Let's see if we can figure out the Steelers draft....

[Chadman]

Rule of Thumb:

1st Round- Tomlin/GM Visits at Pro Day:
Clemson- DL Bresee, LB Trenton Simpson, Edge Myles Murphy, Edge KJ Henry, WR Joseph Ngata
Georgia- DL Jalen Carter, CB Kelee Ringo, Edge Nolan Smith, TE Darnell Washington, OT Broderick Jones, S Christopher Smith
Michigan- DL Mazi Smith, EDGE Mike Morris, C Oluwatimi, CB DJ Turner, TE Luke Schoonmaker
Iowa- LB Jack Campbell, CB Riley Moss, TE Sam LaPorta, EDGE Lukas Van Ness
Iowa St- EDGE Will McDonald, WR Xavier Hutchinson, DB Anthony Johnson
Ohio St- OT Paris Johnson, OT Dawand Jones, WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, DE Zach Harrison, C Luke Wypler, S Ronnie Hickman, CB Cameron Brown
Alabama- EDGE Will Anderson, OT Tyler Steen, S Brian Branch, S Jordan Battle, LB Henry To'oTo'o, DL Byron Young, OL Emil Ekiyor Jnr, NT DJ Dale, CB Eli Ricks

2/3rd Round- Positional Coaches attend Pro Day
DC Teryl Austin-
Clemson-DL Bresee, LB Trenton Simpson, Edge Myles Murphy, Edge KJ Henry
Georgia- DL Jalen Carter, CB Kelee Ringo, Edge Nolan Smith
Iowa St- EDGE Will McDonald, DB Anthony Johnson
Penn St- CB Joey Porter Jnr, DT PJ Mustipher, S Ji'Ayer Brown

DL Karl Dunbar-
Clemson- DL Bresee
Bowling Green- DT Karl Brooks
Western Kentucky- DL Broderic Martin, DL Darius Shipp

OL Pat Meyer-
Northwestern- OL Peter Skoronski
Ohio St- OT Paris Johnson, OT Dawand Jones, C Luke Wypler
Alabama- OT Tyler Steen, Emil Ekiyor Jnr
NC State- OG Chandler Zavala
Tennessee- OT Darnell Wright, OG Jerome Carvin

LB Aaron Curry-
Tulane- LB Dorian Williams, LB Nick Anderson
Wisconsin- EDGE Nick Herbig

TE Alfredo Roberts-
Michigan- TE Luke Schoonmaker
Penn St- TE Brenton Strange

DB Grady Brown-
Alabama- S Brian Branch, S Jordan Battle
Penn St- CB Joey Porter Jnr, S Ji'Ayer Brown
Pittsburgh- ?

WR Frisman Jackson-
Pittsburgh- ?

RB Eddie Faulkner-
Pittsburgh- Izzy Abanikanda

TOP 30 Visits- Certainly Helps!
OC John Michael Schmitz Minnesota
WR Jonathan Mingo WR Mississippi
CB Joey Porter Jnr CB Penn St
OG Cody Mauch North Dakota St
WR Charlie Jones Purdue
EDGE Tuli Tuipulotu USC
CB Julius Brents Kansas St
DL Keeanu Benton Wisconsin
OT Dawand Jones Ohio St
OG Steve Avila TCU
OG O'Cyrus Torrence Florida
DL Gervon Dexter Florida
CB Deonte Banks Maryland
CB Emmanual Forbes Mississippi St
CB Kelee Ringo Georgia
CB Tyrique Stevenson Miami
S Daniel Scott California
S Tanner Ingle NC State
DT Siaki Ika Baylor
OT Anton Harrison Oklahoma
WR Jayden Reed Michigan St
OG Chandler Zavala NC State
QB Clayton Tune Houston


DINNER/MEETINGS- Again, doesn't hurt!
LB Trenton Simpson- Clemson
DE Myles Murphy- Clemson
EDGE Will McDonald- Iowa St
OT Paris Johnson- Ohio St
OT Dawand Jones- Ohio St
OC Luke Wypler- Ohio St
DE Zach Harrison- Ohio St
CB Riley Moss- Iowa

TOMLIN ERA DRAFT TRENDS:
First Round-
QB- 1
RB- 2
WR- 0
TE- 0
OL- 2

DL- 2
EDGE- 3
ILB- 3
CB- 1
S- 1

2nd/3rd Rounds
QB- 1
RB- 2
WR- 11
TE- 2
OL- 5

DL- 3
EDGE- 4
ILB- 1
CB- 6
S- 0

What do the trends tell me?

Tomlin rates EDGE & ILB highly in ROUND 1. Trenches also get love- OL & DL, but not as much. Prefers to draft athletes early?

Rounds 2-3 are the WR/CB sweet spot. I'd expect those positions to be selected in our 3 picks here. EDGE, DL & OL still get love here too, with OL jumping (interestingly- all our OT's have been drafted in Round 2- none in Round 1) & TE typically (if we are targeting one) falls in here. 0 safeties? ILB drops off as well from Round 1 to 2-3. Is that a sign?

WHAT DO WE KNOW ARE NEEDS/ SUSPECT ARE NEEDS?

Even after signing Patrick Peterson, there is a need for a CB. Levi Wallace, Witherspoon & the rest are not elite level CB's. Peterson is only a short term option. CB is definitely on the radar.

Losing Edmunds & re-signing Kazee is still a downgrade. Funny- Edmunds is Tomlin's only 1st, 2nd or 3rd round Safety drafted. Neal adds depth but is unlikely to be considered more. I expect that SAFETY is on the list. Given that trends show Tomlin likes athletes early, I believe this falls into Round 1 consideration.

Weirdly the team places less value on OT's than IOL. Could that be the smash-mouth mentality showing through? Given the strength of our current IOL I find it VERY odd the amount of focus on OG/OC types. I wouldn't understand it, but wouldn't be surprised to see a move for one early. Plenty of OT being scouted...could that first pick in Round 2 be the spot?

DL is always a priority. Win the lines etc. With the way teams have run on the Steelers of late, strengthening the lines & the middle becomes a priority.

ILB is a Tomlin favourite in Round 1. Is there a suitable target? Unlikely.

Despite having our Edges set, the team always looks to add a rusher early it seems. I see no reason to suspect that won't be the case again.

Positions I think are targets from Round 1-4:
CB, ILB, OLB, DL, WR, S, OT & OG/OC


Given all the above links, my thoughts...

ROUND 1 POTENTIAL TARGETS:
DL Brian Bresee
OT Broderick Jones
LB Jack Campbell (Too early at 17)
OT Paris Johnson
OT DAWAND JONES (Likely)
S BRIAN BRANCH (Likely)
LB Trenton Simpson (Too early at 17)

ROUND 2-3 TARGETS:
LB Trenton Simpson
LB Jack Campbell
LB DORIAN WILLIAMS (Likely)

EDGE NICK HERBIG (Likely)

CB KELEE RINGO (LIKELY)
CB RILEY MOSS (LIKELY)
CB Tyrique Stevenson

OT- Tyler Steen
OG- CHANDLER ZAVALA (Likely)
OG- Emil Ekiyor Jnr

WR- JONATHON MINGO (Likely)
WR- Jayden Reed

DT- KARL BROOKS (Likely)



EARLY CONCLUSION....

I'm not sure yet....thoughts?

[Chadman]

Reading that, I wonder if I gave Bresee enough consideration?

[NJ-STEELER]

Before Pickett and naj, I. Believe there was a trend of selecting younger players.
Like juniors coming out early.

New regime this year though.
maybe they move on from sone of those trends and make new ones

[NJ-STEELER]

I’ll add that Daniels was a center coming out of college.
maybe we liked him there at the time.
perhaps the ioL interest is there thinking one of the guard prisodcts can come in and we shift Daniels back to center

[SteelerOfDeVille]

Reading that, I wonder if I gave Bresee enough consideration?

Same... it's only been recently that I've really started to feel like Bresee is a real consideration. I think that he's definitely on the short list of guys they will consider at 1.17

[NJ-STEELER]

I agree corner is a big need.

I think you need to include the top corners for 1st round consideration.
bucking the trend because we are so thin at the position

[Prowler]

Thanks for the post Chadman. Myself, I would not rule out John Michael Schmitz at the C position in the 1st round or with the next pick in round 2. I believe the Steelers had him out for dinner and he was one of their 30 visitors. I'm hearing the Steelers love him as much as I do. Plus Weidl loves to build teams from the inside out.

[SteelerOfDeVille]

I’ll add that Daniels was a center coming out of college.
maybe we liked him there at the time.
perhaps the ioL interest is there thinking one of the guard prisodcts can come in and we shift Daniels back to center

but, they just threw 2 into the mix this offseason. While I do see the team moving on from Kendrick Green, I see guard as fairly far down on the list

[SteelerOfDeVille]

Thanks for the post Chadman. Myself, I would not rule out John Michael Schmitz at the C position in the 1st round or with the next pick in round 2. I believe the Steelers had him out for dinner and he was one of their 30 visitors. I'm hearing the Steelers love him as much as I do. Plus Weidl loves to build teams from the inside out.

personally LOVE everything i have seen/heard/read on this guy. I think he's the best C to come out since the Creed Humphrey and the Alabama kid at Philly

[hawaiiansteel]

Rule of Thumb:

Aloha Chadman, it's very nice to see you back here posting again!

how have you been mate?

[steelerkeylargo]

Rule of Thumb:

1st Round- Tomlin/GM Visits at Pro Day:
Clemson- DL Bresee, LB Trenton Simpson, Edge Myles Murphy, Edge KJ Henry, WR Joseph Ngata
Georgia- DL Jalen Carter, CB Kelee Ringo, Edge Nolan Smith, TE Darnell Washington, OT Broderick Jones, S Christopher Smith
Michigan- DL Mazi Smith, EDGE Mike Morris, C Oluwatimi, CB DJ Turner, TE Luke Schoonmaker
Iowa- LB Jack Campbell, CB Riley Moss, TE Sam LaPorta, EDGE Lukas Van Ness
Iowa St- EDGE Will McDonald, WR Xavier Hutchinson, DB Anthony Johnson
Ohio St- OT Paris Johnson, OT Dawand Jones, WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, DE Zach Harrison, C Luke Wypler, S Ronnie Hickman, CB Cameron Brown
Alabama- EDGE Will Anderson, OT Tyler Steen, S Brian Branch, S Jordan Battle, LB Henry To'oTo'o, DL Byron Young, OL Emil Ekiyor Jnr, NT DJ Dale, CB Eli Ricks

2/3rd Round- Positional Coaches attend Pro Day
DC Teryl Austin-
Clemson-DL Bresee, LB Trenton Simpson, Edge Myles Murphy, Edge KJ Henry
Georgia- DL Jalen Carter, CB Kelee Ringo, Edge Nolan Smith
Iowa St- EDGE Will McDonald, DB Anthony Johnson
Penn St- CB Joey Porter Jnr, DT PJ Mustipher, S Ji'Ayer Brown

DL Karl Dunbar-
Clemson- DL Bresee
Bowling Green- DT Karl Brooks
Western Kentucky- DL Broderic Martin, DL Darius Shipp

OL Pat Meyer-
Northwestern- OL Peter Skoronski
Ohio St- OT Paris Johnson, OT Dawand Jones, C Luke Wypler
Alabama- OT Tyler Steen, Emil Ekiyor Jnr
NC State- OG Chandler Zavala
Tennessee- OT Darnell Wright, OG Jerome Carvin

LB Aaron Curry-
Tulane- LB Dorian Williams, LB Nick Anderson
Wisconsin- EDGE Nick Herbig

TE Alfredo Roberts-
Michigan- TE Luke Schoonmaker
Penn St- TE Brenton Strange

DB Grady Brown-
Alabama- S Brian Branch, S Jordan Battle
Penn St- CB Joey Porter Jnr, S Ji'Ayer Brown
Pittsburgh- ?

WR Frisman Jackson-
Pittsburgh- ?

RB Eddie Faulkner-
Pittsburgh- Izzy Abanikanda

TOP 30 Visits- Certainly Helps!
OC John Michael Schmitz Minnesota
WR Jonathan Mingo WR Mississippi
CB Joey Porter Jnr CB Penn St
OG Cody Mauch North Dakota St
WR Charlie Jones Purdue
EDGE Tuli Tuipulotu USC
CB Julius Brents Kansas St
DL Keeanu Benton Wisconsin
OT Dawand Jones Ohio St
OG Steve Avila TCU
OG O'Cyrus Torrence Florida
DL Gervon Dexter Florida
CB Deonte Banks Maryland
CB Emmanual Forbes Mississippi St
CB Kelee Ringo Georgia
CB Tyrique Stevenson Miami
S Daniel Scott California
S Tanner Ingle NC State
DT Siaki Ika Baylor
OT Anton Harrison Oklahoma
WR Jayden Reed Michigan St
OG Chandler Zavala NC State
QB Clayton Tune Houston


DINNER/MEETINGS- Again, doesn't hurt!
LB Trenton Simpson- Clemson
DE Myles Murphy- Clemson
EDGE Will McDonald- Iowa St
OT Paris Johnson- Ohio St
OT Dawand Jones- Ohio St
OC Luke Wypler- Ohio St
DE Zach Harrison- Ohio St
CB Riley Moss- Iowa

TOMLIN ERA DRAFT TRENDS:
First Round-
QB- 1
RB- 2
WR- 0
TE- 0
OL- 2

DL- 2
EDGE- 3
ILB- 3
CB- 1
S- 1

2nd/3rd Rounds
QB- 1
RB- 2
WR- 11
TE- 2
OL- 5

DL- 3
EDGE- 4
ILB- 1
CB- 6
S- 0

What do the trends tell me?

Tomlin rates EDGE & ILB highly in ROUND 1. Trenches also get love- OL & DL, but not as much. Prefers to draft athletes early?

Rounds 2-3 are the WR/CB sweet spot. I'd expect those positions to be selected in our 3 picks here. EDGE, DL & OL still get love here too, with OL jumping (interestingly- all our OT's have been drafted in Round 2- none in Round 1) & TE typically (if we are targeting one) falls in here. 0 safeties? ILB drops off as well from Round 1 to 2-3. Is that a sign?

WHAT DO WE KNOW ARE NEEDS/ SUSPECT ARE NEEDS?

Even after signing Patrick Peterson, there is a need for a CB. Levi Wallace, Witherspoon & the rest are not elite level CB's. Peterson is only a short term option. CB is definitely on the radar.

Losing Edmunds & re-signing Kazee is still a downgrade. Funny- Edmunds is Tomlin's only 1st, 2nd or 3rd round Safety drafted. Neal adds depth but is unlikely to be considered more. I expect that SAFETY is on the list. Given that trends show Tomlin likes athletes early, I believe this falls into Round 1 consideration.

Weirdly the team places less value on OT's than IOL. Could that be the smash-mouth mentality showing through? Given the strength of our current IOL I find it VERY odd the amount of focus on OG/OC types. I wouldn't understand it, but wouldn't be surprised to see a move for one early. Plenty of OT being scouted...could that first pick in Round 2 be the spot?

DL is always a priority. Win the lines etc. With the way teams have run on the Steelers of late, strengthening the lines & the middle becomes a priority.

ILB is a Tomlin favourite in Round 1. Is there a suitable target? Unlikely.

Despite having our Edges set, the team always looks to add a rusher early it seems. I see no reason to suspect that won't be the case again.

Positions I think are targets from Round 1-4:
CB, ILB, OLB, DL, WR, S, OT & OG/OC


Given all the above links, my thoughts...

ROUND 1 POTENTIAL TARGETS:
DL Brian Bresee
OT Broderick Jones
LB Jack Campbell (Too early at 17)
OT Paris Johnson
OT DAWAND JONES (Likely)
S BRIAN BRANCH (Likely)
LB Trenton Simpson (Too early at 17)

ROUND 2-3 TARGETS:
LB Trenton Simpson
LB Jack Campbell
LB DORIAN WILLIAMS (Likely)

EDGE NICK HERBIG (Likely)

CB KELEE RINGO (LIKELY)
CB RILEY MOSS (LIKELY)
CB Tyrique Stevenson

OT- Tyler Steen
OG- CHANDLER ZAVALA (Likely)
OG- Emil Ekiyor Jnr

WR- JONATHON MINGO (Likely)
WR- Jayden Reed

DT- KARL BROOKS (Likely)



EARLY CONCLUSION....

I'm not sure yet....thoughts?

Solid work

See below for my current thoughts......I'll have some more input soon. Good to see you posting

[NJ-STEELER]

but, they just threw 2 into the mix this offseason. While I do see the team moving on from Kendrick Green, I see guard as fairly far down on the list

that’s what I was thinking as well but they keep bringing them in.
maybe they draft another guard and slide Daniels over.

not saying I like the move just thinking of reasons why they still looking at OGs

[Chadman]

Solid work

See below for my current thoughts......I'll have some more input soon. Good to see you posting

I did a bit of a mock & came up with VERY similar results to your mock. Branch, Wright & Herzig I had, but I had the DT from Bowling Green & I'm torn on the CB option- but had the same positions.

I think Herzig is more an OLB though, isn't he? Pretty sure they'll give Curry an ILB to develop.

[Chadman]

Same... it's only been recently that I've really started to feel like Bresee is a real consideration. I think that he's definitely on the short list of guys they will consider at 1.17

It certainly fits the history...

[Chadman]

Thanks for the post Chadman. Myself, I would not rule out John Michael Schmitz at the C position in the 1st round or with the next pick in round 2. I believe the Steelers had him out for dinner and he was one of their 30 visitors. I'm hearing the Steelers love him as much as I do. Plus Weidl loves to build teams from the inside out.

No doubt he's a good player, but no positional coach at his Pro Day.......doesn't fit with what they do 'traditionally'.

That said, I have to assume that Center is on the radar, just given the volume of interest in IOL in both FA & draft visits. Seems odd after adding Danield & Cole last year & then our IOL additions in FA so far this year. Just build an OL of OG's?