Steelers Draft Grade

[DesertSteel]

There's only one grade that matters............ the Steelers Universe grade!

What's your grade for this draft? And none of that 3-4 years crap! We all know that already.

Right now, I'm giving it a B+ based on Bush and Layne. The other guys I'll have to trust the Steelers scouts because the media draft experts had lower grades on a lot of these guys.

B+

[Born2Steel]

See if I can copy and paste my post from the other thread.....
1.Devin Bush A. B if you think they gave up too much to trade up. He was the day 1 goal. Goal achieved.

2. Diontae Johnson A. I must defer to the 'expert' opinions that this is the best route runner in the draft. "X-WR" needed, Goal Achieved.

3. Justin Layne A. A riser up draft boards according to reports. Was definitely a great value pick at a position of need. Goal Achieved.

4. Benny Snell B. Didn't watch a lot of KY games but the ones I did watch were essentially the Benny Snell Show. Great value for probably the 2nd best 'big' RB in the draft behind Jacobs. Fits the Steeler's RB mold.

5. Zach Gentry C. A WR in TE meetings. Gentry brings very little to run blocking or pass protection. A seam buster/red zone target, project. I think a round too early.

6. Sutton Smith A. Football is played by football players on the football field. Sutton Smith is a football player. MAC Defensive Player of the Year TWICE! Goal Achieved.

7. Isaiah Buggs B. 1/3 Tech DT built low and powerful. Shadetree may have finally met his match for Hargrave's backup role.

8. Ulysees Gilbert C. Feels like Matthew Thomas 2.0 without the pedigree. Small, fast, good tackler. Special teamer/PS with the chance to improve to a backup role.

9. Derwin Gray B. Big, Strong, pass protector. Colbert said the RT job would be up for competition. I expect a PS player year 1 but who knows the ceiling with these OL coaches.

That's a solid B by my personal grading system. 4 out of 5 stars. 9 out of 10 recommend.

[Mojouw]

Plenty of production from every draft pick. Plenty of questions about many of those prospects having the size/speed/strength to carry that production into the NFL.

I like all the ideas they seem to be trying to do with the draft picks. Just not sure that they got the right guys to pull it off.

B-

[st33lersguy]

Draft grades

Round 1: Devin Bush LB Michigan- Steelers needed to make a move like this, they needed to. They needed to make a splash and change things up. Bush is exactly the type of player neede, not just a complete athletic LB who can cover but also a high character defensive leader/alpha dog. He has potential to help improve the Steelers Super Bowl odds more than anyone they would have selected at 20. The fact that they traded up 20 to 10 and didn't give up a 2020 1st when Denver wanted a 2020 1st is a big win. Grade A

Round 3a: Diontae Johnson WR Toledo- Big surprise, a WR with the 2nd pick. Predicting that is like predicting the Golden State Warriors to make the NBA Finals. I felt there were more pressing needs than WR. Additionally I felt there were multiple players at multiple positions that were better. Grade C+

Round 3b: Justin Layne CB Michigan State- Layne was discussed as a possible 1st round surprise. He would have been a reach in round 1, but in round 3 the value is great. Layne provides solid CB depth. Grade A

Round 4: Bennie Snell RB Kentucky- This is going to be a very unpopular pick because "HE PLAYS STILLER FOOTBAW!" but I do not like this pick. Considering the following, the Steelers do not use more than 1 back at a time, they run the ball less often than any other team in the league, they got production out of Conner and Samuels, they have a top tier run-locking OL that helps elevate RBs, they had a lot of more pressing needs than RBs, they felt 3rd string RB was worth a 4th round pick and addressed before starting OLB, TE depth, S depth/possible starter. "HE PLAYS STILLER FOOTBAW" is useless when he is given no more than 10 carries on the year. Grade D-

Round 5: Zach Gentry TE Michigan- Seems like a reach but they needed to draft a TE especially after Hodges was waived. Vance can't stay healthy and after that it's useless Grimble. Grade B-

Round 6a: Sutton Smith LB Northern Illinois- There seems to be conflicting reports on where he will play, either inside or outside. While undersized, he could provide OLB depth, or at least help one of the worst special teams units. Grade B

Round 6b: Isaiah Buggs DE Alabama- Meh, seems more like the DL coach wanting to bring in one of his guys from Bama. Cracking the 53 man roster will be an uphill battle. Grade C

Round 6c: Ulysees Gilbert ILB Akron- Best case scenario is special teams. Undersized. Can't help but think Travis Feeney when I think of him. Grade B-

Round 7: Derwin Gray OT Maryland- OL depth is needed and he provides good value. Grade A

Areas not addressed: Safety and possibly OLB. Every year recently it seems like the Steelers ignore at least one big need, and usually it catches up to them. They needed safety help especially after recently released Morgan Burnett turned out to be a flop. And yet safety was left unaddressed in both free agency and the draft. As for OLB, if they don't play Sutton Smith on the outside, then OLB will have gone unaddressed. They need a better starter than Bud Dupree and they really need depth

Overall grade: I was not on board with a lot of picks after Bush, but Bush was a big move that helped improve the grade. I also like the trend towards high character guys as well. Overall, I liked enough things to give them a good grade. Grade B.

[hawaiiansteeler]

B

can't be any higher because they broke Shoes' heart!

[Shoes]

B-








- - - Updated - - -


B

can't be any higher because they broke Shoes' heart!

Actually, the R5 pick was the killer. Colbert and his "BPA" BS. Here are the players that were taken in that round. Gentry should have gone a UDFA.

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/2019-nfl-draft-grades-analysis-for-every-fifth-round-pick-from-deionte-thompson-to-cole-holcomb/

[GBMelBlount]

B

can't be any higher because they broke Shoes' heart!

and sole!

I will go with a B+ because I believe Bush can recalibrate the defense to the point where it CAN be an asset again.

[hawaiiansteeler]

Actually, the R5 pick was the killer. Colbert and his "BPA" BS.

Colbert did go BPA.

Biggest Player Available

[Craic]

Areas not addressed: . . . They needed safety help especially after recently released Morgan Burnett turned out to be a flop. And yet safety was left unaddressed in both free agency and the draft.

I'm going to disagree here. Switching Davis to free safety was a great move, and Edmunds looks to be a very solid safety with a ceiling somewhere in the great category. Jordan Dangerfield is pretty much what we'd expect in a third safety. He can play, but isn't flashing by any means. The key is Marcus Allen. How does he come along? But, the problem with drafting a new guy or a couple of new guys is we're asking the same question of them since we wouldn't have drafted a safety in the first round.

That, of course, leaves free agency. And, yes, I'd like to have seen us go get someone there, but again, I'm not sure how you sell that. "Yeah, come on in. We're set at starting safety, so you'll be a sub-package player even though you've started most of your NFL career (because let's face it, that's the only safeties we'd really want to see the Steelers pick up). Honestly, at this point in the game, perhaps our best move would be to pick up Mike Mitchell again. He knows the defense so there wouldn't be an issue with blown assignments (any more than normal with this defense, I mean). And, although he dropped off in play his last year or so here, he could contribute a lot more to this team in a 4th or 5th safety spot than anyone else who would fill that void.

[teegre]

And... here... we... go!!!

BUSH: Fills a huge need. His fashion sense sucks, but he looks like Donald Faison. JD + Turk = 4ever!!! :sissies: A

JOHNSON: It pissed off Bruce Arians. That alone is worth the pick. A++++

LAYNE: His name turns so quickly into Bustin LayMe. Too bad... even if he allows zero receptions, that name drops the pick down to a D.

SNELL: You have all seen that pic where you can take a Bell jersey, cover the "B" with an "SN", and voila! you have a new jersey!!! A (...for abstemious)

GENRTY: What rhymes with "gut the duck"..??? Really though, Colbert toyed with Shoes's emotions. So, this gets a big ol' F

SMITH: He is only 4'5", but 30 sacks is 30 sacks. a (get it?)

BUGGS: This pick Bugg-ed me. Come on, that was funny. No. Oh well, that is your loss. B (for big ol' butt)

GILBERT: This grade was simple: J "That is not a grade," you say... well, neither is the name Ulysees. :pin:

GRAY: He has nifty knee-braces. Grade: IR

[SteelMember]

I was with you up until Mike Mitchell....

[hawaiiansteeler]

7. Pittsburgh Steelers

Whom they drafted: ILB Devin Bush, WR Diontae Johnson, CB Justin Layne, RB Benny Snell, TE Zach Gentry, OLB Sutton Smith, DT Isaiah Buggs, ILB Ulysses Gilbert, OT Derwin Gray
The Steelers know what kind of players fit their offensive and defensive systems, and GM Kevin Colbert went right for them. Johnson and Snell made sense after the departures of Antonio Brown and Le'Veon Bell. Gentry is a good replacement for Jesse James. Watch out for Buggs being a big steal.

Grade: B+

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/nfl-draft-grades-2019-ranking-all-32-teams-from-best-to-worst/1pqhsk47qnec41r8r40730hj70

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

B-








- - - Updated - - -



Actually, the R5 pick was the killer. Colbert and his "BPA" BS. Here are the players that were taken in that round. Gentry should have gone a UDFA.

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/2019-nfl-draft-grades-analysis-for-every-fifth-round-pick-from-deionte-thompson-to-cole-holcomb/

I actually suggested Gentry in the 5th or 6th around a month ago. I don't buy the opinion he was going to be a UDFA.

[Shoes]

I actually suggested Gentry in the 5th or 6th around a month ago. I don't buy the opinion he was going to be a UDFA.

Well, you and the Steelers win they took the "BPA" in R5. Pretty much swapped AB for Johnson and Gentry.

[RunNGun]

I'll give it a B. I'm not a fan of how we addressed the TE position. Vance is a good player, but there's nothing behind him and he's often injured. Gentry was brought here to block. Make no mistake about it. With no capable backup to McDonald...I believe they have someone in mind that's a free agent.

[Fire Goodell]

Gentry was brought here to be the next franchise QB. We go from Big Ben to Biggest Gentry

[Shoes]

Gentry was brought here to be the next franchise QB. We go from Big Ben to Biggest Gentry

:lol:

[pczach]

I actually suggested Gentry in the 5th or 6th around a month ago. I don't buy the opinion he was going to be a UDFA.



I agree.

I know he isn't blowing anyone away now, but the reason I didn't see him being an UDFA is exactly because he is a developmental player. He has plenty of room to improve his game with hard work and coaching.

The whole reason you take players is because of what you believe they can be. Taking a TE that had already maxed out his talent and hit his ceiling in the lower rounds wasn't going to accomplish much anyway. Why not get a developmental player that can get better?

I'm not saying he is going to turn into a phenomenal player. I'm saying that I understand why the took him and why I believe he was worthy of a draft pick.

[Steeldude]

Round 1: Devin Bush: Did they give up a lot? I hope he works out. Good speed. I can't see him covering TEs though. B+

Round 3a: Diontae Johnson: I would have waited until later for a WR, but if I had to choose a WR I would have picked Miles Boykin. They could have tried a stab at TE, S, CB or OLB. C+

Round 3b: Justin Layne: Good value pick. Average speed, but good size and upside. B+

Round 4: Benny Snell: Too early for a RB. It was not a position of need. D

Round 5: Zach Gentry: He doesn't fit the Steelers mold of a TE. He isn't a good run/pass blocker. He doesn't catch well. If he packs on more muscle how much will it affect his already pedestrian speed? D

Round 6a: Sutton Smith: Special teams player. C

Round 6b: Isaiah Buggs: If he plays NT he will need to add weight. C

Round 6c: Ulysees Gilbert: Small, but fast. PS material. C

Round 7: Derwin Gray: Ok value. Needs coaching. Is there anyone on the Steelers that can coach? Munchak left. C


Late picks are hard to grade. I just give them all a C. Although, the Gentry pick was a waste, IMO. The draft is sometimes just dumb luck. Gentry could turn out to be something special.

The best value pick was Layne. The trading up to get Bush all depends on how Bush plays. This draft wasn't really filled with great players so I suppose it was a good move.

I give it an overall grade of C.

[munchy]

Round 1: Devin Bush: Did they give up a lot? I hope he works out. Good speed. I can't see him covering TEs though. B+

Round 3a: Diontae Johnson: I would have waited until later for a WR, but if I had to choose a WR I would have picked Miles Boykin. They could have tried a stab at TE, S, CB or OLB. C+

Round 3b: Justin Layne: Good value pick. Average speed, but good size and upside. B+

Round 4: Benny Snell: Too early for a RB. It was not a position of need. D

Round 5: Zach Gentry: He doesn't fit the Steelers mold of a TE. He isn't a good run/pass blocker. He doesn't catch well. If he packs on more muscle how much will it affect his already pedestrian speed? D

Round 6a: Sutton Smith: Special teams player. C

Round 6b: Isaiah Buggs: If he plays NT he will need to add weight. C

Round 6c: Ulysees Gilbert: Small, but fast. PS material. C

Round 7: Derwin Gray: Ok value. Needs coaching. Is there anyone on the Steelers that can coach? Munchak left. C


Late picks are hard to grade. I just give them all a C. Although, the Gentry pick was a waste, IMO. The draft is sometimes just dumb luck. Gentry could turn out to be something special.

The best value pick was Layne. The trading up to get Bush all depends on how Bush plays. This draft wasn't really filled with great players so I suppose it was a good move.

I give it an overall grade of C.


im right there with you. i think they left too much talent/need on the board when they drafted.
besides bush and layne, the rest of their picks seemed a round or two too early

[Six Rings]

See if I can copy and paste my post from the other thread.....
1.Devin Bush A. B if you think they gave up too much to trade up. He was the day 1 goal. Goal achieved.

2. Diontae Johnson A. I must defer to the 'expert' opinions that this is the best route runner in the draft. "X-WR" needed, Goal Achieved.

3. Justin Layne A. A riser up draft boards according to reports. Was definitely a great value pick at a position of need. Goal Achieved.

4. Benny Snell B. Didn't watch a lot of KY games but the ones I did watch were essentially the Benny Snell Show. Great value for probably the 2nd best 'big' RB in the draft behind Jacobs. Fits the Steeler's RB mold.

5. Zach Gentry C. A WR in TE meetings. Gentry brings very little to run blocking or pass protection. A seam buster/red zone target, project. I think a round too early.

6. Sutton Smith A. Football is played by football players on the football field. Sutton Smith is a football player. MAC Defensive Player of the Year TWICE! Goal Achieved.

7. Isaiah Buggs B. 1/3 Tech DT built low and powerful. Shadetree may have finally met his match for Hargrave's backup role.

8. Ulysees Gilbert C. Feels like Matthew Thomas 2.0 without the pedigree. Small, fast, good tackler. Special teamer/PS with the chance to improve to a backup role.

9. Derwin Gray B. Big, Strong, pass protector. Colbert said the RT job would be up for competition. I expect a PS player year 1 but who knows the ceiling with these OL coaches.

That's a solid B by my personal grading system. 4 out of 5 stars. 9 out of 10 recommend.


It takes three years to judge a draft. A good draft produces at least two starters ( One being pro bowl player ), and 3 quality role players / backups.



My initial grades which are a mix of value for the round, and how good i think the player will be in the NFL.


1.Devin Bush A - He will be a good NFL player, but was he worth giving up a 2nd and a 3rd to draft? Time will tell. I would have stayed where I was. We gave up a 3rd and 6th round pick to move up to get Troy.


2. Diontae Johnson C+. Small and not fast, he feasted on weaker competition in college. I did not like this pick as we needed a tall and fast type of WR to pair or deploy with Ju-Ju. I hope he can return kicks.


3. Justin Layne A. A tall corner who can run and make plays on the ball. Excellent value for round three!


4. Benny Snell D. I did not like this pick. We spent a 4th round pick on a 3rd string running back. Too slow to feature. Conner is a power runner, so Snell adds nothing new to the backfield. Could have gone TE or Safety here.


5. Zach Gentry D. He's tall but stiff legged and slow. Not really a power blocker either. I hear his hands are hit and miss.


6. Sutton Smith C+ Top production, but limited size. We'll see what type of pass rusher he is in the NFL. Should be a good special teams type of player. If he tackles well enough, he could be the other nickel linebacker.


7. Isaiah Buggs B. I really liked this pick for round 6. Buggs was productive at Alabama and the Senior Bowl. He can play. I think he'll beat out Big Dan, and work his way into to the 4 man rotation.


8. Ulysees Gilbert D. This pick made little sense. Steelers picked too many small fast types at linebackers. Admittedly I never hear of him going into the draft and judging by nfl.com, they didn't either has he lacked a photo.


9. Derwin Gray C- An okay pick for round 7, he's likely getting cut. Too slow-footed to play tackle in the NFL, I think. Probably better off at Guard. I would have rather picked a punter capable of beating a very sup par Berry out.


Overall Grade B- I could see two NFL starters ( Bush and Layne ), and maybe 1-2 good role players from this draft. The Steelers for some reason did not draft a Saftey, I'm not sure why. The team only took 1 DB in 9 total picks. We waited too long to pick a Tight End, and the guy we selected to me is very questionable. Picking a running back who's third-string at best and likely too slow to add value on special teams irked me. We needed a speed back, not another power back.

[NCSteeler]

Plenty of production from every draft pick. Plenty of questions about many of those prospects having the size/speed/strength to carry that production into the NFL.

I like all the ideas they seem to be trying to do with the draft picks. Just not sure that they got the right guys to pull it off.

B-



We'll see how it works out, BUT I prefer drafting productive football players in stead of freak athletes that never pan out.

[NCSteeler]

I'll give it a B. I'm not a fan of how we addressed the TE position. Vance is a good player, but there's nothing behind him and he's often injured. Gentry was brought here to block. Make no mistake about it. With no capable backup to McDonald...I believe they have someone in mind that's a free agent.

Gentry is a lousy blocker

[EzraTank]

Right now until we start playing downs ... I for INCOMPLETE.

[Dwinsgames]

My logic in terms of the draft is always take off more talent at each pick point than you leave behind .....

IMO they failed to do that , and with the trade up I can not be convinced that Bush is better or will give better results than say Sweat at 20 and Thornhill at 52 would have for this team .

that said just because you fail to do what you should always do ( take more talent off the board than what you leave behind ) does not mean the formula used will fail but I still believe we squandered opportunity

[86WARD]

B-

Like the Bush and Snell pick. Can deal with the Layne pick. Johnson...meh...feel like that’s going to be Dri Archer banged Limas Sweed and Gabe us Johnson. I like the Snell pick. Jesse James 2.0...if it is James 2.0, I can deal with. Don’t think it will be though..,it’s your typical Steelers TE throw away pick...just earlier. Sutton and the rest do nothing for me...hopefully one day they do...

[Mojouw]

We'll see how it works out, BUT I prefer drafting productive football players in stead of freak athletes that never pan out.

It sounds good in theory. But you netted a ludicrously undersized OLB/ILB project, a mobile but under-strengthed ILB, and a lumbering stiff under-strengthed TE that can't block. So AT BEST, I see a year one impact on special teams and maybe Gentry approximates the worst version of Jesse James. Then Year 2 maybe you have some rotational guys?

In contrast, swing from your heels and look at highly athletic guys that can actually project as playable in the NFL....

I mean here is a version of quote that I have seen a ton of places on Sutton Smith (https://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2019/4/28/18520296/2019-nfl-draft-grades-grading-the-steelers-first-6th-round-pick-sutton-smith-northern-illinois-news):
"A dominating small school legend, Smith struggled mightily during Senior Bowl (http://www.sbnation.com/senior-bowl) week when challenged to perform against a step up in talent."

You can find similar on the Akron LB.

Maybe they have a role as depth/rotational pieces in sub-packages and specific defensive formations. But they are not guys that unless we all see something somewhat unexpected in the preseason cycle, can reasonably project to playing realistic snaps in the NFL on defense. And that has been a MASSIVE problem for this team for years. They have guys on the 2nd and 3rd string at multiple positions that are simply guys that can not be played in the NFL without catastrophic results. Golden, Dangerfield, Matakevich, insert trash ILB name here, etc. This leads to the defense being forced to play simplistic alignments, a limited array of coverages, and get caught in bad situations because they can't do anything else because the depth pieces are trash.

Hopefully, I am wrong about these guys and they can do some useful things. But one guy got "ragdolled" (another quote I read) at the Senior Bowl and the other LB just looks like he runs around fast and hopes to eventually run into the ball. Great. Should look really good when the Ravens all running all TE offense comes to town.

[BlackAndGold]

I don't really like giving out grades since we don't know the results of these guys in the NFL. But, they did cover their needs and that is always a good draft.

[polamalubeast]

1122584853096964096

[JimHarbaugh'ssoakedtissue]

Very happy with the first 4 picks and like the 6th pick, The others are just throwing darts and will see,

[hawaiiansteeler]

PFF Awards Steelers Best Draft Grade In AFC North At ‘Above Average’

By Matthew Marczi
Posted on April 28, 2019

For as much flak as you all love to give Pro Football Focus, perhaps you might appreciate this: the site gave the Pittsburgh Steelers a rating of ‘above average’ for their 2019 NFL Draft class. They handed out only five or six ‘excellent’ ratings, and they tended to go to the teams who had premium prospects fall into their laps, while the Steelers had to move up to get theirs.

And every other team in the AFC North received only an ‘average’ grade for their selections. Broken down by day, here is what they had to see about each installment of the draft as it relates to the Steelers’ activity.

to read rest of article:

https://steelersdepot.com/2019/04/pff-awards-steelers-best-draft-grade-in-afc-north-at-above-average/

[polamalubeast]

Adam Schein ‘Loves’ Steelers’ 2019 NFL Draft Class

Earlier, I shared an evaluation from Pro Football Focus which rated the Pittsburgh Steelers’ draft class as ‘above average’, with the highest grade being excellent, generally handed out to teams who had blue chip players fall into their laps in the first round.

Another post-draft evaluation comes from Adam Schein through the league’s own website. Schein rated the Steelers’ class as one of the very best, second only to Washington, who had Dwayne Haskins fall to them in the first round. They then traded back into the first to pounce on the falling Montez Sweat, who if medicals remain positive can be a very good player.

Next was Pittsburgh in the ‘love’ category, though.

“I just love how Pittsburgh, fresh off of a tumultuous 2018 campaign and 2019 winter, went against its DNA to trade up for one of my favorite players in the draft, linebacker Devin Bush”, he wrote. “This kid is the real deal — a lock to be great, at least in my book. He’s this year’s Roquan Smith. And the former Michigan star is the perfect and classic Steeler. Pittsburgh could’ve been content to stay at 20 and nab a corner. Nope. The Steelers got aggressive and scooped up a defensive heartbeat — a playmaking, game-shaping, tackling machine”.

It’s fair to say that the legacy of the 2019 NFL Draft for Pittsburgh is probably going to hinge on the player Bush becomes. They believe he should develop into a difference-maker and Pro Bowler, obviously given the resources they spended to go and get him. But he was just one of nine players added over the weekend.

read more

https://steelersdepot.com/2019/04/adam-schein-loves-steelers-2019-nfl-draft-class/

[hawaiiansteeler]

https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/private/t_q-best/steelers/bx9zpzagtekamz5suei2