Indholdsfortegnelse for Vol. 34 - Number 8 i Steelers Digest

STEELERS PICKS IN THE 2021 NFL DRAFT First Round 20th overall Second Round 52nd overall Third Round 84th overall Fourth Round 138th overall (Compensatory pick) Sixth Round 208th overall Seventh Round 225th overall 241st overall Over the course of a calendar year, things went from the football version of the Saint Valentine’s Day massacre to Christmas morning. In March 2021, as a result of a pandemic-related crash of the salary cap combined with the coming due of the can being kicked down the road via contract restructures and a couple of surprise retirements, the Steelers were left to survey the carnage of losing nearly half of their 22 starters on offense and defense during their own ghastly version of March Madness. This March, armed with the flexibility that…

DALE’S TAKE … The tight end position is an interesting one. What are teams looking for? Is it a blocker? Is it a pass catcher? A combination of both? In today’s NFL, it seems to be more of the pass-catching variety. They create mismatches and can be used as chess pieces to put defenses in tough spots. But they also rarely go early in drafts. In the past five drafts, just eight tight ends have been selected in the first round. Of course, the hit rate for those early draft picks at the position also is high. If you take a tight end early, there’s a good chance he’ll be a solid player. No. 5 - Jake Ferguson, Wisconsin (6-4, 244) - The grandson of former Wisconsin football coach and…

DALE’S TAKE … We might be in the golden age of defensive tackles in the NFL. From older stars such as Aaron Donald and Cam Heyward to younger ones such as Jeffery Simmons and Kenny Clark, there are solid players at the defensive tackle position across the league. This year’s draft should bring at least a handful more to the table. While there’s no slam-dunk star at the position, there are a bunch of solid players available. There are likely to be at least a couple taken in the first round, something that will be a change from last year, when none were taken on the opening day of the draft. That marked the first time since 2017 a defensive tackle wasn’t selected in the first round. No. 5 -…

DALE’S TAKE … We’ve seen the evolution of the safety position in the NFL from hard-hitting enforcers being en vogue, now to coverage and ball skills being much more in demand. And the college game also has shifted, as a number of programs now take their top safeties and bulk them up into linebackers to help defeat all of the spread offenses. It leads to an interesting dynamic at the safety position. Size and ability to hit still matter, but coverage is more important than ever. No. 5 - Bryan Cook, Cincinnati (6-1, 206) - A true strong safety, Cook plays with an enforcer’s mentality. But he’s a former cornerback with coverage skills, as well. He blossomed in 2021, when he posted 96 tackles, including five for a loss, a…

From the notebook of a sportswriter who believes Mitch and Mason are enough to allow the Steelers to pass on a thin quarterback crop in year’s draft: • But that doesn’t appear to be what the Steelers are thinking. • First of all, I don’t fear the 1980s are coming. I believe the Steelers just endured them, and that the 1980s didn’t have so much to do with not having a franchise quarterback as it had to do with rebuilding from a championship era. • Of course I believe in franchise quarterbacks. I also believe you shouldn’t force one. That’s why I believe in Trubisky and to a lesser degree Rudolph. • I have more faith in Rudolph than what I’m revealing, only because I don’t want my dwelling attacked…

The hottest topic for the Steelers this offseason, one that will likely remain a hot topic throughout the summer, has been the quarterback position after the retirement of Ben Roethlisberger. But the Steelers made a move in free agency to help solidify the position when they signed free agent Mitchell Trubisky to a two-year contract. “This is definitely where I wanted to be,” said Trubisky. “Going through free agency with my agent, we went through all of the options I thought would be a great fit for me in the future. When we found out Pittsburgh had interest, I talked to my agent and said this is where I want to be. I thought it would be a great situation for me to come here. Luckily it worked out. I’m…

MIKE’S TAKE … The big back is back. Seven of the NFL’s top 10 rushers in 2021 tipped the scales at 220-plus pounds, including the top four and six of the top seven. The Colts’ Jonathan Taylor (5-10, 226) led the rushing parade, followed by Cleveland’s Nick Chubb (5-11, 227), Cincinnati’s Joe Mixon (6-1, 220), and Pittsburgh’s Najee Harris (6-1, 232). The top five likely would have been bruisers had Tennessee’s Derrick Henry (6-3, 247) not been limited to just eight regular-season games due to injury (Henry still finished ninth in rushing with 937 yards). As defenses have gotten smaller and faster and deployed more defensive backs in an effort to stop the pass, offenses have countered with bulk. Bulk that can run and bulk that can contribute in the…

MIKE’S TAKE … Guards and centers often aren’t sexy selections, but as it is with any other position, landing the best of the best still requires a significant investment. Not that there aren’t exceptions. This year’s Associated Press first-team All-Pro guards were Zack Martin of Dallas and Joel Bitonio of Cleveland. Martin was selected 16th overall by the Cowboys out of Notre Dame in 2014 and Bitonio was a second-round pick (35th overall) by the Browns in 2014 out of Nevada. This season’s first-team All-Pro center was Jason Kelce, who was drafted by the Eagles on the sixth round (191st overall) in 2011 out of Cincinnati. Pro Bowl guard Brandon Scherff was selected fifth overall by Washington in 2015 out of Iowa. Browns Pro Bowl guard Wyatt Teller (fifth round,…

MIKE’S TAKE … Linebackers are a lot like running backs. It’s a position that seemingly has been de-valued, unless you don’t have one. But if you have the right kind of linebacker, the type who can stuff the run and cover well enough not to be a liability in the passing game, you have a difference-making, three-down defender. That kind is still hard to find. But not as hard as it used to be. No. 5 - Troy Andersen, Montana State (6-3, 243) - The NFL Scouting Combine was the latest announcement of Andersen’s impending arrival. “He’s gonna be a Day One starter at linebacker,” NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah assessed. “He’s a plug-and-play dude. You talk about all the different opportunities you get to compete. You do it in…

The Steelers promoted Teryl Austin to replace the retired Keith Butler to be their defensive coordinator. Part of the coaching staff since 2019 as its senior defensive assistant/secondary for three seasons, Austin has 18 years of NFL coaching experience. Since his arrival in Pittsburgh in 2019, the Steelers have allowed just four 300-yard passers, which is the fewest in the NFL during the span. In 2021 Austin’s group was ranked fifth in the AFC against the pass, and ninth in the NFL. The defense was also fifth in the NFL in opponent’s percentage of targets that were receptions, tied for seventh in opponent touchdown passes, eighth in yards after the catch and tied for eighth in passes defensed. Austin also helped to develop 2021 seventh-round draft pick Tre Norwood, who…

The “Triple Take” team returns for 2022 and begins with a breakdown of the offensive tackles. In this draft prospect preview by position, the Steelers Radio Network trio of Matt Williamson, Dale Lolley, and Mike Prisuta give their takes on the top prospects who have made themselves available for the 2022 NFL Draft, which will be held on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, April 28-30, in Las Vegas. This preview is broken down by position. The opinions of these Steelers Radio Network personalities do not reflect the views of the Steelers organization. OFFENSIVE TACKLES MATT’S TAKE … As usual, offensive tackles will go off the board quickly in this upcoming draft because this group as a whole is not particularly top heavy. While there isn’t one offensive tackle who stands head…

MATT’S TAKE … As usual, there are a lot of exciting wide receivers in this class, and they come in all shapes and sizes. It is a deep group, but there isn’t one player who stands alone as the elite prospect who is certain to go very high in first round. Of course, the Combine likely molded, or changed a lot of opinions regarding this position group, but teams in need of receiver help should be able to find it once again in this draft. No. 5 - Chris Olave, Ohio State (6-1, 188) - It was tough to leave Penn State’s Jahan Dotson off this top-5 list, but Olave narrowly beat him out for the fifth spot. Olave has been a force for the Buckeyes for some time now.…

MATT’S TAKE … Cornerbacks are always in demand, and we should see several players from this position selected in the top half of the first round. As is becoming the case more and more, we are not only seeing great athletes here, but also great athletes with size who can really run. The cornerback depth is considered good, not great, so this might not be the year to wait. Again, cornerbacks always get selected quickly. No. 5 - Kyler Gordon, Washington (6-0, 194) - The first of two cornerbacks from Washington listed here, Gordon is widely considered an athletic freak. However, his Combine testing was just “really good” rather than “amazing.” But you could also see that Gordon wasn’t real refined with his track start, which of course doesn’t matter…

The NFL Scouting Combine was originally created to get a huge number of prospects in one place in order to evaluate them medically. Never forget, that the medicals remain the most important thing that occurs during Combine week in Indianapolis. Unfortunately for fans and the media, we are not privy to the medical evaluations, and it should be noted that each of the 32 NFL teams decipher the medical information in their own way. The Combine was placed in Indianapolis because not only is that town perfect for such large gatherings and conventions, but also because Indianapolis is a car ride away from a high percentage of NFL franchises. With all these prospects all in one place, smart NFL folks decided some time ago that they might as well interview…