Walterfootball.com's latest mock has JARVIS JONES falling to the Steelers!

[RuthlessBurgher]

Ruthless, I sort of agree. This kid really intrigues me. I've seen him three times this year. Once, he looked confused and disinterested. Another time (San Diego State) he worked harder, but was fooled too often in the first half. In the second, he seemed to figure out the blocking scheme and forced the offense to work away from him. And, finally, at the senior bowl, when he just cut loose, he was dominant.

It will take him a year or two in the least to reach his potential. And, what is his position if the Steelers take him? If we play a 3-4, is he an OLB or a DE or a nickel pass rusher. Given that he is still learning, we would need to pick a position for him and stick to it. Personally, I think he will be most effective in a tampa 2 where he can play DE where he simply sets the edge vs the run and goes after the passer on pass plays.

He could contribute right away with his hand in the dirt as a DE in the nickel and dime defenses (that's essentially all that Aldon Smith did as a rookie, since he wasn't good enough against the run early on to play full time, and he certainly had an impact as a pass rusher). It will take some time for him to learn to play 3-4 OLB in our scheme, but eventually, that is where he would end up (it would be a waste to have him bulk up to become a 3-4 DE). If Harrison is a cap casualty, I could live for a year or maybe even two with Worilds at OLB on early downs, and Ansah as a pass rushing DE in nickel and dime, until the kid is ready for prime time. Unlike some folks on the board, I'm not hung up on how much of an impact that a rookie first round pick will have right away...I'm more concerned with the long-term, and this guys looks like he could be a dynamite long-term investment.

[SteelCrazy]

Jones will be offf the board by the time the draft reaches pick 6 and if he's not, there will be a regret or two.

[squidkid]

no way he makes it to 17

[Slapstick]

While I also do not believe that Jones makes it to 17, I do believe that there will be a premier pass rusher available for the Steelers to select...I think both need and value will dovetail once again for the black and gold...

Jones, Jordan, Anzah...I truly think one of those three will be there...

[JUST-PLAIN-NASTY]

He fits...A hell of a football player....
But there is a reason why someone so productive would fall this far to begin with.
So for a kid who will be 24 and his medical...I would pass too.

There is only one OLB I would take at #17 and that would be Moore. I highly doubt he would even make it out of the Top 10.

[RuthlessBurgher]

no way he makes it to 17

I agree, but then again I said the same exact thing last year about DeCastro dropping down to pick #24. I happened to find someone else (CBSSports.com this time) who is mocking that Jones falls right into our laps as well:

17. Pittsburgh Steelers (8- Jarvis Jones, OLB, Georgia: Pass rusher James Harrison will soon turn 35 years old and his best playing days are behind him. With the Steelers looking to add a pass rusher at some point in this draft, they might not be able to pass on Jones, who could slip a little bit due to some long-term durability issues.

[URL]http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/nfldraftscout-DaneBrugler[/URL]

[Eddie Spaghetti]

if he makes it past 12 or so, I might have a heart attack waiting to see if he gets to us.

also hard to take any mock serious that has mike glennon going #7 overall.

[steelblood]

Moore, Werner, and Jones are all likely going in the top 10 or so. Then, Ansah, Jordan, Mingo, Okafor, and Montgomery are all likely fitting into the 1st round or so. That is 8 pass rushers in the first 32 picks or so. Someone is bound to fall as other teams reach for QBs, LTs, and WRs. The strong DT/NT/3-4 DE class will also help push some of these pass rushers back a bit. I also think that pass rushers in the 3rd-5th round will also be good values because so many teams already drafted one earlier. A guy like Maponga could be an excellent value in the middle rounds.

If there were ever a year to switch to a 4-3, this would be it. The Steelers could take a 4-3 right end (elite pass rusher like most of the guys above) in the first and then find a very good base end like Datone Jones or Margus Hunt on Day two and another 4-3 backer like Kaseem Green, Arthur Jones, or Gerald Hodges. Could you imagine this lineup...

DEs = Woodley, Ansah, Datone Jones, Worilds, Adrian Robinson, Chris Carter
DTs = Hood, Heyward, Ta'Amu, McClendon
LBs = Spence, Timmons, Kaseem Greene, Sylvestor

That isn't too bad (especially if Spence is relatively healthy).

[8467thekraken]

A player of his caliber and position isn't likely to fall like DDC did.

I am in the not-holding-my-breath-but-would-be-happy-if-it-happened group.

[Keyplay1]

This is always one of the toughest positions to draft. Talking about a replacement for Harrison and almost all of the players mentioned are always lining up as DE and most of them are on the other side. Very hard to project how they would do in the 3-4. But sooner or later it is a must do.

steelblood said: DEs = Woodley, Ansah, Datone Jones, Worilds, Adrian Robinson, Chris Carter
DTs = Hood, Heyward, Ta'Amu, McClendon
LBs = Spence, Timmons, Kaseem Greene, Sylvestor

That isn't too bad (especially if Spence is relatively healthy).

A lot of unproven players in there but it would probably be a formidable get after people group. Woodley would have to get back to his 2008 form and the rooks would have to be for real. Why not?

RuthlessBurgher said: "He [Ansah?] could contribute right away with his hand in the dirt as a DE in the nickel and dime defenses (that's essentially all that Aldon Smith did as a rookie, since he wasn't good enough against the run early on to play full time, and he certainly had an impact as a pass rusher). It will take some time for him to learn to play 3-4 OLB in our scheme, but eventually, that is where he would end up (it would be a waste to have him bulk up to become a 3-4 DE). btw: Did you mean Aaron Smith?

Me said: This situation is reminding me of 2007. The early talk and many mocks had the Steelers taking Jarvis Moss a DE/OLB from Florida. Many fans did not like this and they were right. He was drafted by Denver at #17 and did very little for them as was predicted by many posters here.

But, the rap on Moss was he was not considered tough and Jarvis Jones is tough. But whether or not he can convert to a 3-4 OLB is always a question.Probably would be worth the risk but the question is would he actually be a better fit than any of those other players mentioned. [Ansah, Okafor, Jordan and Datone Jones.]

Incidentally, I just looked it up and the Steelers passed on Jarvis Moss who was taken at #17 by Denver and TS took Timmons at #15. Then of course got lucky as Woodley was there in rd 2. Just for laughs here was what Moss did .

2011[URL="http://www.nfl.com/teams/oaklandraiders/profile?team=OAK"]Oakland Raiders[/URL]141161151.5--1----0.0----02010[URL="http://www.nfl.com/teams/oaklandraiders/profile?team=OAK"]Oakland Raiders[/URL]503031.0--0----0.0----02010[URL="http://www.nfl.com/teams/denverbroncos/profile?team=DEN"]Denver Broncos[/URL]905410.0--0----0.0----02009[URL="http://www.nfl.com/teams/denverbroncos/profile?team=DEN"]Denver Broncos[/URL]700000.0--1----0.0----02008[URL="http://www.nfl.com/teams/denverbroncos/profile?team=DEN"]Denver Broncos[/URL]120121022.5--0----0.0----02007[URL="http://www.nfl.com/teams/denverbroncos/profile?team=DEN"]Denver Broncos[/URL]6112931.0--0----0.0----1TOTAL4834146.00200--001

Its a jumble? But anyway it was very little.

[Slapstick]

I believe Ruthless meant Aldon Smith, the OLB for the 49ers...

I really like guys like Dion Jordan and Ziggy Ansah, who have played a stand up rush position or even dropped into coverage....

[Keyplay1]

I see where Aldon Smith is in the news. They are talking about SF must get their pass rush going. But isn't SF a 4-3 D?

[Keyplay1]

I believe Ruthless meant Aldon Smith, the OLB for the 49ers...

I really like guys like Dion Jordan and Ziggy Ansah, who have played a stand up rush position or even dropped into coverage....

For some reason most fans seem to prefer Jordan and Ansah over the other two Okafor and Datone Jones. Why is that? They all seem quite similar to me. And that Datone guy was the only one that gave Eric Fisher fits at the senior bowl practices and Okafor seems to have a non-stop motor. Yet rarely are they mentioned and it is almost always the other two. I'm going to have to watch and see how all those guys do next year. Probably all will do well.

[steelblood]

For some reason most fans seem to prefer Jordan and Ansah over the other two Okafor and Datone Jones. Why is that? They all seem quite similar to me. And that Datone guy was the only one that gave Eric Fisher fits at the senior bowl practices and Okafor seems to have a non-stop motor. Yet rarely are they mentioned and it is almost always the other two. I'm going to have to watch and see how all those guys do next year. Probably all will do well.

I think all four offer different things.

Dion Jordan is over 6'6 and weighs like 240. He is very thin even for a 3-4 OLB. Jordan offers the best coverage skills of the group. He has elite quickness and is already very natural dropping into coverage (none of the other 3 can do this). Jordan's gift is his athleticism and movement skills. He could play outside linebacker in a 4-3. Many project him to be an impact pass rusher at the next level because of his quickness and athleticism. However, this season he was asked to do other things and did not really produce as a pass rusher.

Ansah is the athletic freak. He is a little shorter than Jordan and 30 pounds heavier. He has rare burst and acceleration for someone of his weight. He also has impressive strength throughout his body. He could play both 3-4 DE and OLB in our scheme. He has not proven that he can be effective in coverage yet and it may take a while for him to digest our defense as he is still refining his fundamentals and higher understanding of the game.

Okafor is probably the best plug and play 3-4 OLB in the Steeler mold. He is very seasoned as a pass rusher and run defender. He has excellent 3-4 OLB size at 6'4 250 lbs. He is a very effective bull rusher, excellent tackler, football smart, and a team leader. Okafor is late first round pick because he is not a real quick twitch, elite quickness edge rusher. He does have some speed rush moves, but he is not elite in any way. Okafor would probably be slightly better than Woodley in coverage, but not as good as Harrison. He did drop occasionally at Texas.

Datone Jones is probably best as a base 4-3 DE. He is very thickly built with large thighs and strong arms. He weighs about 270-275. For us, he'd probably have to play DE as I'm not sure he moves well enough to play OLB. He would be an excellent nickel pass rusher from the inside. Jones is able to anchor well and has the quickness to shoot gaps. If he gets offensive linemen off-balance he will easily bullrush them. Jones is a riser right now after the Senior Bowl. But, before that, he was a late second, early third round pick. I still don't think he'll be chosen in the top 40, but he is making a push.

[steeler_fan_in_t.o.]

I see where Aldon Smith is in the news. They are talking about SF must get their pass rush going. But isn't SF a 4-3 D?

SF plays a 3-4. In his rookie year Smith was just a third down pass rushing specialist when the D went to 4 DL and nickel or dime package. That is what Ruthless means - bring him in as a specialist in year one as he learns the position of 3-4 OLB.