Wheaton could make biggest splash among Steelers’ rookies

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By Alan Robinson

Jarvis Jones could come in and start immediately. Le'Veon Bell could come in and start immediately. But Markus Wheaton could be the rookie from the Steelers' Class of 2013 who makes the biggest impact.

Forget the comparisons to Mike Wallace, the receiver he might replace — if not in the lineup, then as the Steelers' best deep threat. While Wheaton is exceptionally fast, especially after making the catch, he is not Wallace-fast.

He won't have to be to still be effective in Todd Haley's offense, which values quick throws to receivers who run precise routes to get open in heavy traffic.

“Markus Wheaton is a very good route runner who is coming into the NFL and will be ready to play right away,” ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said.

Wheaton, the leading receiver in Oregon State history, fell to the Steelers in the third round partly because of his 4.45 time in the 40 at the NFL Scouting Combine. Jones, the Georgia outside linebacker, slipped to No. 17 overall partly because of his 40 time, too.

Wheaton says he had run in the 4.3s during other workouts, just not the one that counted.

“I know it probably hurt his feelings and made him feel bad, but we were happy because, when you put the tape on, he plays fast,” Haley said of Wheaton, who caught 91 passes for 1,244 yards and 11 touchdowns last season. “He's a fast player and quick. He's an exciting guy to have around.”

Haley also called Wheaton “a versatile, good, polished” player. And while Wallace had game-changing speed, the word “polished” wasn't used to describe him coming out of Mississippi, also as a third-round pick.

Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/3954424-74/wheaton-steelers-receiver#ixzz2SFCJG600

Wheaton will never be as fast as Wallace, but I bet he can more than fill his shoes. Wallace never seemed to grasp the playbook. He appeared lost the first few years on any play that didn't involve him running a fly and last year his little hold out cost him the opportunity to come up to speed on Haley's playbook. My other gripes on Wallace are that he dropped a lot of passes in the middle of the field, went down with very little contact, and was a poor blocker. Don't get me wrong, that speed he had was well worth having him for the time we did. In sum, I believe Wheaton is the more rounded receiver of the two and a great value for a 3rd rounder.

imo Wheaton more about the run after the catch where Wallace is about running by you then catchng the pass.

might not be Wallace fast but he's fast.

kirklandrules wrote:

Wheaton will never be as fast as Wallace, but I bet he can more than fill his shoes. Wallace never seemed to grasp the playbook. He appeared lost the first few years on any play that didn't involve him running a fly and last year his little hold out cost him the opportunity to come up to speed on Haley's playbook. My other gripes on Wallace are that he dropped a lot of passes in the middle of the field, went down with very little contact, and was a poor blocker. Don't get me wrong, that speed he had was well worth having him for the time we did. In sum, I believe Wheaton is the more rounded receiver of the two and a great value for a 3rd rounder.

Wallace is gone, and I'm still defending this.
Wallace dropped 6 passes last season. Brown dropped 4 in fewer games. Some of the top receivers in the NFL had double-digit drops.

Other than that, I agree with everything else you said, KR. My complaint with Wallace was that he wasn't aggressive enough. Everything I've been reading about Wheaton, it sounds almost like he's a combination of Wallace and Brown. That would be splendid.

This kid could be something special early on if he learns the playbook. I got Plax for one more year (right?) so maybe he can teach the kid a couple of things other than gun safety.