Potential CB options in the draft....

[mshifko]

i haven't hit my pre-draft stuff yet, just curious to see the rankings of the cornerbacks in this year's draft...

with b-mac more than likely taking big money elsewhere, this leaves us in a position to draft a corner early...

any ideas on who would we potentially draft if we went this route?

[Mister Pittsburgh]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

CB Sean Smith 2nd Rnder?
CB D.J. Moore 1st Rnder?

[WoodleyofTroy]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

The guys I want the Steelers to look at, and my overall favorite Corners of the draft, who are also great Kick Returners.

Darius Butler 5-10, 182 UConn (2nd round)
Domonique Johnson 6-2, 200 Jackson State (3rd/4th round)

I don't see the Steelers taking a first round corner. But if we truly wanted to replace Bryant McFadden and mimic the round he was drafted in, Darius Butler would fit that bill at the end of the 2nd...if he's there. Being a Big East fan I got to see a lot of William Gay, and I remember watching him at Louisville, thinking he would be a good Nickle Corner off the bat (New England Patriot like) making plays. As you can tell, I was very happy in the 5th round that year when we got him. Butler is ten times that. Has great hands (use to be a WR), and his cover skills just looked effort less out there. Hard to describe, if you watched him during the game (Pitt vs Conn for one) you could just tell he had it. Not sure what he's going to do at the combine, but he could very well go in the top of the 2nd putting us out of reach.

Top 10-15 range:
Malcolm Jenkins 6-0, 180 Ohio State
Vontae Davis 6-0, 205 Illinois

#15-#32
D.J. Moore 5-10, 182 Vanderbilt
Alphonso Smith 5-9, 195 Wake Forest

1st round sleeper / Top 10 of the 2nd:
Sean Smith 6-2, 215 Utah (probably a Free Safety)

2nd/3rd round guys:
Victor Harris 5-11, 192 Virginia Tech
Coye Francies 6-1, 185 San Jose State
Jairus Byrd 6-0, 205 Oregon
Mike Mickens 5-11, 170 Cincinnati
Asher Allen 5-10, 200 Georgia
Bruce Johnson 5-10, 175 Miami
Keenan Lewis 6-1, 200 Oregon State

3rd-5th:
Captain Munnerlyn 5-9, 190 South Carolina
Jerraud Powers 5-9, 190 Auburn
Ryan Palmer 5-9, 190 Texas
Donald Washington 5-11, 195 Ohio State
Sherrod Martin 6-0, 191 Troy
Joe Burnett 5-11, 185 Central Florida
Cary Harris 6-0, 180 USC

[WoodleyofTroy]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

Thanks for starting this thread by the way. I'd like to use this to keep updates at the Combine in how these Corners test out and who the Steelers may be keeping an eye on / bringing in for looks....instead of starting another thread.

[calmkiller]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

I don't really know much about the corners this year. I know Ellis Lankster from WVU is going to be in the draft and he had a pretty good Senior Bowl. 1 int and some return yards. But he wasn't invited to the combine. He will probably be a FA if anyone does take a look at him. Sadly.

[Oviedo]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

Joe Burnett and Keenan Lewis. Burnett immediately helps the return game.

Burnett is a better player coming out of UCF than Asante Samuel was.

Analysis
Positives: Confident and a leader on the field. ... Stronger than you'd expect for his size. ... Good vertical, able to make a play on jump balls. ... Solid hands for the interception and is elusive enough to make yardage after the catch. ... Good recovery and closing speed -- is never out of a play. ... Nice hand-eye coordination to break up passes. ... Quality kickoff and punt returner because he has solid hands, good vision and patience, hits the open lane hard, makes the first man miss and runs through arm tackles.

Negatives: A bit small and light to handle larger NFL receivers, although he has a good lower-body build. ... Lacks elite top-end speed. ... Not particularly strong on the line and struggles to get off blocks. ... Brings pressure as a blitzer but does not finish off the quarterback. ... Usually plays off the receiver in order to get cushion on deep routes. ... More of a cut tackler, does not wrap up often enough. ... Probably best in a zone system with help over the top. ... Is not a typical pro punt returner with great speed and quickness.

[Iron Shiek]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

Thanks for starting this thread by the way. I'd like to use this to keep updates at the Combine in how these Corners test out and who the Steelers may be keeping an eye on / bringing in for looks....instead of starting another thread.

Good lookin out WoT. And might I suggest to the mods that perhaps we start "Position of Interest -- CB" or "Position of Interest -- OT" threads started and stickied. Then have a list of the guys at the combine similar to how WoT listed in his post above with potential round and measurables and school and what not. Then as the combine progresses, we can all add our comments regarding players that are at those positions.

I don't do much draft scouting and rely on you guys who are good at it. It makes it cleaner to be able to find specific position breakdowns (of Steelers interest) in one place.

Cheers.

[mshifko]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

i never thought about that guys...that would be a good idea to sticky threads related to positions in the draft...hook us up MODS

[flippy]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

Macho Harris is a great fit for the Steelers and has huge upside.

And he's a tremendous athlete that would be a fantastic return man on day 1.

[dirt]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

The guys I want the Steelers to look at, and my overall favorite Corners of the draft, who are also great Kick Returners.

Darius Butler 5-10, 182 UConn (2nd round)
Domonique Johnson 6-2, 200 Jackson State (3rd/4th round)

I don't see the Steelers taking a first round corner. But if we truly wanted to replace Bryant McFadden and mimic the round he was drafted in, Darius Butler would fit that bill at the end of the 2nd...if he's there. Being a Big East fan I got to see a lot of William Gay, and I remember watching him at Louisville, thinking he would be a good Nickle Corner off the bat (New England Patriot like) making plays. As you can tell, I was very happy in the 5th round that year when we got him. Butler is ten times that. Has great hands (use to be a WR), and his cover skills just looked effort less out there. Hard to describe, if you watched him during the game (Pitt vs Conn for one) you could just tell he had it. Not sure what he's going to do at the combine, but he could very well go in the top of the 2nd putting us out of reach.

Top 10-15 range:
Malcolm Jenkins 6-0, 180 Ohio State
Vontae Davis 6-0, 205 Illinois

#15-#32
D.J. Moore 5-10, 182 Vanderbilt
Alphonso Smith 5-9, 195 Wake Forest

1st round sleeper / Top 10 of the 2nd:
Sean Smith 6-2, 215 Utah (probably a Free Safety)

2nd/3rd round guys:
Victor Harris 5-11, 192 Virginia Tech
Coye Francies 6-1, 185 San Jose State
Jairus Byrd 6-0, 205 Oregon
Mike Mickens 5-11, 170 Cincinnati
Asher Allen 5-10, 200 Georgia
Bruce Johnson 5-10, 175 Miami
Keenan Lewis 6-1, 200 Oregon State

3rd-5th:
Captain Munnerlyn 5-9, 190 South Carolina
Jerraud Powers 5-9, 190 Auburn
Ryan Palmer 5-9, 190 Texas
Donald Washington 5-11, 195 Ohio State
Sherrod Martin 6-0, 191 Troy
Joe Burnett 5-11, 185 Central Florida
Cary Harris 6-0, 180 USC

According to Lolley's blog today,[url]http://nflfromthesidelines.blogspot.com/[/url] Wexell mentioned that the steelers spent time talking with Coye Francies and Darius Butler at the combine.

[steelernation77]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

Coye Francies had a great Senior Bowl week. I don't think he'd be a available at 64.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

Coye Francies had a great Senior Bowl week. I don't think he'd be a available at 64.

Wasn't he kicked out of Oregon State after he was arrested for possession of a loaded firearm? The Steelers typically try to avoid guys like this.

[WoodleyofTroy]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

Coye Francies had a great Senior Bowl week. I don't think he'd be a available at 64.

He also goes to the same school as Jarron Gilbert. San Jose State. Eventhough he has some character issues with questionable intelligence, he's still in the top 6-7 of CB's with that size and atheliticism. Curious to see what they say about him tomorrow.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

Coye Francies had a great Senior Bowl week. I don't think he'd be a available at 64.

He also goes to the same school as Jarron Gilbert. San Jose State. Eventhough he has some character issues with questionable intelligence, he's still in the top 6-7 of CB's with that size and atheliticism. Curious to see what they say about him tomorrow.

Well, if it comes down to a choice between the two San Jose State boys at #64, I'm all over Gilbert.

[steelernation77]

Re: Potential CB options in the draft....

Coye Francies had a great Senior Bowl week. I don't think he'd be a available at 64.

He also goes to the same school as Jarron Gilbert. San Jose State. Eventhough he has some character issues with questionable intelligence, he's still in the top 6-7 of CB's with that size and atheliticism. Curious to see what they say about him tomorrow.

I found his profile on draftcountdown.com interesting. It said he has questionable intelligence, but he plans to pursue a masters in biology? The gun thing is certainly a worry.

Darius Butler also looks good.