Count Steeler
05-07-2012, 05:07 AM
When the Steelers drafted Alameda Ta’amu, he was immediately proclaimed Casey Hampton’s eventual successor. That may happen. Then again, it’s hardly a slam dunk.
There are two things to consider: the Steelers’ checkered history with fourth-round choices and a few red flags mixed in with all the positives on Ta’amu’s resume.
For every NFL team, picking in the fourth round is a crapshoot. It’s been that way for the Steelers in the 12-year tenure of general manager Kevin Colbert. The Steelers may have struck it rich with picks like Larry Foote (2003) and Ike Taylor (‘04), but they also took their share of busts like Fred Gibson (‘05) and Tony Hills (‘08).
http://www.timesonline.com/sports/local_sports/steelers-believe-ta-amu-could-be-a-boom-pick/article_b4d4174a-fbf8-5b3d-8aa9-6fd4802fb529.html
“My weight was an issue my first two years of college. It kept going up and down,” he said. “Then it finally clicked that I had to step up and be a leader. As a leader, everyone sees what I’m doing. They follow me. I knew I had to change my ways, and since then, weight hasn’t been an issue.”
There are two things to consider: the Steelers’ checkered history with fourth-round choices and a few red flags mixed in with all the positives on Ta’amu’s resume.
For every NFL team, picking in the fourth round is a crapshoot. It’s been that way for the Steelers in the 12-year tenure of general manager Kevin Colbert. The Steelers may have struck it rich with picks like Larry Foote (2003) and Ike Taylor (‘04), but they also took their share of busts like Fred Gibson (‘05) and Tony Hills (‘08).
http://www.timesonline.com/sports/local_sports/steelers-believe-ta-amu-could-be-a-boom-pick/article_b4d4174a-fbf8-5b3d-8aa9-6fd4802fb529.html
“My weight was an issue my first two years of college. It kept going up and down,” he said. “Then it finally clicked that I had to step up and be a leader. As a leader, everyone sees what I’m doing. They follow me. I knew I had to change my ways, and since then, weight hasn’t been an issue.”