Steelers Continue to Check Out Late First Rounders

by steelbydesign



The Steelers were in full force at LSU’s pro day on Wednesday with Mike Tomlin, Todd Haley, and Kevin Colbert all in attendance.

Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. made it known in a radio interview that he had dinner with that group on Tuesday night.

OBJ fits the Todd Haley mold of receivers to a tee.

A smaller receiver that works very well in space and makes his money with precise route running and then working after the catch.

I’m a big fan of him, but I think his lack of size makes him a bit of a reach at the 15th pick.

I’m not one that has to get a 6’5″ receiver, but it would be nice to get a red-zone threat at the 15th pick.

It’s possible the Steelers like Beckham enough to take him at their current spot in the first round, but history suggests they won’t.

Draft stock fluctuates so wildly that I don’t have any hard numbers to back this up, but I can tell you what I’ve observed about the Steelers’ draft strategy in the past…

To me it seems the Steelers typically go with the “safe” value pick in round 1, and then tend to get a little more creative afterwards. I can honestly say the only pick in recent memory that really surprised me in round 1 was Ziggy Hood.

Guys like Jarvis Jones, David DeCastro, Cameron Heyward, Maurkice Pouncey, Rashard Mendenhall, and Lawrence Timmons were all considered to fit the range or in a lot of cases great values at their draft slot.

Where the Steelers “reach” (and understand I’m just talking according to all the clueless talking heads, myself included) is usually after round 1. Last season Jarvis Jones was considered a steal, and Le’Veon Bell was considered a reach.

I bring all of this up because it seems like the Steelers are paying a lot of attention to guys that according to most people, are late first round picks.

Odell Beckham Jr, Allen Robinson, Kelvin Benjamin, Jason Verrett, Bradley Roby, Ryan Shazier, Louis Nix, and Stephon Tuitt are all guys that seem to fit that description in my opinion.

It’s always possible the Steelers like someone a lot more than the general public. However, I also think that if guys like Gilbert, Dennard, and Evans are off the board the Steelers will try hard to move down.

Colbert has talked about how deep this draft class is, and it’s been said that maybe not many teams want to move up… but I think that’s the plan going in.

Once names start flying off the board though I think you’ll see teams get antsy and deals will be on the table.

[URL]http://www.steelcityblitz.com/2014/04/10/steelers-continue-to-check-out-late-first-rounders/#comment-81874[/URL]