What's our most urgent position of need for 2016?

[steelreserve]

Tons of draft threads with varying arguments for/against, but thought it would be interesting to get a consensus all in one place - just what is your top ONE need for next season?

I don't know if I have the right words to properly emphasize my feelings, so I'll use a story instead. One time I was at a party in college and went to take a leak in a small bathroom where the door had a busted lock. All of a sudden, some drunk idiot barges in and slams the door open as hard as he can, so I take a 90-mile-an-hour doorknob directly on the asshole, and get piss all over the place and nearly get in a fistfight. THAT was better than our defensive secondary, so for me it's CB without a doubt.

[st33lersguy]

Secondary is the team's weakest position. CB is a problem area and has been for a few years now

[Mojouw]

Linebacker. I want all 1st round draft picks in the top 5 spots!

:troll:

[Shoes]

Tons of draft threads with varying arguments for/against, but thought it would be interesting to get a consensus all in one place - just what is your top ONE need for next season?

I don't know if I have the right words to properly emphasize my feelings, so I'll use a story instead. One time I was at a party in college and went to take a leak in a small bathroom where the door had a busted lock. All of a sudden, some drunk idiot barges in and slams the door open as hard as he can, so I take a 90-mile-an-hour doorknob directly on the asshole, and get piss all over the place and nearly get in a fistfight. THAT was better than our defensive secondary, so for me it's CB without a doubt.


:chuckle:

I think the Steelers pick up a CB in FA. TE in R1

[Mojouw]

Just say NO to a TE in 2016!

It's my new campaign slogan.

[Shoes]

Just say NO to a TE in 2016!

It's my new campaign slogan.

Hippofart, you have been warned. :chuckle:

[Cyphon25]

1. CB
2. DL
3. S

I don't think there is any good reason out there to not have CB as our 1 number 1 need. If you look at all of the other positions it isn't all that close.

DL - You have 2 border line pro bowlers at the position. I rank it number 2 because you need those guys to stay fresh with the ability to continuously play at a high level. You have your 2 starters so it isn't urgent, but it is very important.

LB - Shazier looks like he can be a monster, Timmons is still solid with a solid backup in Williams and on the outside you have Dupree and Chickilo, both with potential. So you might not have the answers but at least there is the potential.

TE - You have the solid vet in Spaeth, the rookie who showed potential in James and an emergency third in Will Johnson. On top of that people tend to forget we have a TE on the practice squad as well. I really don't even see this as a need. I would probably rank it 5 or 6.

CB - Gay is old and on his way out in a year or 2, Blake is awful, Allen is a bust, Boykin probably ain't coming back, Grant will be a safety, Cockrell is solid and Golson is a complete unknown. You could almost field a high school secondary with better answers at corner. This is absolutely the number 1 position of need. I would love for them to use some money and get a known commodity to come in and play the position. To heck with taking a risk in the draft.

S - I view this as more of a depth need because I believe we may already have the answer in Golden. I am not the biggest fan of Mitchell but at least he is solid and Golden showed us some flash. I think if they get a safety he should be viewed as a guy who can backup either Golden or Mitchell. Mitchell has been injured every season he has been with us so I think people are being too narrow-minded if they view this as just a guy we need to replace Will Allen.

OL - We have 1 of the best OL's in football. Even if we are a piece short I have no worries here. Munchak is the man. You could probably fatten me up and Munchak could make me a serviceable linemen.

[Mojouw]

Hippofart, you have been warned. :chuckle:

Strawman! AD Hominid!

[Shoes]

Strawman! AD Hominid!

:chuckle:

[Steeldude]

It's difficult to choose one. I went with OLB because the Steelers do not have anyone who can consistently add pressure. An aging Harrison can't do it any longer. Also, his playing time is being taken away by a useless OLB(Jones). I was going to choose CB. Will there be one worthy of the first pick?

BPA

[86WARD]

Secondary or OLB. The secondary as it stands is well, well, well below the standard. The OLB, thanks to the failure that is Jarvis Jones, is the next weakest position on the team. The fact that they still need Harrison to contribute more than a little is a problem. Dupree shows promise, but the rest have been subpar. After that, they need depth on the DL. Can't have Heyward and Tuitt playing the amount of snaps they played in 2015 and expect them to be productive...it clearly showed that they both began to fizzle out towards the end of the season...

[tube517]

CB

As bad as Jarvis Jones is, Blake is worse. That whole story about Boykin not learning the defense may have been true in the first couple of weeks (If that), but after that, is bullshit.

DL/OLB/SS
TE
G
Backup Long Snapper after Deebo retires :chuckle:

[teegre]

CB is the weakest position.

DE/DT is the position that I think the team needs to upgrade. I've mentioned it as nauseum, but Heyward & Tuitt played 88% & 78% of the snaps. By the end of the season, they weren't as effective. Plus, when they were off of the field, teams moved the ball. Adding a DE/DT to the rotation will keep those two fresh... and, honestly, that third DE/DT played/will play 60% of the snaps, essentially making him a starter.

[Psycho Ward 86]

i picked CB, but honestly i think you can make a strong argument that OLB is definitely a top 2 need. You really cant count on anybody to reaaally get the job done. Even at cornerback, we had guys like William Gay where you know what youre getting game to game

[Dwinsgames]

CB is the weakest position.

DE/DT is the position that I think the team needs to upgrade. I've mentioned it as nauseum, but Heyward & Tuitt played 88% & 78% of the snaps. By the end of the season, they weren't as effective. Plus, when they were off of the field, teams moved the ball. Adding a DE/DT to the rotation will keep those two fresh... and, honestly, that third DE/DT played/will play 60% of the snaps, essentially making him a starter.

while I agree it is a great need , we managed through it without it killing us , whereas CB killed us so by default that must supersede as the greater need

[steelreserve]

CB is the weakest position.

DE/DT is the position that I think the team needs to upgrade. I've mentioned it as nauseum, but Heyward & Tuitt played 88% & 78% of the snaps. By the end of the season, they weren't as effective. Plus, when they were off of the field, teams moved the ball. Adding a DE/DT to the rotation will keep those two fresh... and, honestly, that third DE/DT played/will play 60% of the snaps, essentially making him a starter.


I noticed the shit out of this. In the San Diego game, you could tell exactly what was going to happen as the game wore on based on who was on the field for us. Tuitt and Heyward = short drive and punt. Thomas and McLendon = march straight down the field. I believe that's what happened at the end of the Denver game too. Catch us with our "rotation" players in, and we're dead. That's not a rotation at all, that's having two good players for three positions, and everyone else sucks. I don't even want to think about what happens if one of those two gets hurt next year.

CB may be a doorknob to the asshole, but DL is a close second. Since I bet there are better defensive linemen available than CBs when we pick, that is probably what I'd hope for/expect even though CB is still the greater need.

Just to clarify for everyone - by "need" I didn't mean "only in the draft." I meant however we can fix it - draft, trade, free agent. So it can be one position even if you think the draft odds are against us.

[ALLD]

CB
DL
S
CB

[hawaiiansteeler]

CB
S
DL
OG
TE

[teegre]

I noticed the shit out of this. In the San Diego game, you could tell exactly what was going to happen as the game wore on based on who was on the field for us. Tuitt and Heyward = short drive and punt. Thomas and McLendon = march straight down the field. I believe that's what happened at the end of the Denver game too. Catch us with our "rotation" players in, and we're dead. That's not a rotation at all, that's having two good players for three positions, and everyone else sucks. I don't even want to think about what happens if one of those two gets hurt next year.

CB may be a doorknob to the asshole, but DL is a close second. Since I bet there are better defensive linemen available than CBs when we pick, that is probably what I'd hope for/expect even though CB is still the greater need.

Just to clarify for everyone - by "need" I didn't mean "only in the draft." I meant however we can fix it - draft, trade, free agent. So it can be one position even if you think the draft odds are against us.

Your eyes did not deceive you: Denver's lone TD drive came against Cam Thomas and Steve McClendon. :doh: (I'm pretty sure that Peyton didn't huddle up, and thus, did not allow the Steelers to substitute. Smart move by him.)

There are very few quality CBs in this draft. Whereas, there are a lot of excellent DE/DTs, and several very good safeties. I'm not sure what that exactly means as far as assessing the needs, but I know that it is somehow significant. Here's my go at it...

DRAFT THOUGHTS:

I'd go DE/DT at 25, because you'll likely get a top-15 type of player at 25.

I'd go safety at 58, because you'll likely get a top-50 type of guy at 58.

The CBs available in R3 aren't that much different than the guys who would be ther in R2. After Hargreaves, there are not really any other "great" CBs in this draft class. Honestly, CB at 25 fills a need, but is probably not the best value.

[steelreserve]

Your eyes did not deceive you: Denver's lone TD drive came against Cam Thomas and Steve McClendon. :doh: (I'm pretty sure that Peyton didn't huddle up, and thus, did not allow the Steelers to substitute. Smart move by him.)

There are very few quality CBs in this draft. Whereas, there are a lot of excellent DE/DTs, and several very good safeties. I'm not sure what that exactly means as far as assessing the needs, but I know that it is somehow significant. Here's my go at it...

DRAFT THOUGHTS:

I'd go DE/DT at 25, because you'll likely get a top-15 type of player at 25.

I'd go safety at 58, because you'll likely get a top-50 type of guy at 58.

The CBs available in R3 aren't that much different than the guys who would be ther in R2. After Hargreaves, there are not really any other "great" CBs in this draft class. Honestly, CB at 25 fills a need, but is probably not the best value.


Yeah, that's basically my thinking about CB. The draft is mostly guys who are going to be average to above-average but not great.

Make no mistake - an above-average CB WOULD help us; hell, even an average one would. But there just may not be a reason to draft one at 25, and we could get a hell of a player for the defensive line. By the time you get to #58, the top DL players will be gone and we'll be getting straight-up regular value for the pick.

On the other hand, the free agent market looks to be flooded with CBs this year, and while I don't think we'll get one of the top ones (people throw Trumaine Johnson's name around a lot, but watch him get a 4-year, $44 million dollar deal somewhere - completely out of our price range), we can probably land a guy for Mike Mitchell type money at the Mike Mitchell level of ability. That plus Golson plus a third-round kind of guy may be all we need to at least be acceptable. And if Grant provides anything else, it's bonus time.

[teegre]

Yeah, that's basically my thinking about CB. The draft is mostly guys who are going to be average to above-average but not great.

Make no mistake - an above-average CB WOULD help us; hell, even an average one would. But there just may not be a reason to draft one at 25, and we could get a hell of a player for the defensive line. By the time you get to #58, the top DL players will be gone and we'll be getting straight-up regular value for the pick.

On the other hand, the free agent market looks to be flooded with CBs this year, and while I don't think we'll get one of the top ones (people throw Trumaine Johnson's name around a lot, but watch him get a 4-year, $44 million dollar deal somewhere - completely out of our price range), we can probably land a guy for Mike Mitchell type money at the Mike Mitchell level of ability. That plus Golson plus a third-round kind of guy may be all we need to at least be acceptable. And if Grant provides anything else, it's bonus time.

Exactly. A R3 pick is an upgrade over the current mess in the secondary.

Step 1: Add a top-tier DE/DT, which helps create pressure.
Step 2: Add a safety who can help cover the middle.
Step 3: Add a CB better than Blake.

Voila! ...the defense is improved (and "good enough" to win a championship).

[Cyphon25]

Exactly. A R3 pick is an upgrade over the current mess in the secondary.

Step 1: Add a top-tier DE/DT, which helps create pressure.
Step 2: Add a safety who can help cover the middle.
Step 3: Add a CB better than Blake.

Voila! ...the defense is improved (and "good enough" to win a championship).

Not that I disagree and of course, there is still time for projections to change but in the mocks I have been doing there have been some really good D linemen left in rounds 2 and 3.

[Dwinsgames]

Gerry Dulac ‏@gerrydulac (https://twitter.com/gerrydulac) 1m1 minute ago (https://twitter.com/gerrydulac/status/702572901342416896) Pass-catching TE might not be high priority for Steelers w AB, Bell, Bryant, Wheaton, Colbert said. "Because we have some other weapons.”

[teegre]

Not that I disagree and of course, there is still time for projections to change but in the mocks I have been doing there have been some really good D linemen left in rounds 2 and 3.

Very true. It's a deep, deep draft.

Those players are good, but I want great.

Remember thst the backup DE/DT from last year accounted for nearly 66% of the snaps. That's huuuge. So, again, I want a stud.

[Cyphon25]

Gerry Dulac ‏@gerrydulac (https://twitter.com/gerrydulac) 1m1 minute ago (https://twitter.com/gerrydulac/status/702572901342416896) Pass-catching TE might not be high priority for Steelers w AB, Bell, Bryant, Wheaton, Colbert said. "Because we have some other weapons.”

Really hope this is true.


Very true. It's a deep, deep draft.

Those players are good, but I want great.

Remember thst the backup DE/DT from last year accounted for nearly 66% of the snaps. That's huuuge. So, again, I want a stud.

I don't watch tape, just read scouting reports but I kept seeing Adolphus Washinton in round 2 when we were drafting and he sounds like he would be really good. Would have to go back and compare him to what I thought of Dodd and Butler but those are 2 others I really liked.

[steelreserve]

Gerry Dulac ‏@gerrydulac (https://twitter.com/gerrydulac) 1m1 minute ago (https://twitter.com/gerrydulac/status/702572901342416896) Pass-catching TE might not be high priority for Steelers w AB, Bell, Bryant, Wheaton, Colbert said. "Because we have some other weapons.”


Yeah, Heath Miller was far, far more important to the offense when we had Bettis and Parker, who were both next to useless as receivers, and Mendenhall, who was only a little better, as our primary RBs. Now we have two backs who can make plays as that 3rd-4th-5th option, even have plays designed to get them the ball. And also, our real WRs are better than any group we've ever had.

Miller's production was down on the last couple years not just because he'd "lost a step," but because there just wasn't as much room for the TE to be a focus. Another reason why I think we can get by with a guy like James and still be fine.

[Rotorhead]

I chose CB, but I am not sure we should pick one during the draft. I agree with maybe a DL in the first, reasoning being that we can get a top level pick this year to rotate and can start sooner due to ability and intelligence. I hope we can pick up a CB in FA to improve our secondary, remember we only need to improve on Blake . . . so that shouldn't cost us too much. I would like to resign Gay if we can. After the 1st pick it is up in the air for OLB, S and CB really.

[steelreserve]

I would say our likely starters next season are Gay and Cock, with Golson in the slot. Although possibly flip Gay and Golson depending on whether we envision him as "only" a slot corner (for a 2nd-round pick, we'd damn well better not, otherwise WTF were we thinking).

If we bring in another CB, either drafted or FA, then the baseline is that he has to beat Cock or Gay - not asking a hell of a lot.

The fact that we extended Cock almost immediately but haven't re-signed Gay yet means maybe we consider Gay a replaceable part and are waiting to see what else comes our way?

Yes, I'm aware there could be a ton of play on words there, and I am perfectly fine with that.

[Born2Steel]

Most urgent position of need....damn that's a great question. If we have the board with the #1 pick, who do we draft, is the angle I look at that question from. Because I would need to have all the options open to me to see which need I would fill first. Or, the 'you only get one pick for this draft, but it can be any prospect' game.

[teegre]

I don't watch tape, just read scouting reports but I kept seeing Adolphus Washinton in round 2

Prior to the season, Washington was a mid-R1 pick. Bosa had an "off" year, and thus, the guy next to him had an "off" year, as well. Washington's talent is definitely there.

The question is: Did he deserve that R1 grade?... or, is his current R2 grade more appropriate?

Either way, he's a rock-solid pick.

[teegre]

Most urgent position of need....damn that's a great question. If we have the board with the #1 pick, who do we draft, is the angle I look at that question from. Because I would need to have all the options open to me to see which need I would fill first. Or, the 'you only get one pick for this draft, but it can be any prospect' game.

Great question.

If I had only one pick:
Jaylen Ramsey, FS
He's the best DB (and possibly the best player) in the draft. I dint think Bosa's as good as the #1 overall. He's good, but not "that" good. Whereas, I think Ramsey is indeed "that" good.

If I had the first overall (but, also had the other picks:
Vernon Hargreaves, CB
He's the only cover-corner in this draft. I'd then use the R2 and R3 picks on a DL and a safety.