Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

[Lebsteel]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

not in 2010. bigger need at center then either tackle. after left tackle, i feel center is the 2nd most important position oon the line


i have questioned not going up in 2008 to grab either Otah or Baker. even perhaps duane brown.

Backs can be found everywhere in the draft and if the OL is good, then it should improve the running game and passing game


you dont wanna know who was taken 2 spots after sweed

RAY RICE.................DANG, if we only had known...but given our 1st round pick (Mendenhall) and already having Willie, it would have been a bad move at that time.

[aggiebones]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

I brought up Bulaga again in a couple threads. But the reality is that we have Colon at the time. And although he is not all-world, he may be a better tackle than Hartwig is a C. And Pouncey grades out similarly to Bulaga with some, the Steeler scouts may have ranked them more tilted.

The trickiest thing about drafting tackles is that they go fast, real fast, so even drafting semi-early, you may get the 4th best that season. I think the Steelers are OK with having a VERY sturdy middle 3, then putting workman like Ts outside of them. It still can make for a really good line, but much cheaper than getting high profile Ts and serviceable interior guys. It is backwards from most of the league as well, so the really top Cs and Gs last longer on draft day, much longer.
What would have been cool is if they could have gotten Iupati and then traded a bunch of other picks to climb back up in their and get Pouncey.
Talk about devastating.
Iupati-Pouncey-Kemo across the front middle

[NJ-STEELER]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

I have been promoting the selection of an offensive tackle with a prime selection for some time now, but as your favorite lawyer from the Iladelph has already stated, circumstances have prevented this from happening lately. It seemed to be that whenever we draft late in the first, there are a lot of solid OT prospects, but other teams get enamored with them and there is huge run, so we'd have to reach for the 8th best OT by the time we pick...like 2008...I thought Duane Brown was a huge reach...no way I would have made that move...I was overjoyed with the Mendenhall pick there because I thought he was easily a top 15 talent that I did not think had any chance of being available when we picked. On the other hand, when we draft early, it tended to be a thin crop of tackles overall...like in 2007...I would not have drafted Staley at #15, but I would have been happy to have him if we were able to excute a trade down in the mid 20's or so and picked up some extra picks.

In this past draft, I would have taken Bulaga. I figured that he was almost surely a top 10 guy (and even if he somehow dropped into the teens, I didn't see any way he would make it all the way to 1. I'm not upset with Pouncey at all...I trust that the front office knows what they are doing...but I saw a deep center crop next year (USC's Kris O'Dowd, PSU's Stefan Wisniewski, Maurkice's brother Mike), and figured one of those top guys should be available to us even if we picked late next year. I figured we could get through this year with Hartwig and Legursky at center, then draft our pivot of the future in 2011. Meanwhile, Bulaga would have a year as a backup behind Starks and Colon because our depth at tackle was atrociously thin (remember, Colon wasn't injured at that time) and could potentially take over for Colon in 2011 in his second season if we were unable to sign Willie to a long term extension. In the mean time, Bulaga could compete with Essex at RG as a rookie before moving over to RT in year two (which is the pretty much the same plan that Tomlin devised for Pouncey...compete at RG as a rookie before moving over to center in year 2). You aren't going to get a top tackle prospect if you are drafting late...if one happens to fall in your lap where we were picking at the unusally early slot of 18 for us, you make the move.

The year before that, I really wanted to move up to get Oher when he fell into the 20's (I had a top 10 grade on him). I was royally ticked off when the #&@%ing Ravens made the trade that I thought we should have made. Even after we missed out on an opportunity to go get Oher, I supported the idea of standing pat and taking the next best OT option, Eben Britton. I had a mid-20's grade on him, which still provided value where we were picking at #32. Again, I don't dislike the Ziggy pick (although at the time, he seemed more like a 4-3 DT than a 3-4 DE to me...but his work ethic has shined through for him so far this year, and I look for him to start becoming a valuable contributor to our D).

I've been on the big ugly train for the past couple of years, and although we did not get an OT in either case, we did get a big ugly in the first round of each of the past two drafts...one on either side of the ball in the trenches. Things look good for Pouncey and Ziggy in the Burgh, and I'm excited about that. I trust that the front office knows best. I'm not losing any sleep over the fact that Oher is a Raven, Britton is a Jag, or Bulaga is a Packer now.

i'm not a draft nut, as they say. but i do follow it once the NFL season ends.

i wonder whats the OT class like next year. bulaga may have graded out high with many, personnally i thought he loked a little stiff in the combine drills... not saying he's gonna bust, just an opinion from an untrained eye.

i think there's a few WRs being hyped as top 10 and possibly another in baldwin being top 20. a couple of QBs look to go at the top of the draft (kiper predicts) and then there a a couplle of good sized corners that rank high in their CB list.

my point to this? that pure talenmt level may push down the some of those ' big uglies' you have been wanting to select.

[NJ-STEELER]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

not in 2010. bigger need at center then either tackle. after left tackle, i feel center is the 2nd most important position oon the line


i have questioned not going up in 2008 to grab either Otah or Baker. even perhaps duane brown.

Backs can be found everywhere in the draft and if the OL is good, then it should improve the running game and passing game


you dont wanna know who was taken 2 spots after sweed

RAY RICE.................DANG, if we only had known...but given our 1st round pick (Mendenhall) and already having Willie, it would have been a bad move at that time.

yeah, but i noted that i wanted to move up to grab one of those OTs and still be able to draft a RB later in the draft. forte went a few picks before sweed. salton/smith a few picks later. RBs are everywhere

[RuthlessBurgher]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

I have been promoting the selection of an offensive tackle with a prime selection for some time now, but as your favorite lawyer from the Iladelph has already stated, circumstances have prevented this from happening lately. It seemed to be that whenever we draft late in the first, there are a lot of solid OT prospects, but other teams get enamored with them and there is huge run, so we'd have to reach for the 8th best OT by the time we pick...like 2008...I thought Duane Brown was a huge reach...no way I would have made that move...I was overjoyed with the Mendenhall pick there because I thought he was easily a top 15 talent that I did not think had any chance of being available when we picked. On the other hand, when we draft early, it tended to be a thin crop of tackles overall...like in 2007...I would not have drafted Staley at #15, but I would have been happy to have him if we were able to excute a trade down in the mid 20's or so and picked up some extra picks.

In this past draft, I would have taken Bulaga. I figured that he was almost surely a top 10 guy (and even if he somehow dropped into the teens, I didn't see any way he would make it all the way to 1. I'm not upset with Pouncey at all...I trust that the front office knows what they are doing...but I saw a deep center crop next year (USC's Kris O'Dowd, PSU's Stefan Wisniewski, Maurkice's brother Mike), and figured one of those top guys should be available to us even if we picked late next year. I figured we could get through this year with Hartwig and Legursky at center, then draft our pivot of the future in 2011. Meanwhile, Bulaga would have a year as a backup behind Starks and Colon because our depth at tackle was atrociously thin (remember, Colon wasn't injured at that time) and could potentially take over for Colon in 2011 in his second season if we were unable to sign Willie to a long term extension. In the mean time, Bulaga could compete with Essex at RG as a rookie before moving over to RT in year two (which is the pretty much the same plan that Tomlin devised for Pouncey...compete at RG as a rookie before moving over to center in year 2). You aren't going to get a top tackle prospect if you are drafting late...if one happens to fall in your lap where we were picking at the unusally early slot of 18 for us, you make the move.

The year before that, I really wanted to move up to get Oher when he fell into the 20's (I had a top 10 grade on him). I was royally ticked off when the #&@%ing Ravens made the trade that I thought we should have made. Even after we missed out on an opportunity to go get Oher, I supported the idea of standing pat and taking the next best OT option, Eben Britton. I had a mid-20's grade on him, which still provided value where we were picking at #32. Again, I don't dislike the Ziggy pick (although at the time, he seemed more like a 4-3 DT than a 3-4 DE to me...but his work ethic has shined through for him so far this year, and I look for him to start becoming a valuable contributor to our D).

I've been on the big ugly train for the past couple of years, and although we did not get an OT in either case, we did get a big ugly in the first round of each of the past two drafts...one on either side of the ball in the trenches. Things look good for Pouncey and Ziggy in the Burgh, and I'm excited about that. I trust that the front office knows best. I'm not losing any sleep over the fact that Oher is a Raven, Britton is a Jag, or Bulaga is a Packer now.

i'm not a draft nut, as they say. but i do follow it once the NFL season ends.

i wonder whats the OT class like next year. bulaga may have graded out high with many, personnally i thought he loked a little stiff in the combine drills... not saying he's gonna bust, just an opinion from an untrained eye.

i think there's a few WRs being hyped as top 10 and possibly another in baldwin being top 20. a couple of QBs look to go at the top of the draft (kiper predicts) and then there a a couplle of good sized corners that rank high in their CB list.

my point to this? that pure talenmt level may push down the some of those ' big uglies' you have been wanting to select.

You are correct that next year should be strong for QB's, WR's, and CB's in the first round (assuming some of the top juniros decide to come out...if the threat of a lockout is still there a draft time a year from now, many of the top juniors may opt to stay in school, but I'll include some of the top juniors here anyway). At QB, we could be looking at Wasington's Locker, Stanford's Luck, Arkansas' Mallett, Florida St.'s Ponder, and Delaware's Devlin as possible early choices. At WR, we could see Gergia's Green, Alabama's Jones, Notre Dame's Floyd, and Pitt's Baldwin. At CB, we could see LSU's Peterson, Nebraska's Amukamara, Virginia's Dowling, and Texas' Williams. And, of course, D-lineman also tend to go early, so we could see guy's like Alabama's Dareus, UNC's Quinn and Austin, OSU's Heyward, Pitt's Romeus, Iowa's Clayborn, Miami's Bailey, and USC's Casey.

It doesn't look like a great year for tackles, however. Some of the top names include Wisconsin's Carimi (6'8" 320 lbs.), LSU's Barksdale (6'5" 315 lbs.), B.C.'s Costanzo (6'7" 295 lbs.), Arkansas's Love (6'5" 315 lbs.), Colorado's Solder (6'9" 305 lbs.), and Boise St.'s Potter (6'6" 296 lbs.). I think if we opt for o-line again, our most likely target could be another Pouncey, particularly if Maurkice works out as well as a rookie as we all think he will. Having Maurkice replace Hartwig and having Mike replace Essex would fill the two biggest holes on our line, and the Pouncey twins would have instant chemistry since they have lived and played together for every year of their lives until now. If Colon is able to rehab is Achilles and return to us on a reasonable extension (I doubt that other teams will be throwing Godfather offers his way following such an injury), an offensive line of Starks-Kemoeatu-Pouncey-Pouncey-Colon could be quite formidable.

[grotonsteel]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

I doubt Steelers will draft an OT in first Rd in 2011. I don't think Steelers would want to invest two 1st Rd pick in an O-line unless some stud OT falls in the draft. If Pouncey plays well they i see them drafting his twin brother in 2nd Rd. If Steelers can improve interior O-line i think it will make this O-line look better.

One position i think Steelers might go for is CB. Steelers don't have stellar Corner backs. Ike Taylor contract is up.

[steeler_fan_in_t.o.]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

I doubt Steelers will draft an OT in first Rd in 2011. I don't think Steelers would want to invest two 1st Rd pick in an O-line unless some stud OT falls in the draft. If Pouncey plays well they i see them drafting his twin brother in 2nd Rd. If Steelers can improve interior O-line i think it will make this O-line look better.

One position i think Steelers might go for is CB. Steelers don't have stellar Corner backs. Ike Taylor contract is up.

The Steelers have shown (since Troy Edwards anyways) that they do not draft for need, they draft the player who they believe to be the best prospect available at the time. They will eliminate certain positions from early selection (QB, TE, SS) but then go for BPA.

[Oviedo]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

I doubt Steelers will draft an OT in first Rd in 2011. I don't think Steelers would want to invest two 1st Rd pick in an O-line unless some stud OT falls in the draft. If Pouncey plays well they i see them drafting his twin brother in 2nd Rd. If Steelers can improve interior O-line i think it will make this O-line look better.

One position i think Steelers might go for is CB. Steelers don't have stellar Corner backs. Ike Taylor contract is up.

The Steelers have shown (since Troy Edwards anyways) that they do not draft for need, they draft the player who they believe to be the best prospect available at the time. They will eliminate certain positions from early selection (QB, TE, SS) but then go for BPA.

True but I agree with groton that they will not want to tie up two Round 1 premium value contracts plus Max Starks on the OL. Could really screw up your ability to retain other priority players. IMO they wouldn't look at OL until Round 2 or 3.

I will disagree with you about positions they won't look at. If Troy gets hurt again this season they will most definitely look at SS. I think SS is clearly a position of concern not because of a lack of talent but because of a lack of depth.

[papillon]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

I doubt Steelers will draft an OT in first Rd in 2011. I don't think Steelers would want to invest two 1st Rd pick in an O-line unless some stud OT falls in the draft. If Pouncey plays well they i see them drafting his twin brother in 2nd Rd. If Steelers can improve interior O-line i think it will make this O-line look better.

One position i think Steelers might go for is CB. Steelers don't have stellar Corner backs. Ike Taylor contract is up.

The Steelers have shown (since Troy Edwards anyways) that they do not draft for need, they draft the player who they believe to be the best prospect available at the time. They will eliminate certain positions from early selection (QB, TE, SS) but then go for BPA.

True but I agree with groton that they will not want to tie up two Round 1 premium value contracts plus Max Starks on the OL. Could really screw up your ability to retain other priority players. IMO they wouldn't look at OL until Round 2 or 3.

I will disagree with you about positions they won't look at. If Troy gets hurt again this season they will most definitely look at SS. I think SS is clearly a position of concern not because of a lack of talent but because of a lack of depth.

Ov, remember the next time a first round draft pick is signed it is going to be for a lot less than the recent first round picks. I have to believe that a rookie salary cap will be instituted by the NFL.

So, having Starks and a first rounder shouldn't impinge on the Steelers ability to sign other players.

Pappy

[NJ-STEELER]

Re: Should we have drafted a first round tackle?

pouncey isn't getting jake long money
he signed a 5 yr 18M contract.

without getting intio the details of guarenteed bonuses and stuff like that. the breakdown is less then a $4M/yr cap hit

much less then starks and a little less then current RG kemo's cap hit of $4M/yr. if we're drafting near 18 again expect the same type of deal for whoever we draft. it wont break the back of the steelers cap. and if its a lower pick by making the playoffs, it will be even less