Steelers 2013 Breakout Player Projections

By Sayre Bedinger

The Pittsburgh Steelers just missed the playoffs in 2012 and have their sights set on an AFC North title in 2013 with a revamped defense and a lot of new faces on offense.

Mike Tomlin and company have put together an impressive young roster, and despite the departures of some of the team’s more notable players like James Harrison and Mike Wallace, the Steelers should be right back in contention for the AFC North in 2013.

With the changes both offensively and defensively, the Steelers are going to need some players to have breakout seasons in 2013. Here is a player from each of the last three draft classes that could become a household name in the Steel City before too long.

Third Year — Cortez Allen, CB

The Steelers’ coaching staff is really high on Allen, who is taking over for the departed Keenan Lewis opposite Ike Taylor at cornerback. He will kick inside to play nickel corner in those situations, but otherwise, the former fourth round pick seems to have a lot of upside in this Pittsburgh defense.

He has great size at 6’1″ 196 pounds, and after just 14 tackles in his 2011 rookie season, Allen had a really nice 2012 campaign with 55 tackles, two interceptions, and three forced fumbles. He also had 10 passes defensed, and should be one of the top playmakers in the Steeler secondary.

This is always a well-coached unit, and Allen is a young player out of The Citadel with a ton of upside. He might finally reach some of his full potential with a much bigger role in 2013.

http://nflmocks.com/2013/06/09/pittsburgh-steelers-2013-breakout-player-projections/

Absolutely no disrespect to Jarvis Jones, but I would probably favor Le’Veon Bell as a better break out prospect than Jones. Hey, I’ve stated my very high opinion of Jones in other posts, but learning the Steelers defense is not easy and with Worilds in place, the Steelers can groom Jones slowly.

kirklandrules wrote:

Absolutely no disrespect to Jarvis Jones, but I would probably favor Le’Veon Bell as a better break out prospect than Jones. Hey, I’ve stated my very high opinion of Jones in other posts, but learning the Steelers defense is not easy and with Worilds in place, the Steelers can groom Jones slowly.

Yeah, I agree. We have no idea what will happen 2, 3, or 4 years down the road. But it's a safer bet to expect Bell to have more of an impact than Jones this season.

Wallace108 wrote:

kirklandrules wrote:

Absolutely no disrespect to Jarvis Jones, but I would probably favor Le’Veon Bell as a better break out prospect than Jones. Hey, I’ve stated my very high opinion of Jones in other posts, but learning the Steelers defense is not easy and with Worilds in place, the Steelers can groom Jones slowly.

Yeah, I agree. We have no idea what will happen 2, 3, or 4 years down the road. But it's a safer bet to expect Bell to have more of an impact than Jones this season.

Or a faster impact. This may be a case of Bell being more likely to start on opening day. Jones might become a starter later in the season. Of course, injuries may be the deciding factor in all this.

kirklandrules wrote:

Wallace108 wrote:

kirklandrules wrote:

Absolutely no disrespect to Jarvis Jones, but I would probably favor Le’Veon Bell as a better break out prospect than Jones. Hey, I’ve stated my very high opinion of Jones in other posts, but learning the Steelers defense is not easy and with Worilds in place, the Steelers can groom Jones slowly.

Yeah, I agree. We have no idea what will happen 2, 3, or 4 years down the road. But it's a safer bet to expect Bell to have more of an impact than Jones this season.

Or a faster impact. This may be a case of Bell being more likely to start on opening day. Jones might become a starter later in the season. Of course, injuries may be the deciding factor in all this.

Yeah, again I agree. Barring injury or Worilds totally crapping the bed, I'd be surprised to see Jones starting early. On the other side, I feel almost like it's Bell's job to lose. Essentially, all he has to do is beat out Redman, which isn't exactly like asking for something impossible.