hawaiiansteel
04-24-2010, 02:23 PM
Lolley: Day 2 thoughts
Friday, April 23, 2010
Day 2 thoughts
After passing on selecting a defensive back on day two of the draft, we can only assume the Steelers are happy to let things ride with their current group.
The Steelers apparently feel that second-year players Keenan Lewis and Joe Burnett are ready to make a big impact in 2010.
I did find out that there was a great deal of discussion in the second round prior to the team selecting Jason Worilds. Some in the room wanted Penn State's Sean Lee, who was still available.
But it was decided the depth at inside linebacker - where Larry Foote and Keyaron Fox back up Lawrence Timmons and James Farrior - was good enough. They needed an OLB behind James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley.
And head coach Mike Tomlin loved Worilds. Lee went three picks later to Dallas.
In round three, the Steelers were looking hard at safety Major Wright, but he went seven picks ahead of them to Chicago.
So they decided to instead go for a receiver they see as the heir apparent to Hines Ward, SMU's Emmanuel Sanders.
http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/sidelines/
*****
Day 2: Steelers add depth over need
By F. Dale Lolley, Staff writer
PITTSBURGH - A day after addressing an obvious need in the opening round of the NFL draft by selecting interior offensive lineman Maurkice Pouncey, the Steelers thumbed their noses at conventional wisdom on Day 2.
Despite having a need for at least one defensive back, the Steelers selected outside linebacker Jason Worilds of Virginia Tech in the second round and followed that by picking SMU wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders in the third round.
Unlike Pouncey, who will battle Trai Essex for a starting position at right guard, Worilds and Sanders were added at positions where the Steelers have solid starters and plenty of depth.
Both, however, will be expected to help a special teams unit that allowed four kickoffs for touchdowns in 2009.
The Steelers project Worilds (6-2, 262), a defensive end at Virginia Tech, as an outside linebacker. He'll initially serve as a backup to James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley.
Woodley and Harrison were Pro Bowl players in 2009.
Sanders (5-11, 180), meanwhile, joins a wide receiver group that is deep, despite the fact the Steelers traded starter Santonio Holmes to the Jets last week for a fifth-round draft pick after learning he had drawn a four-game suspension from the NFL for his second violation of the league drug policy.
The Steelers return Hines Ward, Mike Wallace, Limas Sweed and Tyler Grisham and signed Antwaan Randle El and Arnaz Battle.
Neither draft pick, however, fretted about the possibility of playing behind established veterans.
"It's a dream come true," said Worilds, who legally changed his name from Adjepong following his freshman year.
"With the type of rushes they have, those guys on the edge, I see myself in their mode. LaMarr Woodley, James Harrison, physical, explosive types of edge rushers. I'm excited for the opportunity to come in and learn as much as I can from those guys."
Harrison and Woodley were special teams standouts prior to becoming starters and the Steelers have similar expectations for Worilds.
"Since I've been here, we've never had a rookie linebacker start in this system," said linebackers coach Keith Butler, who has been with the Steelers since 2003. "We like to groom them for a couple of years and let them get their feet underneath them. The guys that have been successful here have always been good on special teams for us the first couple of years they've been here. We think this guy will be in that mode."
With Worilds coming from Virginia Tech, which is known for its strong special teams play, that's pretty much a given.
He can also play some defense.
Despite leaving Virginia Tech as a redshirt junior, Worilds recorded 15.5 sacks, 75 quarterback pressures, 34.5 tackles for a loss and forced five fumbles in 41 games, 25 of which were starts.
After recording eight sacks as a sophomore in 2008, he fell off to five in 2009, falling victim to constant double teams and a shoulder injury that required surgery at the end of the season.
But the Steelers timed him at 4.51 seconds in the 40-yard dash at his private workouts and he impressed Butler with his football knowledge.
"He probably had one of the best workouts of anybody we've seen," Butler said of the New Jersey native.
Sanders, meanwhile, was very productive at SMU, catching 98 passes for 1,339 yard and seven touchdowns in 2009. He finished his career in head coach June Jones' run-and-shoot system with 285 receptions for 3,791 yards and 34 touchdowns. He also returned punts and kickoffs for the Mustangs during his career.
"He has return value and is a guy who even without return value is still highly valued. But he'll help us on special teams, not only in the return game but in other areas of special teams as well," said Steelers first-year wide receivers coach Scottie Montgomery.
"He has the ability to catch the ball and get it north and south. That's something I value very much. ... He is a guy I feel really good about his quickness with the ball in his hands."
http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/...aft-second-day
Friday, April 23, 2010
Day 2 thoughts
After passing on selecting a defensive back on day two of the draft, we can only assume the Steelers are happy to let things ride with their current group.
The Steelers apparently feel that second-year players Keenan Lewis and Joe Burnett are ready to make a big impact in 2010.
I did find out that there was a great deal of discussion in the second round prior to the team selecting Jason Worilds. Some in the room wanted Penn State's Sean Lee, who was still available.
But it was decided the depth at inside linebacker - where Larry Foote and Keyaron Fox back up Lawrence Timmons and James Farrior - was good enough. They needed an OLB behind James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley.
And head coach Mike Tomlin loved Worilds. Lee went three picks later to Dallas.
In round three, the Steelers were looking hard at safety Major Wright, but he went seven picks ahead of them to Chicago.
So they decided to instead go for a receiver they see as the heir apparent to Hines Ward, SMU's Emmanuel Sanders.
http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/sidelines/
*****
Day 2: Steelers add depth over need
By F. Dale Lolley, Staff writer
PITTSBURGH - A day after addressing an obvious need in the opening round of the NFL draft by selecting interior offensive lineman Maurkice Pouncey, the Steelers thumbed their noses at conventional wisdom on Day 2.
Despite having a need for at least one defensive back, the Steelers selected outside linebacker Jason Worilds of Virginia Tech in the second round and followed that by picking SMU wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders in the third round.
Unlike Pouncey, who will battle Trai Essex for a starting position at right guard, Worilds and Sanders were added at positions where the Steelers have solid starters and plenty of depth.
Both, however, will be expected to help a special teams unit that allowed four kickoffs for touchdowns in 2009.
The Steelers project Worilds (6-2, 262), a defensive end at Virginia Tech, as an outside linebacker. He'll initially serve as a backup to James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley.
Woodley and Harrison were Pro Bowl players in 2009.
Sanders (5-11, 180), meanwhile, joins a wide receiver group that is deep, despite the fact the Steelers traded starter Santonio Holmes to the Jets last week for a fifth-round draft pick after learning he had drawn a four-game suspension from the NFL for his second violation of the league drug policy.
The Steelers return Hines Ward, Mike Wallace, Limas Sweed and Tyler Grisham and signed Antwaan Randle El and Arnaz Battle.
Neither draft pick, however, fretted about the possibility of playing behind established veterans.
"It's a dream come true," said Worilds, who legally changed his name from Adjepong following his freshman year.
"With the type of rushes they have, those guys on the edge, I see myself in their mode. LaMarr Woodley, James Harrison, physical, explosive types of edge rushers. I'm excited for the opportunity to come in and learn as much as I can from those guys."
Harrison and Woodley were special teams standouts prior to becoming starters and the Steelers have similar expectations for Worilds.
"Since I've been here, we've never had a rookie linebacker start in this system," said linebackers coach Keith Butler, who has been with the Steelers since 2003. "We like to groom them for a couple of years and let them get their feet underneath them. The guys that have been successful here have always been good on special teams for us the first couple of years they've been here. We think this guy will be in that mode."
With Worilds coming from Virginia Tech, which is known for its strong special teams play, that's pretty much a given.
He can also play some defense.
Despite leaving Virginia Tech as a redshirt junior, Worilds recorded 15.5 sacks, 75 quarterback pressures, 34.5 tackles for a loss and forced five fumbles in 41 games, 25 of which were starts.
After recording eight sacks as a sophomore in 2008, he fell off to five in 2009, falling victim to constant double teams and a shoulder injury that required surgery at the end of the season.
But the Steelers timed him at 4.51 seconds in the 40-yard dash at his private workouts and he impressed Butler with his football knowledge.
"He probably had one of the best workouts of anybody we've seen," Butler said of the New Jersey native.
Sanders, meanwhile, was very productive at SMU, catching 98 passes for 1,339 yard and seven touchdowns in 2009. He finished his career in head coach June Jones' run-and-shoot system with 285 receptions for 3,791 yards and 34 touchdowns. He also returned punts and kickoffs for the Mustangs during his career.
"He has return value and is a guy who even without return value is still highly valued. But he'll help us on special teams, not only in the return game but in other areas of special teams as well," said Steelers first-year wide receivers coach Scottie Montgomery.
"He has the ability to catch the ball and get it north and south. That's something I value very much. ... He is a guy I feel really good about his quickness with the ball in his hands."
http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/...aft-second-day