Co. leaned on Heyward to be a pass rusher up the middle. The Steelers won’t be depending on him to generate the pass rush – they’ll just ask him to do what he does best.
OT Marcus Gilbert
The Steelers missed out on O-linemen like Orlando Franklin and Ben Ijalana earlier in the 2nd round, so was Gilbert, one of Maurkice Pouncey’s former linemates at Florida that wasn’t a blood relative, a reach? If you have faith in the Steelers’ talent evaluators, then you believe the team rightly had Gilbert ranked over available O-line alternatives such as William Rackley and Jah Reid, not to mention NT Kendrick Ellis and CBs Curtis Marsh, Chris Culliver and Johnny Patrick. Still, the last massive OT from Florida the Steelers drafted was Max Starks & he turned out pretty good.
CB Curtis Brown
Finally, an undisputed value pick! J Many draft prognosticators had Curtis Brown getting picked in the 2nd round. He can step in as a #4 CB right away, and can develop into a starter if he can improve his tackling. Looking at the players drafted after Curtis Brown, I don’t see any obvious alternatives better than him.
CB Cortez Allen
If the team couldn’t address the cornerback position in the first round, I’m glad they addressed it twice in the middle rounds! Allen has the look of a good press CB, the kind the Steelers like. However, they passed up CBs Davon House and Brandon Burton for Allen, so, once again, faith in the Steelers’ talent personnel will determine the grade for this pick (as well as hindsight several years from now.)
OLB Chris Carter
This converted DE should have gone earlier in the draft, but may have scared teams away because he doesn’t perfectly fit the pass-rushing OLB mold speed-wise. However, he’s a tough tackler who can sift through trash and make plays. With some time to develop, he could line up at OLB or ILB in the 3-4 & may be the Steelers’ biggest steal of this draft. They passed up OGs Daniel Kilgore and DeMarcus Love, DT Jerrell Powe & a number of LB alternatives, but I’d still take Carter.
OG Keith Williams
Every draft, there’s at least one pick by your favorite team that leaves you saying, “Who?” Obviously, Williams isn’t from some small school you’ve never heard of (Nebraska), and he was on the radar of several draft websites (including this one.) However, they passed on OGs Zach Hurd and Andrew Jackson for Williams, not to mention NTs Jerrell Powe (again!) and Ian Williams, OT Lee Ziemba, TE Virgil Green, WRs Stephen Burton, Ricardo Lockette and Tori Gurley, and safeties Tyler Sash and Eric Hagg, to name a few. I’m glad they addressed the O-line a 2nd time in this draft, but I was not expecting this pick.
RB Baron Batch
It wouldn’t be the 7th round if your team picked a player whom you didn’t immediately have to look up. Once I found out who Batch was (and realized that the team's backup QB had not just been made into royalty), the pick made sense. Batch must have been the highest-rated skill position player left on the team’s board. He certainly sounds like a Mewelde Moore replacement should Moore get signed elsewhere: a smallish 3rd down back with good hands and a low center of gravity who uses what he’s got for extra yards. But, once again, Steeler fans must have faith that Batch’s position on the team’s draft board was the right place.
All in all, it seems like a good draft. They covered most of their positions of need, and what more can you ask? However, it remains to be seen if they picked the right players for the job. The most accurate draft grade I can give is “incomplete.”
“Armageddon”, But Much Better Than A Michael Bay Movie
The Steelers’ first playoff opponent is the Ravens in a game that needs no extra hype (even though Terrell Suggs couldn’t resist comparing it to “Armageddon” or “World War 3”.) With all the talent, history and storylines going into this game, the game is too close to call & probably will come down to which team “shows up” more. But I doubt the Steelers are going into these playoffs with a tremendous amount of swagger, even with the first round bye. After all, of the other five AFC playoff teams, three of them (Ravens, Patriots and Jets) beat the Steelers in the regular season at Heinz Field & the other two (Colts and Chiefs, both of whom are now eliminated) were not faced by the Steelers. More than any other game this season, this playoff game against the Ravens will establish the Steelers’ contender/pretender status.
Either way, it’s not too early to look at the Steelers’ offseason needs. With their first pick coming late in the first round, it’s obviously impossible to tell what players will still be available. But it’s not too early to predict what positions they will address in the early rounds of this upcoming draft.
1st Round: Best OT available – either OT Gabe Carimi (Wisconsin), Orlando Franklin (Miami), Derek Sherrod (Mississippi State) or Demarcus Love (Arkansas) - The top OT prospect currently appears to be Nate Solder of Colorado, and I’m assuming he’ll get drafted before the Steelers have a chance to pick him. Right now, however, even Solder doesn’t appear to be a candidate for a top 10 draft pick & is among a pack of OTs currently with mid-to-late-first-round grades (right around where the Steelers will have their pick). And the Steelers’ top need is for an OT. Max Starks has been serviceable but by no means a top tier OT in the league, and projected starting OT Willie Colon got injured and replaced by free agent Flozell Adams (who clearly is not the long-term solution at the position.) The remaining OT possibilities currently on the roster (Tony Hills, Jonathan Scott, Chris Scott, possibly Trai Essex and practice squad member Kyle Jolly) could be quality depth players but do not appear to be dominators-in-waiting at OT that will give a big boost to both the running and passing games. The team’s days of waiting until the 3rd or 4th round to draft their future starting OTs need to come to an end.
2nd Round: Best NT available – either Jerrell Powe (Mississippi), Kenrick Ellis (Hampton) or Phil Taylor (Baylor) - DT Al Woods was on the Steelers’ practice squad for a time this season & could have been developed into the team’s next starting NT after Casey Hampton hangs up his cleats. However, he was signed off the PS by the Buccaneers. Top backup Chris Hoke also has a ton of mileage, so the team needs competition for both the starting gig AND a promising backup. If the team really wanted to draft OG/OC Mike Pouncey, the brother of current Steeler Maurkice Pouncey, this would appear to be the last spot at which they could pull that off. However, unless NT is addressed in the 1st round, that may not be possible (and besides, OT is a much bigger need than OG.) The Steelers cannot afford to wait and see what NTs are still available with their 3rd round pick: if they really prefer one of these NTs over the others, they’ll need to take them here.
3rd Round: Either an offensive lineman, a CB or an OLB - This point and beyond will be determined in large part by what the Steelers do with their current free agents. Of the bunch, the highest profile players are CB Ike Taylor and OLB LaMarr Woodley. One can assume the franchise tag will be placed on one of them. Although there is young depth on the roster at OLB (Jason Worilds) and CB (Keenan Lewis and Crezdon Butler) that the team may believe will develop into starting material, they still may feel compelled to bolster the position if Taylor and/or Woodley are lost as free agents. If, however, the Steelers can retain both, I believe the team would use this pick to continue to bolster their offensive line.
9/23/10 Blessing In Disguise?
Don’t get me wrong: I would never make light of Ben Roethlisberger’s deplorable behavior regarding a co-ed earlier this year, nor do I doubt that the resulting four-game suspension hurt the team. However, his suspension, which initially had many believing the Steelers’ season was lost, may have had a couple positive, unintended effects for the team:
- The Steelers’ defense has been overwhelming opponents. The cause for this impressive play is up for debate: perhaps the team has a chip on its shoulder regarding the media’s numerous dour pre-season predictions for the team? Perhaps it’s simply a matter of having all the starters healthy? Or perhaps the defense feels a responsibility to carry the team until the franchise QB returns? Whatever it is that has lit a fire under the defense, it’s the defense that has kept the Steelers in the win column;
- The Steelers’ running game, while not dominant, has been the focus of the team’s offensive preparations & significant improvement has occurred: 124.5 rushing yards per game (10th in league) and 12 rushing first downs (tied for 12th in league.) Last season, the Steelers had 112.1 rushing yards per game (19th in league), so if the team can keep improving the running game, the offense will be well-balanced when Big Ben returns;
- For long-term planning purposes, the team is getting a very good look at the backup QBs. Big Ben has had problems staying off the injured list: he’s only played all 16 games in a season once. So the Steelers know the value of a good backup QB & can determine what they need to do for future seasons in that regard after giving Dixon, Leftwich and Batch regular season playing time.
However, even when Roethlisberger returns to his starting QB role, another potential pitfall awaits. Players that haven’t been practicing and working out with the team, whether due to a suspension, injury or holdout, may be more susceptible to soft-tissue injuries – hamstring, hip flexors, calves, etc. – until all the rust has been shaken off. And given Roethlisberger’s proclivity for extending plays with his legs & getting hit often, the Steelers had better have the backup QB situation nailed down for the next several games (as well as keeping the running game as strong as possible.)
It has been reported that backup QB prospects John David Booty (2008 5th round draft pick), Levi Brown (2010 7th round draft pick) and Jarrett Brown (UDFA: Pat White's former backup at West Virginia) recently visited the Steelers. Given how banged up Byron Leftwich and Dennis Dixon are & how old Batch is, this is not surprising. However, it also would not be surprising to see the Steelers make a move (either through free agency or the draft) to acquire their “Backup QB of the Future”. They still may picture Dixon in that role, but it’s doubtful the team won’t get some competition for him this offseason.
In other news, the Steelers recently picked up DE/DT Al Woods after he was cut by the Saints. At last, the Steelers have a potential developmental NT prospect. Woods’ stoutness against the run was one of his greatest selling points when he was drafted in the 4th round by the Saints last April. If Woods develops well this year, the Steelers’ need to draft a NT next April will be reduced to “strong” from “absolutely desperate.”
7/21/10 The “C-Block”: The Steelers’ Average Offensive Line
Before I get into the issues the Steelers have with their offensive line, here's a quick recap of this year’s Steeler draft picks:
1st Round – OC/OG Maurkice Pouncey, Florida The team passed on potential LT Bryan Bulaga to take the top OC (and possibly the top OG) prospect in the draft. As the Steelers have done with their defense, they’re rebuilding the offensive line from the middle out. Pouncey is versatile & figures to see the field a lot in his rookie season.
2nd Round – DE/OLB Jason Worilds, Virginia Tech A fast, athletic pass-rusher who, if nothing else, is a rotational guy now, a future starter, and insurance should the team lose Lamarr Woodley to free agency after this season (unlikely, but it could happen).
3rd Round – WR Emmanuel Sanders, Southern Methodist Fast, fast, fast. With Mike Wallace moving to the outside, Sanders will compete with the resigned Antwaan Randle El and the newly signed Arnaz Battle for the #3 WR spot.
4th Round – DE/OLB Thaddeus Gibson, Ohio State A pass-rusher that flashed brilliance on some plays & not on others for the Buckeyes. Since the Steelers’ depth (and future starting positions) at OLB are lacking, the team loaded up at the position. This also works out well for improving the athleticism on special teams.
5th Round – OG/RT Christ Scott, Tennessee Huzzah, another investment in the O-line! Scott saw some time at LT during OTAs, but his future is on the right side of the line. He suffered an injury earlier this year, but should be ready for most, if not all, of training camp.
5th Round – CB Crezdon Butler, Clemson A needed infusion of talent at the CB position. The Steelers’ CBs didn’t get an INT the whole season until the last game.
5th Round – ILB Stevenson Sylvester, Utah Smallish for the ILB position in a 3-4 defense, but there’s no denying his wheels nor his collegiate accomplishments at Utah. With the Steelers four-deep at ILB (Farrior, Timmons, Foote and Fox), Sylvester will have to find roles on special teams and defensive sub-packages until space on the depth chart opens up in future seasons.
6th Round – RB Jonathan Dwyer, Georgia Tech Big, physical back who will compete with 2nd year players Frank Summers and Isaac Redman for the short yardage back role.
6th Round – WR/KR Antonio Brown, Central Michigan Antwaan Randle El is whom Brown has been compared to a lot this offseason, and he’ll get to play alongside him. Press reports indicate that Brown has impressed the coaches so far & may be putting RB/WR/KR Stefan Logan’s roster spot in jeopardy.
7th Round – DT/DE Doug Worthington, Ohio State A big D-lineman who will get a look at the DE position in the 3-4 defense. He isn’t big enough (yet) to project to the NT position. But if he can follow Brett Keisel’s path from 7th round pick to special teams to a starting job, his future is bright indeed.
The Steelers also traded the 5th round pick they acquired from the Jets for Santonio Holmes to reacquire CB Bryant McFadden from the Cardinals. If one looks at McFadden as part of the Steelers’ draft day gains, then the whole group looks very good. In addition, as per usual, the Steelers grabbed a few very solid undrafted free agents who will get legitimate chances to make the final roster. The most prominent UDFAs this year include OLB Lindsey Witten, OG Dorian Grant, OT Kyle Jolly and FB Demetrius Taylor.
With this draft haul, the offensive line roster sans the injured Willie Colon looks like this (with presumed starters in bold):
OT: Starks, Foster, Scott, Hills, Jolly OG: Kemoeatu, Pouncey, Essex, Urbik, Grant OC: Hartwig, Legursky
It’s a group that’s high on depth and low on starting talent. Drafting Pouncey was a step in the right direction, mind you, and no one can really plan for a starting OT to be injured and lost for the season. As depth/developmental players, Foster and Legursky have been praised quite a bit & may end up seeing the field a lot more this season. Urbik is still young and just a year away from having been a third round draft pick (just like 3rd rounder Essex and 4th rounder Colon before him: see a trend of mid-round O-linemen here?) and even he could get it together this year. But returning starters Starks, Hartwig and Essex were part of a line that was not able to protect the quarterback nor consistently open running lanes. Big Ben was sacked 50 times last season (2nd worst in the league), and the Steelers’ offense was ranked 19th in rushing (down from 3rd two seasons ago) and 21st in 3rd down conversions (down from 1st two seasons ago).
The Steelers appear to be headed towards another season of mediocre offensive line performance, and it will be up to new offensive line coach Sean Kugler to change that and bring this unit back to respectability. Since bringing in a free agent O-lineman, or trading for one, is seeming like a more remote possibility every day, Kugler needs to find a starting five out of this group that can handle the Baltimore, Cincinnati and Cleveland defenses twice a year (yes, even the Browns have a decent defense now.) It’s possible that Foster, Urbik, Legursky, Scott, Grant or one of the others has an outstanding training camp and makes Kugler’s job a lot easier. But the Steelers cannot depend on that happening & it will be up to Kugler to make the best line possible out of these ingredients.
And if the Steelers do not manage to find a winning O-line formula this season, the consolation prize will be a high draft pick in 2011 and in 2012 if there is no football season next year (supreme deity forbid.) In the long-term, Pouncey is an important building block and it would not be surprising to see a couple of the Steelers’ current O-linemen develop into quality starters. However, I have no idea which ones can/will make the move & the Steelers need to keep looking to early rounds of the draft (i.e., the 1st or 2nd, not the 3rd or 4th) if they want to return to the days of Alan Faneca, Wayne Gandy, Dermontti Dawson and Marvel Smith.
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