Final thoughts on the Steelers’ 2011 Draft
The 2011 NFL Draft has now come and gone. Now that the dust has settled, it’s time to look back and evaluate how the Steelers did.
Many websites, newspaper, and magazines like to assign letter grades to each team’s draft selections. I don’t really like doing that. I don’t think that it’s fair to evaluate a player until after he’s gone through training camp and then had the opportunity to show what he can do against NFL competition. I remember guys like Ryan Leaf, Robert Gallery, Tim Couch, and Tony Mandarich all getting rave reviews after they were selected by their respective teams. Each of them got “A+” grades as draft picks, but all of them turned out to deserve a much lower grade as players. So I will resist the urge to grade the Steelers’ picks.
What I do know is that the Steelers were very strategic in their selections. They had glaring needs, and they filled most of them.
Going into the draft, I did a position-by-position review of the team, and I identified cornerback, defensive line, and offensive line to be their top needs. And coming out of this draft, they’ve filled each of those needs. They also picked up a linebacker to replace the one that they (stupidly) let get away last year. They also picked up a running back to potentially replace aging Mewelde Moore. Not a bad day at the office.
I’m sure there are some fans who didn’t like the order in which the team chose certain positions. There were some fans who complained because the Steelers didn’t take a cornerback in the first round. Others complained because the Steelers didn’t take an offensive lineman in the first round. But these things are purely subjective. You can’t please everybody. And I learned long ago that no matter what the team does, there will always be fans who complain about it. Heck, there were fans who were saying that Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert should both be fired after the very first pick in the draft (obviously, they didn’t take the player that those fans thought that they should have).
The one thing that I’ve learned about the Steelers is that they tend to be long-term thinkers. They seldom make the most expedient decisions. The decision that helps us the most in the short-term may actually have a detrimental effect in the long-term. So the Steelers try to make the decision that will have the greatest impact over the long haul. That’s what I saw them do during this draft.
The only other position that I would have liked to have seen them draft would have been a nose tackle. But we all know that nose tackle is the most difficult position to find in the draft. There just aren’t a lot of those guys around.
Overall, I think that a defensive line rotation that includes Aaron Smith, Brett Keisel, Ziggy Hood, and Cameron Heyward is going to be very good in both the short-term and the long-term.
The offensive line now has lots of bodies to take into training camp. It’s unclear what’s going to happen to the free agents, but I believe the Steelers are going to do everything in their power to keep Willie Colon. However, in traditional Steelers fashion, they are not going to break the bank for him.
Finally, I like what we have going into training camp at cornerback. I also think the Steelers are going to make a concerted effort to keep Ike Taylor. They realize that without him, they are screwed this year. Very few rookies have successfully broken into the starting lineup in Dick LeBeau’s defense. I don’t foresee either rookie cornerback doing much more than playing special teams and a little bit of nickel and dime defense. But let’s not forget that Keenan Lewis will have another year under his belt, and Crezdon Butler should now be ready to contribute.
So overall, I like what the Steelers did in the draft. And let’s not forget that once the players and owners reach a collective bargaining agreement, there will be free agency as well. The Steeler will sign some undrafted free agents. Moreover, they’ll have the opportunity to sign veteran free agents as well. The Steelers don’t sign many high priced veteran free agents, but we can alway rely on them to pick one or two out of the bargain bin.
(If you enjoyed this article, please consider leaving a comment by clicking on the square at the top right of this article. Also, please subscribe to our blog by pressing the orange button below. You can also follow us on Twitter by clicking the bird doohicky below. Also consider following us on Facebook. Thanks.)
The Steelers had an awesome draft. It lacks star-power, so not many “experts” are talking about it. But they got some nice players in key positions. I don’t expect most of these rookies to contribute right away, unless there are injuries.
1I like the draft, even though it was somewhat ho hum. We will see how it pans out in a year or two. The reason we love last years draft is because Pouncey and the 2 other kids getting playing time.
2Want to know who Steeler’s and fans feel about Mendy commits regauding Ben Laden ?
3Tigger623,
Personally, I try to stay focused on football and football related issues. That’s why I didn’t write about Rashard’s tweets. I also don’t cover Big Ben’s engagement/marriage, or other things that I believe are not really related to the game.
However, I’m sure some of the readers have opinions on this issue, and if they want to share them, I’m sure that they will.
4I like who they chose for the first round. I think he will fit the Steeler’s mold very well and didn’t feel like there was another option that could have been a better fit for the team. It may not be perceived as a glaring position issue, but as it has been pointed out the d-line is getting older. So I was not disappointed when the first pick happened.
The second pick however had me a little disappointed that they weren’t looking Db till I realized where he was from, or more exactly who he played with in college. It is very important for the OL to be cohesive and I would like to think that pouncey was questioned about his former/soon to be current team mate. At least about his character, I am sure pouncey would know about his work ethic better then most people, so I hope they made that picked based in part on his ringing endorsement as well as what was viewed in tapes/athletic ability.
@Tigger623, I have friends that don’t believe we landed on the moon. I think this is probably the stupidest thing someone can believe, but they are still my friends. people have illogical beliefs sometimes. While Rashard’s views might be considered controversial in the spot light, I don’t think this reflect on his character or the fact that he is probably a very rationale person. In certain aspects he is right though. I don’t think that we should celebrate a death even if it is deserved.
5@tigger i completely disagree with mendenhall’s take. although it’s his right to form his own opinion about 9/11, i thought that was a poor time to voice it publicly unless he expected & was ok with getting backlash. judging by his deletion the one comment and the creation of a blog to explain his take i don’t think he thought through his decision at all.
6his comments about the gov’t and his disapproval of americans’ view of bin laden were way out of line & showed he is poorly informed on the topic. not only is the current owner/president of the team’s father an ambassador for the gov’t, mendhenhall has no place telling families who have lost loved ones to bin laden’s attacks how they should feel about they situation. i believe most of americans celebrated future lives saved or tours of duty that will hopefully end earlier than the actual death itself.
this is also the same person who thought it was ok to claim his multi-million $ job parallels slavery. i just don’t see how someone who chooses to hump a teammate on the playing field on national television is actually mature enough to make a legit claim about morality. i agree with rooney’s take to publicly disagree with mendenhall because what he does, whether intended or not, always reflects on team.
Going into the draft, I was hoping for 2 OL, 2 DL, 2 CB and a TE. Almost got my wishes. I am glad that we didn’t take a flier on a WR and as you already noted we HAD to take an OLB to make up for our stupidity last year. Once again, it’s all about the players-the sad thing is that these guys will suffer due to their lack of exposure to the Steelers’ coaches. Expectations for contributions are low except for Special Teams. Gilbert may be different if he is working out with Pouncey. If he is a hard worker and a good student of the game, we will know it because he will establish himself and be in the mix-probably at guard. Curtis Brown could get some nickel work too. But overall, if this lock out continues, rookies (& FA’s) will have even less impact than normal Steeler rookies do. This means that certain guys will get huge opportunities to step up and seize the moment-let’s hope Sweed, Keenan Lewis, Jason Worilds & Sly Slyvester are up for it!
7Guys I’d most like to see in Steeler camp as as rookie FA’s – Derrick Locke RB UK, Josh Jasper K LSU, Ian Williams NT ND & Mark Herzlich OLB BC
John#21,
It’s unfortunate that the lockout is happening. These rookies are now going to have almost no chance of having any impact. So Keenan Lewis and Crezdon Butler are really going to have to step up.
The guys that I feel even worse for are the undrafted free agents. I still think that the NFL should have allowed teams to sign undrafted free agents just like they normally would have. Those guys are now going to have an even tougher time making a team.
Depending on how long the lockout remains in place, it may be nearly impossible to assimilate rookies or even veteran free agents into a team’s plans for this coming season. Fortunately, the Steelers have a group that made it to the Super Bowl. So they should be in better shape than many teams.
8LOOKING AT THE DRAFT…NO STYLE POINTS,BUT GOOD DRAFT(1) WE MUST RE-SIGN IKE TAYLOR(2) HOPEFULLY LIMAS SWEED IS READY TO BE A BIG PART OF THE OFFENSE(3) CARNELL LAKE MUST GET MORE OUT THE (CB’s)MINUS B.McFADDEN…WEAKESS LINK!!!!! SOME WHERE WE NEED BODIES @ DT….CASEY HAMPTON IS 34!!! SEIZE THE MOMENT YOUNG BUCKS..LOOKIN FOR BIG THINGS FROM C.BUTLER,C.BROWN and L.SWEED….sleeper M.GILBERT
9Flash,
I know that some people are going to laugh at me for saying this, but I think Limas is going to finally contribute this year. He has to be upset watching Mike Wallace, Antonio Brown, and Emmanuel Sanders all come in after him and make a bigger impact than he has. This is going to be Limas’ year.
Now the nose tackle issue is a completely different question. The Steelers didn’t address that at all. I wish they had a young NT in camp to spend this year learning under Casey Hampton. Next year may be too late. A NT drafted next year may be forced to play immediately.
10I missed Butler at CB or nickel-you are right! Several mocks had us drafting Ian Williams at NT 6’1″ 319 lbs ranked 14th DT and 134th overall. He is a legit prospect-I hope we get him in to take a look. How long can we expect Hampton & Hoke to hold up?
11I agree totally on the idea of signing RFA’s. It is brutal for them. Tell me people are reaching out to guys through back channels!!!This thing better get solved- at this rate training camp could be our first look.
Why does football seem destined to make the same short-sighted, greedy mistake as MLB & NHL?
@ Admin-
I’m with you, I think people are overlooking Sweed too. We only saw him one season. Last season was over for him before it started. He seemed to have him personal issues straightened out, and I was looking to seeing him on the field.
And I’m looking forward to it this year too, if they can get the labor thing fixed.
12