What Does This Draft Tell Us About the Steelers?

[Sugar]

Ben is going to want an extension. With what they now have in Rudolph, no way the Steelers give Ben an extension at 36-37. If you trade Ben you get an enormous haul back. Those that don't believe the Steelers part ways with Ben at some point forget that it happened to the likes of Peyton Manning and Brett Favre.

That's a cute theory and all, but we don't even know what we have in Rudolph. Let's slow the roll to somehow trade away our Pro Bowl QB (who is tight with the coaches) in favor of a kid that the team took as a value pick in the 3rd.

Even Ben himself wouldn't have been as successful coming in to this version of the Steelers as there is no top-ranked Defense to balance the scales.

[Shawn]

1. We're loading up on big Ss for sub package D. We've now got 4 Ss that are 6' - 6'2" and from 200-220lbs. Almost all these guys look to me to be about in the neighborhood of Shazier or Farrior's size. Seems like an emphasis on speed and tackling when we're out of our base D which is the majority of the time.

I'm intrigued by the Edmunds and Allen picks.

2. Washington feels like the safe pick in the draft. I'm excited about seeing AB, Juju, and this kid on the field together. Washington is a shorter and thicker version of Juju. If this kid is as good as I think he can be, adding in LB and Vance (assuming his end of year play continues) and this offense is set up to be unstoppable. For real this year.

3. I liked seeing us swing for the fences in round 3. The likelihood of a 3rd round pick panning out is slim. And we went all in on 2 positions where great players are nearly impossible to find in QB and LT. Rudolf or Chuks could both be big busts, but they also have huge upside and I like that we went for it. These both feel like Mike Tomlin gut instinct picks where he goes for it on 4th and 2 when almost no one else would. Rudolf has great accuracy on his deep passes and Chuks has size and athleticism that you can't teach. Again both have a lot of work to do, but there's something to work with in each. I think it's better than going for a mediocre LB personally. And it says the Steelers must have some trust in the guys they have or trust in some of the FA options to be added.

4. Living in NC, I love watching Samuels. I think he's going to be way better than most people expect. But the reality is, I think he's a hedge against LB long term. This guy is our 3rd down back of the future just in case. Maybe he can handle more downs, but it's pretty easy to find a 1st and 2nd down back if needed in the future. Those guys are a dime a dozen. He might not make the transition to the NFL being the tweener, but the kid just finds the endzone and I think he's a baller.

5. I really knew nothing about Frazier, but he seems to be a big body with limited mileage and his coach must have pushed for him. We must have some special inside info on the kid. Otherwise, I really don't understand why we didn't just take him as a UDFA.

6. Overall, my biggest disappointment is we didn't address our pass rush in any way for the future. I know we got a lot of sacks this last year, but I don't feel like we have the horses to generate consistent pressure without scheming for it. No one on our D Line scares me. None of our LBs scare me. We're going to be in sub packages more often than not. We're going to need to generate pressure with 4 guys consistently. Do we have a grouping of 4 that's intimidating? I'd argue our top 4 guys might be the least intimidating group in the league and that could be our downfall and reason we can't get over the hump. We might just have to score a lot more.

I like Samuels quite a bit but for a different reason. He plays so many positions that it gives the Steelers MUCH roster flexibility. The Steelers may be looking to keep 4 QBs this year and Samuels allows them to do that. He can be WR5, RB3, TE3,FB2. That right there is why he was drafted. And that frees up some other spots for some developmental talent.

[Donnieboy]

Ben would probably retire before accepting a trade.

I do not think he will. he's said he wants to play another 3 years. Any team that trades for him will surely give him a huge extension...with a lot of guaranteed money. And he'll get that weather he plays more than two years or not. More than he will get the next two seasons under contract with the Steelers.

[Steelhere10]

The JuJu pick is totally different. We were thin at WR and it was obvious in the AFCCG. We also had no idea if Bryant would come back and be a beast ..he wasn't.

I don't think it was, because the same ones was crying about secondary help because they were listening to the media about having the most talented wr group, assuming Bryant was off the dope. And they were crying that it was a luxury pick.

[Steelhere10]

And remember the last game that they remember was getting throttled by the Pat's.

[Northern_Blitz]

Ben would probably retire before accepting a trade.

He might, but it would leave a bunch of money on the table. Montana didn't retire.

[feltdizz]

I don't think it was, because the same ones was crying about secondary help because they were listening to the media about having the most talented wr group, assuming Bryant was off the dope. And they were crying that it was a luxury pick.

true, you are right.

[feltdizz]

He might, but it would leave a bunch of money on the table. Montana didn't retire.

Ben isn't Montana.

I don't know, I could see Ben calling it a day and going home to his family.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Ben is going to want an extension. With what they now have in Rudolph, no way the Steelers give Ben an extension at 36-37. If you trade Ben you get an enormous haul back. Those that don't believe the Steelers part ways with Ben at some point forget that it happened to the likes of Peyton Manning and Brett Favre.

We'll get an enormous haul back? Green Bay got a conditional 4th round pick from the Jets for Favre. Indy didn't get anything at all for Peyton. And those moves were made because the Packers and Colts had Aaron Rodgers and Andrew Luck waiting in the wings...quite a few steps up from Mason Rudolph, who was passed over by every team in the NFL, including the Steelers, though two rounds of the draft this past weekend.

[feltdizz]

We'll get an enormous haul back? Green Bay got a conditional 4th round pick from the Jets for Favre. Indy didn't get anything at all for Peyton. And those moves were made because the Packers and Colts had Aaron Rodgers and Andrew Luck waiting in the wings...quite a few steps up from Mason Rudolph, who was passed over by every team in the NFL, including the Steelers, though two rounds of the draft this past weekend.

YUUUUUGE!

wait what? conditional 4th rounder? nothing?

yeah, we may want to rethink this whole Ben trade thing.

[Shawn]

That's a cute theory and all, but we don't even know what we have in Rudolph. Let's slow the roll to somehow trade away our Pro Bowl QB (who is tight with the coaches) in favor of a kid that the team took as a value pick in the 3rd.

Even Ben himself wouldn't have been as successful coming in to this version of the Steelers as there is no top-ranked Defense to balance the scales.

Boom!!!....

[Shawn]

YUUUUUGE!

wait what? conditional 4th rounder? nothing?

yeah, we may want to rethink this whole Ben trade thing.

No way...listen I made this trade with the Miami Dolphins on Madden career mode. They gave me two first rounders and a second. You have no idea what you are talking about.

[Northern_Blitz]

We'll get an enormous haul back? Green Bay got a conditional 4th round pick from the Jets for Favre. Indy didn't get anything at all for Peyton. And those moves were made because the Packers and Colts had Aaron Rodgers and Andrew Luck waiting in the wings...quite a few steps up from Mason Rudolph, who was passed over by every team in the NFL, including the Steelers, though two rounds of the draft this past weekend.

For what it's worth, I think that the conditional 4th would be low. Manning was coming off a significant injury to his spine that caused him to miss an entire year and his ability to play in the future was questions. Farve retired 5 months BEFORE being traded to the Jets (and then a year later after playing a season with the Jets...and then a year and a half after that playing with the Vikings).

I think that Ben would be closer to the Montana trade than either of those guys.

That being said, I think that the most likely scenario is that Rudolph sits for most (maybe all) of his first contract with the Steelers.

[RuthlessBurgher]

By Josh Alper
May 1, 2018, 4:46 PM EDT
Ben Roethlisberger: If Mason Rudolph’s the guy, it won’t be for a while

After being drafted by the Steelers in the third round, rookie quarterback Mason Rudolph said that he doesn’t think it is Ben Roethlisberger‘s job to help prepare him for life in the NFL.

Roethlisberger sees things a bit differently. Roethlisberger said “it’s a good thing” to play a teaching role with younger players, although he stressed that one of the rookie’s lessons will be about patience because Roethlisberger isn’t planning on giving way anytime soon.

“Well, that’s fine. He can [take over someday],” Roethlisberger said to Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “But I plan on playing for three to five more years, depending on how the line goes and staying healthy, if I can stay healthy. If he’s going to be their guy, that’s great, but in my perfect world it’s not going to be for a while.”

The only time Roethlisberger didn’t play last year was when he rested in Week 17, but he missed time due to injuries in the previous two seasons. That underscores the need for a capable backup in Pittsburgh, which is a role the Steelers will be hoping Rudolph can fill in the immediate future while questions about what’s next remain on the back burner.

[Steel Maniac]

Well, I love Ben but he can't come out starting the first 5 games like he's 90 years old. He needs to start out sharp. So whatever he needs to do that then he needs to start doing it. Other than that, he's good with me.