They say it all starts up front in the trenches

[pittpete]

2009 Hood
2010 Pouncey
2011 Heyward,Gilbert
2012 Decastro,Adams

I'd hate to be in a trench with this crew

[Eddie Spaghetti]

please remove hood.

he has done nothing.

[Oviedo]

please remove hood.

he has done nothing.

Disagree as usual. He has been solid playing a thankless position in LeBeau's scheme which under utilizes DL.

[Eddie Spaghetti]

lol.

he has been mr. invisible.

terrible fit as 34 DE, not really his fault, i guess.

but blame lebeau, per the usual.

[pittpete]

In all fairness Kiesel did squat his first few years

[Chadman]

In all fairness Kiesel did squat his first few years

Keisel did less than Hood, to be honest. In fact- can anyone name a Steeler DE that has done more than Hood in his first 3 seasons over the last 20 years?

[Shoe]

Keisel did less than Hood, to be honest. In fact- can anyone name a Steeler DE that has done more than Hood in his first 3 seasons over the last 20 years?

I did research this in the past, and I know Aaron Smith made a significant impact by the end of his 3rd year. Truth be told, we haven't really drafted guys to fill this role, at least that I can remember. Donald Evans, Ray Seals, Kimo, Nolan Harrison...

I'm with Eddie. You expect a first-rounder to do more than be a body... I still have hope though, that he'll emerge this year into a stud. As I type that, I realize how much of a long-shot that is. I think even his supporters would agree with that. (Guys typically don't wake up and start dominating in their 4th year.)

[Steelerphile]

Keisel did less than Hood, to be honest. In fact- can anyone name a Steeler DE that has done more than Hood in his first 3 seasons over the last 20 years?

Hood is very strong and takes on blockers, neutralizes them and the linebackers clean up. I Steelers have a top-defense and Hood plays a significant role. He makes an occasional individual play. I think he has done his job well thus far. I expect him to get better in the next few years. Guys who stray outside of the defense and try to make a lot of indiviidual plays can hurt more than they help. Hood is very cognizant of that, so he played in a constrained way.

[NJ-STEELER]

Keisel did less than Hood, to be honest. In fact- can anyone name a Steeler DE that has done more than Hood in his first 3 seasons over the last 20 years?

difference is keisel was a 7th rounder. hood is a 1st. you expect 1st rounders to make a bigger/quicker contribution

[Chadman]

The argument of which round a 3-4 DE is drafted in is becoming more & more a moot point every year.

More teams play 3-4 Defense now than they did 10 years ago. The demand for a Brett Keisel was so low, he was picked in Round 7. In 2012, high 2nd Round selection Derek Wolfe is essentially Brett Keisel without a beard.

That Hood was selected in Round 1 makes little difference to the fact he couldn't beat out entrenched, long term starting DE's in Aaron Smith & Brett Keisel in his first 3 years. Hood has become a solid part of a rotation on a successful DL. That he doesn't stand out could be a good thing- most times a 3-4 Steeler DL stands out, it's because he's getting owned.

As for Hood to NT- he's really a 1-Gap defender, so doesn't really fit 3-4 NT as he'll only really attack between the OC & OG, where the Steelers will want a 0 Technique, 2-Gap type...Josh Chapman anyone?