Steelers Today – A Pittsburgh Steelers blog

This is part 9 in our position-by-position review of the 2011 Pittsburgh Steelers.  If you haven’t read the previous installments, please click below:

If you haven’t read Part 1 (offensive tackles), click here.
If you haven’t read Part 2 (guards), click here.
If you haven’t read Part 3 (centers), click here.
If you haven’t read Part 4 (tight ends), click here.
If you haven’t read Part 5 (wide receivers), click here.
If you haven’t read Part 6 (running backs), click here.
If you haven’t read Part 7 (quarterbacks), click here.
If you haven’t read Part 8 (nose tackles), click here.

Next up, we’re going to look at the Steelers defensive ends.

Brett Keisel

Brett Keisel was the most productive of the Steelers defensive linemen in 2011.  He had one of the best seasons of his career in 2011.

He has become a fixture on a defense that is consistently among the best in the NFL.  That says a lot about Keisel.  Particularly since he was a 7th round draft choice, from a school that is not a football powerhouse.

But despite Keisel’s skills and dependability, he’ll be 34 years old next season.  The Steelers are beginning to realize that keeping aging veteran players hinders the team’s ability to groom future stars.  So it will be interesting to see how often the team substitutes Cameron Heyward in for Keisel next season.

Ziggy Hood

When Aaron Smith went down with an injury in 2010, Ziggy Hood replaced him, and the defense actually became better.  Based on that, I was certain that Ziggy would enter 2011 as the starter for the Steelers at the position.  But instead, Aaron Smith resumed his role as starter.

But just like in 2010, Aaron Smith went down with an injury in 2011, and Ziggy Hood replaced him as the starter.  And once again, the defense got better when Ziggy took over.

2011 was Ziggy’s best season, as he recorded personal bests in just about every statistical category except sacks.

Ziggy will only be 25 years old next season, and he’s still learning how to play the position.  So I think that the Steelers are set at left defensive end for a very long time.

By the way, there has been talk of playing Ziggy at nose tackle if Casey Hampton doesn’t recover from his injury quickly.  I don’t want to see that happen.  Ziggy is just finding his groove as a defensive end.  He needs to stay there.  In my opinion, the Steelers should draft a nose tackle, or find one in free agency.  Ziggy Hood should only be used there in an emergency.

Aaron Smith

As mentioned earlier, Aaron Smith began 2011 as the starter, but he suffered a neck injury, and missed most of the season.

2011 was the 4th season in the past 5 years in which Aaron Smith missed significant time due to injuries.

Following the 2011 season, Smith decided to announce his retirement.  He has been a role model as both a player, and as a citizen.  He has been one of the most consistent players in Steelers history.

Thanks for the memories, Aaron.  Steeler Nation loves you!

Cameron Heyward

Cameron Heyward didn’t get a lot of playing time during his rookie season, but he looked good when he did get in the game.  He even managed to get his first NFL sack.

The coaches are very high on Heyward.  As mentioned above, I hope to see him substitute in for Brett Keisel more often this season.  I think that it will give Heyward more experience, and it will keep Keisel fresher as he gets older.

Despite having two young players to man the position for the future, and a veteran starter, the Steelers still lack depth at defensive end.  Al Woods spent most of 2011 on the Steelers’ practice squad, and he’ll be given a chance to make the team in 2012.

But the Steelers still need more depth at the position.  Al Woods is unproven.  And if Ziggy Hood has to spend some time at nose tackle, that will deplete the depth at defensive end even more.

I won’t be surprised if the Steelers draft a college defensive tackle in April’s NFL draft.  They typically select college defensive tackles with the hope of converting them to 3-4 defensive ends.

 

 

With the 31st pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers select Cameron Heyward, defensive end from Ohio State.  Heyward is 6’5″, and weighs 288 lbs.

Let me start off by saying that I really like this pick.  Heyward, who is the son of former Pitt running back Craig “Ironhead” Heyward, is a great addition to the Steelers’ defensive line.

As I outlined in my analysis of the Steelers’ defensive line, the team had a glaring need for youth on their line.  Ziggy Hood is the only Steelers starting defensive lineman who is under 30 years old.  The majority of the backups are also over 30.  So this pick will do a lot for the long-term strength of the Steelers defensive line.  Aaron Smith, Casey Hampton, and Brett Keisel have been great players for the Steelers, but each of them is coming to the end of their careers, and the Steelers needed to start planning for the future.

Heyward was a 4-year starter for the Ohio State Buckeyes.  Being a 4-year starter is a pretty impressive statistic for any college player.  But to be able to do that at one of the best college football programs in the country is doubly impressive.  Moreover, Heyward was a team captain.

While players like Da’Quan Bowers (who remains undrafted at the end of round 1), J.J. Watt, and Ryan Kerrigan had significantly more sacks than Heyward did in 2010, I believe that Heyward was actually the best fit for the Steelers.

Most scouts judge defensive ends based on their ability to rush the quarterback.  Speed off the edge is a highly valued commodity.  However, for teams playing a 3-4 defense, the ability to rush the quarterback is much less important.  Instead, 3-4 teams look for players who are strong against the run, and who can occupy blockers.  That’s exactly what Cameron Heyward excels in.  In fact, Heyward is one of the strongest of all of the defensive ends in this year’s draft.

Frankly, I had him ranked as one of the top 3-4 defensive linemen in the country last year.  Had he come out of college early, he probably would have been a top 15 pick.  However, he chose to return to college for his senior season because he loved college, and he wanted to try to win a national championship with the Buckeyes.

Unfortunately for Heyward, his senior year was not as good as his junior year, as his sacks dropped from 6.5 to only 3.5.  In actuality, his total tackles, tackles for a loss, quarterback hurries, passes defensed, and interceptions actually increased in 2010.  But as was mentioned earlier, many scout place undue emphasis on sacks.  So instead of being a top 15 pick, Heyward dropped to the Steelers at pick #31.  It will likely cost Heyward some money relative to what he would have made last year, but it’s very fortunate for the Steelers.

Beside being a solid football player, Heyward is a solid individual.  Steelers fans know that character is just as important as playing ability when it comes to the Steelers.  Heyward is a great locker room guy who was well-liked by his coaches and teammates.  He has an excellent work ethic, and seems to genuinely enjoy playing the game.

Heyward has been labeled as being inconsistent at times.  He also isn’t always as dominant as he should be.  With his combination of size and strength, some believe that he should shed blockers much easier than he does.  However, since the Steelers won’t be looking for him to accumulate sacks, I don’t see this as much of a problem.  He is very difficult for a single blocker to move, and he really helped himself by completely dominating All-SEC offensive tackle DeMarcus Love in the Sugar Bowl.

There was one mild concern about Heyward coming into the draft.  He had Tommy John surgery after the season to address an injury to his left elbow.  Because of this, he didn’t perform at the NFL Scouting Combine or at Ohio State’s Pro Day.  However, he had his own workout on March 30, and he showed no signs of lingering problems.  Obviously, the Steelers agree with that assessment, or they wouldn’t have drafted him in the 1st round.

Analysis of all 2011 Steelers Draft picks:

Round 1 – Cameron Heyward

Round 2 – Marcus Gilbert

Round 3 – Curtis Brown

Round 4 – Cortez Allen

Round 5 – Chris Carter

Round 6 – Keith Williams

Round 7 – Baron Batch

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