Steelers look at Bud Dupree as next elite outside linebacker

[BlackAndGold]

Six NFL seasons have come and gone since the last time the Steelers suited up a player — they actually had two that year — who reached double digits in sacks.

Bud Dupree was 17 years old and a high school senior in Irwinton, Ga., in 2010 when James Harrison (10 1⁄2 sacks) and LaMarr Woodley (10) led a pass rush that helped the Steelers to a berth in the Super Bowl against the Green Bay Packers.

With the Steelers seeking more quarterback pressure this season, Dupree is being counted on heavily to snap that drought and get the Steelers back to the NFL's championship game.

If those expectations sound familiar, it's because Dupree heard them last summer, much like another former first-round draft pick, Jarvis Jones, did in previous years — to no avail.

“I'm all with it,” Dupree said last month during organized team activities. “I like the pressure, but there really isn't any pressure for me. It's expectations. People expect me to be the guy, and they see a lot of good things in me.”

Continue reading here: http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/...ide-linebacker

[DesertSteel]

Dupree 12 and Watts 10

[st33lersguy]

His sack total for the year extrapolated out to a 16 game season brings him to double digit sacks already. Not to mention the possible added effect of a full offseason training (as opposed to spending some of it sidelined with an injury) plus an extra year of experience could help those numbers go up as long as he is healthy

[Steeldude]

I will wait to see what unfolds.

[DesertSteel]

His sack total for the year extrapolated out to a 16 game season brings him to double digit sacks already. Not to mention the possible added effect of a full offseason training (as opposed to spending some of it sidelined with an injury) plus an extra year of experience could help those numbers go up as long as he is healthy

Let's just hope he stays injury free.