Indholdsfortegnelse for May 2021 / Vol.34 - Nr.1 i Steelers Digest

It was time. And the way it worked out was perfect because when the Steelers’ turn came to make the 24th overall selection of the 2021 NFL Draft, need and best player available had come together perfectly for them. It was time, not only for a running back to be selected in the first round of this particular draft but also time for the Steelers to make the kind of commitment to improving the running game that spending a No. 1 pick on a running back represents. And it didn’t take them long after going on the clock to make that commitment via the selection of Alabama’s Najee Harris. “When we went through our scenarios, it was an easy decision by us to say, if Najee Harris is available, we…

“I play with a mean streak.” Those were the words of Steelers third-round draft pick Kendrick Green, the center from Illinois, after he was selected by the team, and they had many in the organization smiling because of the attitude he will bring to the offensive line. It’s an attitude many will welcome, and one that Green has had since growing up, something he has used to get by in his neighborhood. “I play hard. I play physical,” said Green, who does turn off the mean streak when it comes to his infant daughter, Hazel Jo, and younger sister, Lamonica. “I’ve played football that way my whole life. “It’s just who I am. Growing up, the neighborhood I am from, called the East Bluff in Peoria, Illinois, is kind of…

2020 SEASON Played in six games, all starts at DE … defensive end … missed Duke’s Mayo Bowl due to injury. 2019 SEASON Started all 14 games at defensive end … Set career high with five tackles vs. Ohio State in Big Ten Championship Game on Dec. 7, also recording a sack and a forced fumble … had a sack vs. Michigan State on Oct. 12. 2018 SEASON Played in nine games with six starts at DE … missed four games due to injury … made first career start vs. BYU on Sept. 15. 2017 SEASON Played in 11 games, missed three due to injury … made Badgers debut vs. Utah State on Sept. 1, recording three tackles and 1.0 sack … had one tackle and one pass breakup vs.…

2020 SEASON Played in all 11 games and made five starts … all five starts came in last six contests … Big 12 co-leader and tied for third nationally with five interceptions (all came in season’s final six games) … named Outstanding Defensive Player of the 2020 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic after returning an interception 45 yards for a touchdown vs. No. 10 Florida (12/30). 2019 SEASON Missed season due to injury sustained in August camp. 2018 SEASON Started all 14 games … made five tackles against No. 1 Alabama in CFP Semifinal at the Orange Bowl (12/29) … interception came in final minute of Big 12 Championship win against No. 9 Texas (12/1). 2017 SEASON Played in all 14 games with starts in each of the last five ……

Based on the procedure the NFL uses to calculate such things, which is adding the previous season’s records of all upcoming opponents and calculating an overall winning percentage from that, the Steelers have the league’s toughest regular season schedule in 2021. Steelers President Art Rooney II recognizes that, but he also understands such a conclusion doesn’t mean a whole lot when it’s reached four months before any of the games start to be played. “It’s a challenging schedule. We know that, and you just have to deal with it,” said Rooney. “Every year there are teams that wind up being stronger than you expect, and sometimes teams wind up being weaker than you expect, so that’s why you can’t worry about it too much. You have to play the schedule…

One of the main topics of conversation surrounding the Steelers during the 2021 offseason was the need to improve the running game. With one selection in the 2021 NFL Draft, they did just that. With their No. 1 pick, the 24th overall, the Steelers selected Alabama running back Najee Harris, a move that immediately improved the ground game, which ranked last in the NFL in 2020. “I understand they did finish last in rushing last year, but I feel like through a lot of stuff, practice and hard work, that can be changed,” said Harris. “I don’t feel pressure at all. I have come from a lot of situations where stuff was put on me, especially in college. The NFL is different. I feel like it’s nothing I can’t do.”…

2020 SEASON Started all 10 games, logging 691 snaps at left tackle … named second-team All-SEC … served as team captain in the season opener … made the start at left tackle and helped clear the way for Isaiah Spiller’s fifth career 100-yard rushing game in the season-opening win over Vanderbilt … held the line and allowed the Aggies to tally 450 yards of total offense at Alabama … helped the Aggies rack up 543 yards of offense in the win over Florida, including 205 on the ground … protected QB Kellen Mond and did not allow a sack for the third straight game while also only giving up one tackle for loss on the final play of the game at Mississippi State … helped extend the streak of not…

2020 SEASON Started all 10 games at defensive end for Miami … tied for ACC lead with 3 forced fumbles, was third with 14.5 TFL … had with 2 TFL, and a sack, in start against Florida State … named ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week vs. Pitt, with seven tackles, including 4 TFL, plus one forced fumble and one fumble recovery … earned second ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week honor at Duke, with six tackles, 3 TFL, 1.5 sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. 2019 SEASON Awarded a single-digit jersey, awarded by Temple to the toughest players on the team … had a sack, a blocked kick, a TFL, and six tackles vs. No. 21 Maryland … recorded a career-high 3.5 sacks at USF … had…

I was glad when I heard Mike Tomlin got reupped. The key to coaching longevity, is found in the stability of the man at the top. And the values he represents. When Dan Rooney said, “Life here is about faith, family and football,” he was also talking about a perfect match in Mike Tomlin. Head Coaches who succumb to the infamous Dick Vermeil “burnout syndrome,” are victimized because their priorities are out of balance. And those coaches who feel the need to orchestrate stunts, like canceling practice, and riding into the sunset on a Harley, or leaving tickets at the box office for Elvis everywhere they play, they don’t last long because they are posers. Longevity for a head coach, is all about a continuous, year in and year out…

You see the comparisons, and your first reaction is to scoff. Heath Miller was a first-round pick anyway; Freiermuth, a second-round pick in the most recent draft. But media and fans couldn’t help but link the two tight ends because for the first time since Miller, the Steelers drafted a dual threat in Freiermuth, or at least as much threat as a blocker can provide. Freiermuth can catch the thing, too. He’s celebrated at Penn State for never having dropped a pass in the red zone. “That’s true. I never dropped a pass in the red zone,” Freiermuth told a Zoom conference call after the first day of Rookie Minicamp. “You get very limited opportunities down there. When I got my number called, I wanted to make the most of…

2020 SEASON Butkus Award semifinalist … started all 10 games … served as a veteran leader on the SEC’s top defense that finished the season ranked ninth nationally … led the team in tackles (86), tackles for loss (8.5), and forced fumbles (2), while his 4.0 sacks on the year was good for second among Aggies … led the team in tackles in seven games, and reached double figures on six occasions … served as team captain in six games … prior to the season, was named to the Nagurski and Butkus Award Watch Lists … led the defense with eight tackles at Alabama … forced a fumble with under four minutes remaining to set up A&M’s game-winning drive to top No. 4 Florida … matched his career high of…