Why were 3 of our first 4 picks on offense?

[Six Rings]

The Steelers must know something I don't.

[stillers4me]

They know the draft board better than you.

Evans was their target but they couldn't get him and what they had to pick from were not considered an upgrade over what they already had. WR was absolutely a need......... and a player they liked was available in round 2. It worked out they got a tandem in Washington/Rudolph. Coincidence or a plan than worked out perfectly? Either way, these two could be real fun to watch in preseason and give us a preview of what the future may be.

[Six Rings]

They know the draft board better than you.

Evans was their target but they couldn't get him and what they had to pick from were not considered an upgrade over what they already had. WR was absolutely a need......... and a player they liked was available in round 2. It worked out they got a tandem in Washington/Rudolph. Coincidence or a plan than worked out perfectly? Either way, these two could be real fun to watch in preseason and give us a preview of what the future may be.

With a hall of fame player in Brown, and a very good, possibly pro bowl player in Ju-JU, Washington is at best a 3rd WR for a while....

While I like Rudolph and think he's a steal in round three, the other pick in round three, a back up offensive tackle bothered me. Why? We had real needs at ILB, NT/DT, and RB.

I guess you are saying the players on the board at these areas of greater need were not very good?

[teegre]

They know the draft board better than you.

Evans was their target but they couldn't get him and what they had to pick from were not considered an upgrade over what they already had. WR was absolutely a need......... and a player they liked was available in round 2. It worked out they got a tandem in Washington/Rudolph. Coincidence or a plan than worked out perfectly? Either way, these two could be real fun to watch in preseason and give us a preview of what the future may be.

:nod:

[stillers4me]

We had real needs at ILB, NT/DT, and RB.

You are right.

Who do suggest they should have picked that would have improved the team and been a value at their draft position?

[teegre]

We had real needs at ILB, NT/DT, and RB.

I agree that ILB was a bigger need.

But, I really like Hargrave... and, that Bell kid is pretty good, too.

[pczach]

There's something else to ponder here.

The Steelers drafted Rudolph. Maybe they are considering trading Landry Jones. They would get an extra draft pick, plus they would be able to use the saved salary cap space to sign another free agent. What if Edmunds is going to play the "Dollar" position like Deone Bucannon? What if they are able to go out and get a Tre Boston on the back end with the money they have available? Or even an ILB that is released by a team?

What if Edmunds is going to play ILB?
The point is....there is so much we don't know yet about how this draft will end, and what the team will do going forward. We don't even know what they're going to do with the drafted players(Edmunds) or even how players already on the roster are going to be used(Davis).

I try never to overreact to the draft. It is just part of the process of preparing a team for next season. The plan will reveal itself in training camp and preseason.

There is much more that will happen between now and the first game of the season. There is still plenty of time to acquire more defensive impact players.

[Mojouw]

There's something else to ponder here.

The Steelers drafted Rudolph. Maybe they are considering trading Landry Jones. They would get an extra draft pick, plus they would be able to use the saved salary cap space to sign another free agent. What if Edmunds is going to play the "Dollar" position like Deone Bucannon? What if they are able to go out and get a Tre Boston on the back end with the money they have available? Or even an ILB that is released by a team?

What if Edmunds is going to play ILB?
The point is....there is so much we don't know yet about how this draft will end, and what the team will do going forward. We don't even know what they're going to do with the drafted players(Edmunds) or even how players already on the roster are going to be used(Davis).

I try never to overreact to the draft. It is just part of the process of preparing a team for next season. The plan will reveal itself in training camp and preseason.

There is much more that will happen between now and the first game of the season. There is still plenty of time to acquire more defensive impact players.

If Edmunds plays a primarily LB role, wouldn’t almost every negative comment on this draft go away? I started a whole thread about how I don’t understand this draft so far, so I get the frustration and anxiety. But the tone of just complaining to complain is frustrating. I hate to be like this, but is it any wonder it come from the folks with low post counts who just like to pop in to complain and propose firing people?

[86WARD]

With a hall of fame player in Brown, and a very good, possibly pro bowl player in Ju-JU, Washington is at best a 3rd WR for a while....

While I like Rudolph and think he's a steal in round three, the other pick in round three, a back up offensive tackle bothered me. Why? We had real needs at ILB, NT/DT, and RB.

I guess you are saying the players on the board at these areas of greater need were not very good?

What happens when AB get hurt? JuJu and .............. ???

Why is RB a “real need”? Bell, Connor, Ridley? Doesn’t sound like a “real need”.

[Six Rings]

You are right.

Who do suggest they should have picked that would have improved the team and been a value at their draft position?



In round one we filled a need. Whether or not Edmunds will be better than Reid ad Bates remains to be seen. In the draft, I try to match value with needs on day one and two.


The draft went off the rails in round two. Who would I have selected?


Round 2. Linebacker Jerome Baker in round two. Very fast, upside type of player from a big-time school. Williams is slow and Dirty Red small and slow. With Baker and Edumunds, we've upgraded at S and ILB, plus have one heck of nickel package, which is the alignment we play the most.


https://www.nfl.com/prospects/jerome-baker?id=32462018-0002-5601-29d4-3b922ef6c9a1


Round 3A ) Quarterback Mason Rudolph. This pick was a steal. I think Rudolph is as good as the other players who went in round one. Since the Steelers will never be picking in the top 10 while Ben is still playing this is a calculated gamble. Rudolph has 1-2 years to learn, but we should know if he's the future or not based on 100+ practices and 7-8 preseason games before Ben retires.


https://www.nfl.com/prospects/mason-rudolph?id=32462018-0002-5599-4271-c09bf8338e3c




Round 3B ) DT/NT Phillips. Hargrave is just a guy and gets pushed around too easily. Phillips is a high energy player, who can make plays vs. the run or pass. He makes a lot of them, a nice upgrade for our 3 or 4 man fronts, I think


https://www.nfl.com/prospects/harrison-phillips?id=32462018-0002-5600-691a-386214c1981a




Round 5A, 5B, and 7....BPA at RB, WR, and OL.


That's what I would have done.

- - - Updated - - -


What happens when AB get hurt? JuJu and .............. ???

Why is RB a “real need”? Bell, Connor, Ridley? Doesn’t sound like a “real need”.

Bell thinks he's worth 17 million a year and the Steelers will not tag him a third time as that would cost over 20 million a year.

Conner can't stay healthy. The rest fringe type of players. So RB is a future need. Bell says he might sit out ( He won't ) but he'll be a jerk and come in rusty for the season...again.

WR's for spots for #3-5 are a dime a dozen in the NFL. We can pick one up in free agency for the #3 spot. What happens if so and so applies to every position, but AB has proven to be very durable and Ju-Ju has a Hines Ward type of body.

[steelreserve]

It really looked like by Round 3, maybe even by where we picked at the end of Round 2, all the linebackers left were pretty marginal players. Scouting reports all said things like "doesn't have great speed or athletic ability, but maybe with a lot of work he could become a situational role player in a couple of years." I admittedly didn't watch any of those players in games last year, but it really just did not sound like there were the type of guys who would improve our situation much.

Lorenzo Carter was maybe the one player that might have made sense at #2 (a pick I really am not crazy about using on a third receiver), but even then it's not like it was "wow, what a deal, we HAVE to get this guy."

[Mojouw]

So the plan is to play Hunter, DHB, and some street level Cobi Hamilton style guy as WR 3-5? Did you watch the 2016 season?

Also, if one were so inclined, one could point out that Baker's production and testing #'s don't match up. We could talk about he seems to lack recognition skills and instincts. We could further talk about how he never seems to first to the ball with violence of action.

We could talk about the rushing stats for the last two years that indicate that Hargrave does not get pushed around much more than any other NT. We could discuss how teams have broken the Steelers rush defense at the margins not down the middle. We could discuss the terrible tackling at the 2nd and 3rd level that a variety of breakdowns have demonstrated are more of problem with run stopping than anything related to the beef up front.

But both of those lines of argument and discussion would go a long way toward demonstrating that Edmunds is more of an answer than Baker. But, no one knows for sure and that is the point. You are so certain you are correct, that you are ignoring anything that doesn't align with your pre-formed conclusion. That, my friend, is called being illogical and not rationale.

It is your opinion that Baker is a better solution to the defensive woes than the ones favored by the team. It is your opinion that Washington is a somewhat wasted pick. My opinions differ. However, I will gladly recognize and acknowledge the existence of alternative solutions and points of view. Why don't you try the same, rather than make flat closed end statements that leave no room for anything aside from confrontational debate.

For instance, while I acknowledge the talent of Edmunds and now Allen, I have a severe anxiety that the Steelers seem to be stockpiling DBs with roughly the same skillset. Burnett, Davis, Edmunds, and Allen are all best suited to coming downhill in run support and some moderate coverage duties. None of which (although Burnett can be pressed into service) are ideally cut out for a deep safety role. How many guys doing the same thing can you have on one roster? How can Cam Sutton crack the field with all this competition for dime duties? What about Allen? He seems to have no real role. Are they moving someone to linebacker? I thought Edmunds, but many have corrected me that Allen might be even better at that. But if you have 2 S/LB sub package players in the same draft and one in the first round -- is that a waste of resources? Especially because to clear up playing time in the secondary, you have to ditch either Davis or Burnett as soon as 2019. All in all it is a confusing approach that appears as clear as mud right now.

See, disagreement and a variety of opinions, but delivered in the form of the opening part of a conversation rather than "They are dumb! I am smart!"

[GBMelBlount]

With a hall of fame player in Brown, and a very good, possibly pro bowl player in Ju-JU, Washington is at best a 3rd WR for a while....

While I like Rudolph and think he's a steal in round three, the other pick in round three, a back up offensive tackle bothered me. Why? We had real needs at ILB, NT/DT, and RB.

I guess you are saying the players on the board at these areas of greater need were not very good?

What if Brown or Schuster get their leg snapped and miss the season?

We have to keep Ben loaded to the gills imo.

[Born2Steel]

Not following. Didn't we draft Washington in the 2nd round? So we have AB, JuJu, and JWash, with Hunter and DHB as backups. Plus there is a RB on the PS named James Summers I am waiting to see this preseason as well:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WivYGJPtv78

AND, I'm looking forward to seeing Jake McGee as well.

[j-d-s]

What happens when AB get hurt? JuJu and .............. ???

Why is RB a “real need”? Bell, Connor, Ridley? Doesn’t sound like a “real need”.

But AB is like never hurt. The only instance I can remember is when he got hit by Burfict of the Bengals in the Wildcard match where the Bengals lost because of that 15 yard penalty (and another one on Pac Man Jones for shoving Joey Porter).

Last year didn't AB have a sore toe in one game and then STILL had over 100 yards receiving?

[hawaiiansteeler]

What if Brown or Schuster get their leg snapped and miss the season?

We have to keep Ben loaded to the gills imo.

plus we go 3 wide a lot...

[Dwinsgames]

I am late to the party in this thread and excuse me if it has already been said because I have not read every post .....

BUT....

wr#3 at best is a telling statement to me ...

what it tells me is the poster does not recognize formations enough to realize we are in 3 WR sets more often than not which essentially makes that #3 wideout a starter as much as any slot corner is ...

top it off as we basically had 2 starters and a handful of just guys after that , if injury where to happen God forbid to the #1 or #2 what we have to offer as replacements for them are not much better than me in terms to NFL experience or production and I have ZERO of both

[GBMelBlount]

plus we go 3 wide a lot...

Yes.

and Ben is an elite QB. So while defense is very important, Ben without enough weapons can be problematic too.

[steelreserve]

It's not "don't draft a WR at all," it's "draft one later than the second round, or keep the guy already on the roster if it's that big of an issue." This is almost a duh.

[Craic]

It's not "don't draft a WR at all," it's "draft one later than the second round, or keep the guy already on the roster if it's that big of an issue." This is almost a duh.

Doubt it. There was simply no one left that the Steelers organization thought fit in that particular draft spot that was worth more than who we got. It's the Steelers way draft after draft after draft. And, looking at their track record against other teams drafts, I'd have to say it's a system I wouldn't mess with.

[hawaiiansteeler]

It's not "don't draft a WR at all," it's "draft one later than the second round

if we had used that philosophy last year we wouldn't have JuJu now...

[Dwinsgames]

It's not "don't draft a WR at all," it's "draft one later than the second round, or keep the guy already on the roster if it's that big of an issue." This is almost a duh.


I see it as the opposite ...

here is why

we would have had Bryant in 2018 and then gone via FA in the meantime we put up with his crybaby crap and pouting etc

he leaves we have to spend a pick in 2019 to replace him in 2020 we then get a pick no sooner than 20 picks later than what we got

so essentially we got more value now than we ever would /could have later and we already have his replacement on the roster ,a guy about as big , about as fast and more physical with longer arms and better hands ... just can not see this as a bad thing

[Steeldude]

Needs were S, CB, ILB, OLB(not in any order).

All remains to be seen.

[hawaiiansteeler]

Pittsburgh Steelers

Draft picks: Virginia Tech S Terrell Edmunds (No. 28 overall), Oklahoma State WR James Washington (No. 60 overall), Oklahoma State QB Mason Rudolph (No. 76 overall), Western Michigan OT Chukwuma Okorafor (No. 92 overall).

Day 1 grade: B+
Day 2 grade: B+
Overall grade: B+

The skinny: The Steelers went safety, as expected, but picked Edmunds, the brother of fellow first-round pick Tremaine, instead of Stanford's Justin Reid and others. This was a surprise pick to most, and probably a round early -- but given his strength and NFL bloodlines (father, Ferrell, played tight end in the league), but maybe it shouldn't have been. He'll be a welcomed addition to the team, either way. Trading Martavis Bryant to Oakland for a third-round pick meant they needed to find another big-play receiver. Washington isn't tall or an elite speedster, but his super-long arms and ability to win the jump ball make him a solid find late in the second round. He was paired with his former teammate, Rudolph, in the third round. They could make for an interesting duo in a couple of years. Rudolph was a good third-round value. Okorafor could become a starter, but needs to work harder and faster on the field or he'll be out of the league fast.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000929730/article/2018-nfl-draft-quicksnap-grades-for-every-team-through-day-2

[steelreserve]

I see it as the opposite ...

here is why

we would have had Bryant in 2018 and then gone via FA in the meantime we put up with his crybaby crap and pouting etc

he leaves we have to spend a pick in 2019 to replace him in 2020 we then get a pick no sooner than 20 picks later than what we got

so essentially we got more value now than we ever would /could have later and we already have his replacement on the roster ,a guy about as big , about as fast and more physical with longer arms and better hands ... just can not see this as a bad thing

I don't know. I see this about Bryant, and then at the same time people saying we don't need to jump at RBs high in the draft right away because we still have Bell for one more year. Well, which one is it? Seems like we kind of created a lot of the urgency there.

I guess it's made a little easier by the fact that in hindsight, it doesn't look like there was any great defender on the board who would've solved our other problems that we passed over to make that pick. So from a BPA perspective maybe you can justify it.

[BlackAndGold]

2, WR: Bryant was traded. AB, JuJu, Hunter, Tucker were the listed WR's before Washington was added.
3, QB: Rudolph had a first round grade per Colbert. Also great value.
3, OT: There are 3 OT's signed on the roster. One being unproven in Hawkins(who the team still likes) and one who will be a free agent after the season and also dealt with injuries last season in Gilbert. Losing Hubbard kinda sucked.

Going back, it's very easy to see why they chose to go in that direction.

[86WARD]

In round one we filled a need. Whether or not Edmunds will be better than Reid ad Bates remains to be seen. In the draft, I try to match value with needs on day one and two.


The draft went off the rails in round two. Who would I have selected?


Round 2. Linebacker Jerome Baker in round two. Very fast, upside type of player from a big-time school. Williams is slow and Dirty Red small and slow. With Baker and Edumunds, we've upgraded at S and ILB, plus have one heck of nickel package, which is the alignment we play the most.


https://www.nfl.com/prospects/jerome-baker?id=32462018-0002-5601-29d4-3b922ef6c9a1


Round 3A ) Quarterback Mason Rudolph. This pick was a steal. I think Rudolph is as good as the other players who went in round one. Since the Steelers will never be picking in the top 10 while Ben is still playing this is a calculated gamble. Rudolph has 1-2 years to learn, but we should know if he's the future or not based on 100+ practices and 7-8 preseason games before Ben retires.


https://www.nfl.com/prospects/mason-rudolph?id=32462018-0002-5599-4271-c09bf8338e3c




Round 3B ) DT/NT Phillips. Hargrave is just a guy and gets pushed around too easily. Phillips is a high energy player, who can make plays vs. the run or pass. He makes a lot of them, a nice upgrade for our 3 or 4 man fronts, I think


https://www.nfl.com/prospects/harrison-phillips?id=32462018-0002-5600-691a-386214c1981a




Round 5A, 5B, and 7....BPA at RB, WR, and OL.


That's what I would have done.

- - - Updated - - -



Bell thinks he's worth 17 million a year and the Steelers will not tag him a third time as that would cost over 20 million a year.

Conner can't stay healthy. The rest fringe type of players. So RB is a future need. Bell says he might sit out ( He won't ) but he'll be a jerk and come in rusty for the season...again.

WR's for spots for #3-5 are a dime a dozen in the NFL. We can pick one up in free agency for the #3 spot. What happens if so and so applies to every position, but AB has proven to be very durable and Ju-Ju has a Hines Ward type of body.

Right. And that’s why you need depth at every position. DHB and Hunter are far from “depth”...lol. Very far from depth...

[hawaiiansteeler]

The Steelers must know something I don't.

nah, that can't be possible

[86WARD]

nah, that can't be possible

Lol

[Mojouw]

If the choice is to draft the third or fourth best wideout or the 7th or 8th best linebacker, is it really a choice any more?