zulater
12-12-2014, 10:09 AM
By Ed Bouchette / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
He’s too short, he’s too light, he was a throwaway draft pick.
And Kelvin Beachum has been the highest-graded Steelers offensive lineman this season — by far.
Teams scour the college football earth hunting for what they consider the second-most important position on offense, that of left tackle. They hardly ever let a good one go in free agency, showering him with money to stay and keep their quarterback warm.
The Steelers found theirs in the last round of the 2012 draft — the sixth pick from the bottom — at SMU, a school that no longer produces many top picks. Their choice of Beachum was such an after-thought they revealed quickly that they drafted him as a guard.
Beachum might have made a fine guard, but he has been that as a left tackle, where Pro Football Focus has him rated as the seventh best at his position in the NFL this season and the fifth best at pass blocking, the left tackle’s primary job. PFF is the most thorough independent analytical NFL site available to the public, and, while some might argue with their ratings, no one argues that Beachum is having one fine season.
The Steelers did not run to the left so often with success against Cincinnati just because tight end Heath Miller and right guard David DeCastro pulled that way to block. They also had faith in their left tackle to seal his man either inside or out, whatever the play called for.
Beachum again was the highest-rated offensive lineman for the Steelers in that game, according to PFF. That site gives him an overall rating of 15.3 this season. Center Maurkice Pouncey ranks second among their linemen at 6.4.
http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2014/12/12/Steelers-tackle-a-big-deal-in-a-small-package/stories/201412120093
He’s too short, he’s too light, he was a throwaway draft pick.
And Kelvin Beachum has been the highest-graded Steelers offensive lineman this season — by far.
Teams scour the college football earth hunting for what they consider the second-most important position on offense, that of left tackle. They hardly ever let a good one go in free agency, showering him with money to stay and keep their quarterback warm.
The Steelers found theirs in the last round of the 2012 draft — the sixth pick from the bottom — at SMU, a school that no longer produces many top picks. Their choice of Beachum was such an after-thought they revealed quickly that they drafted him as a guard.
Beachum might have made a fine guard, but he has been that as a left tackle, where Pro Football Focus has him rated as the seventh best at his position in the NFL this season and the fifth best at pass blocking, the left tackle’s primary job. PFF is the most thorough independent analytical NFL site available to the public, and, while some might argue with their ratings, no one argues that Beachum is having one fine season.
The Steelers did not run to the left so often with success against Cincinnati just because tight end Heath Miller and right guard David DeCastro pulled that way to block. They also had faith in their left tackle to seal his man either inside or out, whatever the play called for.
Beachum again was the highest-rated offensive lineman for the Steelers in that game, according to PFF. That site gives him an overall rating of 15.3 this season. Center Maurkice Pouncey ranks second among their linemen at 6.4.
http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2014/12/12/Steelers-tackle-a-big-deal-in-a-small-package/stories/201412120093