Steelers Today – A Pittsburgh Steelers blog

The Steelers seem to be addressing their primary needs in the draft.  First they selected a linebacker, then a running back, and now they’ve taken a wide receiver.

The Steelers took Oregon State wide receiver Markus Wheaton with their third round pick.  Wheaton is a 5’11″, 185 lb. wide receiver who has speed to burn.  Wheaton is among the fastest receivers available in the draft.  In addition to playing football, he also ran track for Oregon State.

Much like former Steelers receiver Mike Wallace, Wheaton is more of a straight line runner.  He is best on fly patterns.  He isn’t as effective running underneath routes.

WR Markus Wheaton

Wheaton has very good hands, and he can make all of the catches.  If you put the ball in the air, he’s likely to catch it.  But he’s going to need significant work on his route running at the next level to really take advantage of his speed and good hands.

As a senior, Wheaton had 91 receptions for 1,244 yards and 11 touchdowns.  He is the Beavers all-time record holder with 227 catches.

Oregon State plays a quick-hitting passing attack that gave Wheaton plenty of chances to catch the ball.  This experience should fit in well with Todd Haley’s offense.

Markus Wheaton

Wheaton’s primary weakness is his size.  He’s thin for an NFL player, and that can be an issue in absorbing punishment, and breaking free from physical cornerbacks.  But Wheaton has shown improvement each year at Oregon State, and I expect the improvement to continue in the NFL.

We all knew that the Steelers needed a running back.  But most probably didn’t expect them to bypass Eddie Lacy and Montee Ball to draft a different running back.  But that’s exactly what they did.  The Steelers selected Michigan State running back Le’Veon Bel in the second round.

Bell is a big back.  In fact, at 6’2″, 245 lbs., he’s huge.  And he runs like it.  He’s a downhill runner who isn’t going to amaze anyone with his speed.  And he doesn’t have a lot of swivel in his hips, so don’t expect to see the type of shiftiness that we used to see from Jerome Bettis.  But he did lead the nation in yards after contact, so that counts for something.

Despite not making people miss, Le’Veon did make a name for himself by hurdling a few tacklers.  In fact, that might be his most elusive move.  But make no mistake, he is not an elusive runner.

Bell hurdles tackler

 So if he’s not particularly fast or elusive, why did the Steelers select him?  The answer to that is simple.  Bell is effective.  He led the Big Ten in rushing as he ran for 1,793 yards in 2012, and averaged 4.7 yards per carry.  Just to be clear, that’s more yardage than Montee Ball, who played in the same conference.

Bell also probably appealed to Todd Haley because he has reasonably soft hands.  He caught over 30 passes each of the past 2 seasons.  That will fit in well in Haley’s scheme.

Bell is also very effective as a blocker.  He’s able to take on linebackers, and he can drive a cornerback or safety into the ground.  That should help keep Ben Roethlisberger’s pads a little cleaner.

It should be noted that Bell was voted Most Valuable Player by his teammates.

Frankly, he isn’t that different from Jonathan Dwyer and Isaac Redman.  I would have expected the Steelers to take a speed back to add a change of pace.  So it’s not clear what this means for Dwyer and Redman.

Overall, this is a good pick.  Bell isn’t an electric runner, but he is a workhorse who can take a lot of punishment and keep on ticking.  Steeler Nation is going to like him.

With the 17th pick in the 2013 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers select…….Jarvis Jones, outside linebacker from Georgia.

With that announcement, the celebrations began in my home.  Jarvis Jones was the player that I was hoping the Steelers would get.

Jones is a 6’3″ linebacker who led the nation in sacks (14.5), tackles for loss (24.5), and forced fumbles (7).  Who do those statistics remind you of?  That’s right, James Harrison, the man that Jarvis will be trying to replace.

Jarvis Jones doing what he does.

Some have questioned Jones because of a neck injury that he suffered while playing with USC as a freshman.  Jones was diagnosed with spinal stenosis, and he wasn’t cleared to play for USC.  However, Jones transferred to Georgia, and their medical staff cleared him to play.  Since then, he has totally dominated the SEC.

The Steelers know about his neck injury, so their medical staff must have cleared him too, or they wouldn’t have selected him in the 1st round.

The thing that excites me most about Jones isn’t the tremendous sack numbers that he’s put up over the past 2 years.  Rather, I’m most excited about who he put them up against.  There is no doubt that the SEC is the best conference in college football.  They are the closest thing there is to the NFL.  Yet, Jones was a man among boys in the SEC.

Jones does it again.

Some will point out that he ran a slow 40 at the NFL Scouting Combine.  Personally, I place no stock in 40 times.  The quarterback doesn’t line up 40 yards from the linebacker.  So why is a 40 time relevant?  James Harrison didn’t run a fast 40.  Neither did LaMarr Woodley.  And they’ve both proven to be effective at getting to the quarterback.

Some scouts and fans prefer to draft based on potential.  They weigh Combine results heavily.  That’s why guys like Dion Jordan, Ezekial Ansah, and Barkevious Mingo were picked ahead of Jones.  All of them ran very fast 40 times, and so teams are drooling over their potential.  Personally, I don’t place much faith in potential.  I prefer to place my faith in proven results.  And Jarvis Jones had more sacks last year than Dion Jordan, Ezekiel Ansah, and Barkevious Mingo combined.  That’s right, COMBINED!  The same was true last year too.

I can think of a lot of things that the Steelers could have done in this draft that would have been dumber than selecting the best sack artist in the entire draft.  Nobody else even comes close to Jone’s sack totals.

Another sack by Jones.

In addition to leading the nation in several statistical categories, Jones was also an All-American, and a finalist for the Butkus, Benarik, Lobardi, Nagurski, and Lott awards.

In my opinion, the draft couldn’t have started any better for the Steelers.  I can’t wait to see who they draft in the 2nd and 3rd rounds.

Go Steelers!

I’ve been really busy lately, and I haven’t had an opportunity to break down the draft the way I usually do. For that, I apologize to my readers.

With the draft rapidly approaching, I thought that I should at least give my take on the Steelers’ top draft needs.

There are a million NFL draft websites out there these days, and almost none of them agree about what the Steelers’ top draft needs are. I’ve seen various sources that have listed wide receiver, running back, rush linebacker, cornerback, safety, defensive end, nose tackle, and left tackle as the Steelers’ top need. And you could probably make a case for each of those. But I’ve got my own set of priorities for the upcoming draft. And so, here are my top draft needs for the Steelers.

1. Rush linebacker – Dick LeBeau’s 3-4 defense hinges upon having outside linebackers who can rush the passer. But in 2012, they got very little from the position. LaMarr Woodley has been a shadow of his former self for the past 2 years, and James Harrison was recovering from surgery. Since then, Harrison has signed with the Cincinnati Bengals and Jason Worilds is his probable successor.

Worilds hasn’t been able to stay healthy since joining the Steelers in 2010, and I’m a bit concerned about his durability. But even worse, the Steelers don’t have much behind him. Chris Carter and Adrian Robinson had a combined 8 tackles in 2012.

2. Safety – That’s right, safety. It’s not glamorous. The safeties don’t accumulate tons of sacks. But the safeties in the Steelers defense play a critical role. Just think about where the Steelers would be without Troy Polamalu and Ryan Clark. One could easily make the argument that both players were more important to the Steelers than Ziggy Hood. Or Keenan Lewis. Or Casey Hampton. Or Larry Foote. Or LaMarr Woodley. Or Brett Keisel. Or even Ike Taylor (although this would be a much harder argument to defend).

There’s no doubt that Clark and Polamalu are vital components of the Steelers’ defense. The only problem is that both of them are over 30 years old. Clark will be 34 years old this season, and Polamalu is 32. Despite being younger than Clark, Polamalu has put more wear and tear on his body. Troy has missed over half of the team’s games in two of the past 4 seasons. And I don’t think there are many Steelers fans who would be willing to bet their entire paycheck on Polamalu playing all 16 games this season.

As if having two aging starters weren’t enough, the Steelers lost BOTH of their backups in free agency. Ryan Mundy signed with the New York Giants, and Will Allen signed with the Dallas Cowboys. So the Steelers are left with aging veterans and little experience at backup. Ryan Clark and Troy Polamalu have been great players for a long time. But it’s time for the Steelers to start setting the stage to eventually replace both of them.

3. Running Back – The Steelers had a difficult time running the ball in 2012. And their most talented running back now plays for the Arizona Cardinals. Jonathan Dwyer and Isaac Redman are both serviceable running backs. But neither has the speed to break a long run to the outside. Baron Batch has the tools to be a good back in Todd Haley’s offense. But he just hasn’t shown much since coming back from his injury. So overall, the Steelers backfield could use an upgrade.

4.  Offensive Tackle – Yes, I know the Steelers drafted both Marcus Gilbert and Mike Adams in recent years, but the cupboard still seems pretty bare at tackle.  I think that either Gilbert or Adams (or Kelvin Beachum, in a pinch) could potentially man the right tackle position.  But I’m not particularly confident in either of them as a starting left tackle.  Where is Max Starks when we need him?

5. Wide Receiver – Emmanuel Sanders may have signed a 1-year deal with the Steelers, but that didn’t leave me feeling particularly comfortable.  But the Steelers are guaranteed to have his services for 2013, and that’s why I have wide receiver as the team’s #5 need.  But at this time next year, wide receiver could easily be their #1 team need.

I have little confidence that Sanders won’t drag the team through the exact same thing next year.  In fact, I thought it was a mistake to resign him.  I would have let him walk and taken the draft pick.  But if the team can get him signed to a long-term deal, then I’ll feel very different about the position.

6. Defensive end – Like at offensive tackle, the Steelers have invested draft picks into the defensive end position over the past few years.  Ziggy Hood and Cameron Heyward were thought to be the eventual replacements for Aaron Smith and Brett Keisel.  And Ziggy’s play has been acceptable, but it hasn’t been outstanding.  And that’s what I want to see from both of them.  Brett Keisel continues to outplay both of them.  Steeler Nation needs to see more from the two young defensive ends.  If we don’t, defensive end may be high on the needs list next year.

7. Cornerback – Yes, I know that some websites list this as the Steelers’ top need.  But I don’t agree.  Ike Taylor is going to be his usual self.  And Cortez Allen is going to make everyone forget Keenan Lewis (that’s why they let Lewis go in the first place).  William Gay is back, and he’s proven as a nickel in this defense.  And perhaps this is the year that Curtis Brown finally proves that he can be the cornerback that I thought he could be when the Steelers drafted him.

The Steelers should take a cornerback in this draft, but it certainly shouldn’t be in the first 2 rounds.

So that’s how I rank the team’s needs.  I should note that the Steelers don’t draft based on need.  They always take the best player available.  But nevertheless, it’s  fun to rank the team’s needs.  So how would you readers rank the needs.  Do you disagree with my rankings?  If so, tell me why, and let me know how you would rank the team’s needs.  Thanks.

Is it just me, or are the Steelers becoming more and more nostalgic each year?

In recent years, they’ve brought back former players like Bryant McFadden, Larry Foote, and Plaxico Burress.  Earlier this month they brought back William Gay.  Now they’ve added another former player who wasn’t outstanding during his first tenure with the team.

According to ProFootballTalk.com and ESPN, the Steelers have signed Matt Spaeth, who was recently released by the Chicago Bears.

Neither the Steelers official website, nor the two major Pittsburgh newspapers have reported Spaeth’s signing, so there is a possibility that all of the details haven’t been worked out yet.  But it appears likely that Spaeth is rejoining the Steelers.

Matt Spaeth

Spaeth spent his first 4 seasons with the Steelers before leaving as a free agent to join the Chicago Bears.  Spaeth never established himself as a consistent starter with either team.  Moreover, despite being 6’7″ tall, Spaeth has never been much of a red zone threat.  He has a total of 8 touchdowns during his 6-year NFL career.  He has never scored more than 3 touchdowns during a single season, and he only did that once (during his rookie season).

Spaeth is an adequate blocker, but he isn’t as good in that department as either Heath Miller or David Johnson.  So it would appear that the only reason the team brought him back is because of familiarity and the fact that Heath Miller is likely to miss the first few weeks of the season while recovering from an injury.