Calm your mind...

Great take on the draft class and future of the team...

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2773648-steelers-quietly-became-the-team-to-beat-after-the-2018-nfl-draft

My favorite piece of that article!

Way, way too optimistic look at things with that article.

Count me in. I think we picked up some pretty damn good players that will add to all 3 phases.

I'll admit I really wanted, and still think they need a LB, but I like the players they got. Edmunds seems to be a really versatile player, and the secondary suddenly seems well stocked now...just hoping they can jell and produce. I also like the WR they got, the multi positional Samuels, and hard hitting Steeler fan Allen. I absolutely did not expect a QB this year, but like that they got him. No way to tell how it works out at this point, but the idea that we may be developing the future starter under Ben is awesome.

I liked our draft. When Vander Esch and Evans went off the board I knew our chances at getting someone that could remotely fill Shazier's role were gone. We got a great receiver with better hands than Bryant. Washington looks to be a much more polished receiver and has every chance to be better than Bryant.

I also loved the Rudolph pick. He could be the QB of the future. While I am always wary of Big 12 QBs, he's got the size and intangibles. He also gets the benefit of learning from one of the best QBs to ever play.

We filled needs, we got guys that were steady, reliable, and polished college players.

I am optimistic for this season to begin.

what I like about this draft the Steelers didn't sell out for right now and got players for down the road.

While I'm optimistic we have to be realistic too. There's a big problem on the LB-position. On the outside we have Watt and Dupree as starters and I think we can all agree that Dupree so far is nothing but a disappointment. The back-ups are Chickillo (ok as back-up, but nothing more) , Adams (an unproven 7th round pick from 2017) and maybe Olusunkanmi Adeniyi (UDFA). This is the worst OLB-corps in the NFL, both in quality and depth. On the inside we have Bostic and Williams as possible starters who are similar players. Bostic might a bit better than Williams but has a history of injuries. Williams is not good enough as a starter, he's a high quality back-up. Matakevich and Fort and/or Matthew Thomas (UDFA) are the back-ups, all below average players. Again the worst corps in the NFL at this position, both in quality and depth.

We have an excellent defensive end in Heyward and someone who can be as good as him in Tuitt. But after his injury last season the last one had a lot of difficulties to obtain his best level. Let's hope that the injury won't bother him this season and that he can play at his best form again. Alualu is a quality back-up. Normally, we don't have to worry about this position. Hargrave had a mediocre 2017 season, after a very good rookie campaign. He didn't make any progression and is not good enough as a starting NT right now. His back-up and our 7th round pick Frazier is a runstopper on 3rd down, but will have a lot of problems if he needs to play on the first 2 downs. I think I don't need to say anything about McCullers. Again a position where we lack both quality and depth.

This means a lot will depend on our backs. While I absolutaly love our group of CB's, they're all still young and need time to develop. So we have to wait how much progress Burns, Sutton, Brian Allen and Hilton will make. Burns had a mediocre 2017 campaign after a more than decent rookie season. Can he make the next step? I believe Sutton can become one of the best CB's in the league in a few years if he can stay healthy, but that's a big if as he's already had many injuries the last 2 years. Allen is a project and no one knows what he will bring this season. Is he finally ready to play some snaps at CB or does he need another year? Hilton had a great 2017 season and will likely confirm. The only proven and experienced CB we have is Haden. If he's healthy he's an excellent player. But again, that's a big if as he was injury prone in the past.

Our safety group has changed a lot and that's a good thing. No Mitchell, Wilcox or Golden anymore. Burnett is a superb FA signing and is a great SS who can play in the box too in subpackages. Our rookies Edmunds and Marcus Allen can do the same, but we don't know how much time they need to adjust to the NFL. Especially Allen is raw and has limited skills as a SS. It's no coincidence that he had only 1 interception in his rookie career as he's not good in coverage, his strength is helping to stop the run. Davis will probably make the move to FS. We will have to see if this position will suit him better than SS where he struggled in 2017. Berhe will be a nice ST player if he makes the 53, but will have limited snaps at safety.

Making a long story short a lot will depend on the development of our young players. Watt, Dupree, Hargrave, Burns, Sutton, Davis, Edmunds and Marcus Allen in particular. Some will succeed and some will fail, we just need to wait what the ratio between the two will be. A lot of question marks and we will need a lot of positive answers to succeed.

Stella Nation wrote:

While I'm optimistic we have to be realistic too. There's a big problem on the LB-position. On the outside we have Watt and Dupree as starters and I think we can all agree that Dupree so far is nothing but a disappointment. The back-ups are Chickillo (ok as back-up, but nothing more) , Adams (an unproven 7th round pick from 2017) and maybe Olusunkanmi Adeniyi (UDFA). This is the worst OLB-corps in the NFL, both in quality and depth. On the inside we have Bostic and Williams as possible starters who are similar players. Bostic might a bit better than Williams but has a history of injuries. Williams is not good enough as a starter, he's a high quality back-up. Matakevich and Fort and/or Matthew Thomas (UDFA) are the back-ups, all below average players. Again the worst corps in the NFL at this position, both in quality and depth.

We have an excellent defensive end in Heyward and someone who can be as good as him in Tuitt. But after his injury last season the last one had a lot of difficulties to obtain his best level. Let's hope that the injury won't bother him this season and that he can play at his best form again. Alualu is a quality back-up. Normally, we don't have to worry about this position. Hargrave had a mediocre 2017 season, after a very good rookie campaign. He didn't make any progression and is not good enough as a starting NT right now. His back-up and our 7th round pick Frazier is a runstopper on 3rd down, but will have a lot of problems if he needs to play on the first 2 downs. I think I don't need to say anything about McCullers. Again a position where we lack both quality and depth.

This means a lot will depend on our backs. While I absolutaly love our group of CB's, they're all still young and need time to develop. So we have to wait how much progress Burns, Sutton, Brian Allen and Hilton will make. Burns had a mediocre 2017 campaign after a more than decent rookie season. Can he make the next step? I believe Sutton can become one of the best CB's in the league in a few years if he can stay healthy, but that's a big if as he's already had many injuries the last 2 years. Allen is a project and no one knows what he will bring this season. Is he finally ready to play some snaps at CB or does he need another year? Hilton had a great 2017 season and will likely confirm. The only proven and experienced CB we have is Haden. If he's healthy he's an excellent player. But again, that's a big if as he was injury prone in the past.

Our safety group has changed a lot and that's a good thing. No Mitchell, Wilcox or Golden anymore. Burnett is a superb FA signing and is a great SS who can play in the box too in subpackages. Our rookies Edmunds and Marcus Allen can do the same, but we don't know how much time they need to adjust to the NFL. Especially Allen is raw and has limited skills as a SS. It's no coincidence that he had only 1 interception in his rookie career as he's not good in coverage, his strength is helping to stop the run. Davis will probably make the move to FS. We will have to see if this position will suit him better than SS where he struggled in 2017. Berhe will be a nice ST player if he makes the 53, but will have limited snaps at safety.

Making a long story short a lot will depend on the development of our young players. Watt, Dupree, Hargrave, Burns, Sutton, Davis, Edmunds and Marcus Allen in particular. Some will succeed and some will fail, we just need to wait what the ratio between the two will be. A lot of question marks and we will need a lot of positive answers to succeed.

Think we'll see tons of sub packages using these young safeties as situational ILBs.
I think Chikillo is a pretty good pass rusher. Better than Dupree. The key I think is the secondary's ability to support the run while covering the TE and slot receiver in the middle.

Paul Zeise: The Steelers' draft still makes very little sense

PAUL ZEISE
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
MAY 4, 2018

The Steelers draft picks made very little sense, for the most part, as they were happening in real time. Now, a week later, with time to reflect and hear Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin’s rationale, they make even less sense.

to read rest of article:

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/zeise-is-right/2018/05/04/steelers-nfl-draft-terrell-edmunds-marcus-allen-mason-rudolph/stories/201805040130

solardave wrote:

Stella Nation wrote:

While I'm optimistic we have to be realistic too. There's a big problem on the LB-position. On the outside we have Watt and Dupree as starters and I think we can all agree that Dupree so far is nothing but a disappointment. The back-ups are Chickillo (ok as back-up, but nothing more) , Adams (an unproven 7th round pick from 2017) and maybe Olusunkanmi Adeniyi (UDFA). This is the worst OLB-corps in the NFL, both in quality and depth. On the inside we have Bostic and Williams as possible starters who are similar players. Bostic might a bit better than Williams but has a history of injuries. Williams is not good enough as a starter, he's a high quality back-up. Matakevich and Fort and/or Matthew Thomas (UDFA) are the back-ups, all below average players. Again the worst corps in the NFL at this position, both in quality and depth.

We have an excellent defensive end in Heyward and someone who can be as good as him in Tuitt. But after his injury last season the last one had a lot of difficulties to obtain his best level. Let's hope that the injury won't bother him this season and that he can play at his best form again. Alualu is a quality back-up. Normally, we don't have to worry about this position. Hargrave had a mediocre 2017 season, after a very good rookie campaign. He didn't make any progression and is not good enough as a starting NT right now. His back-up and our 7th round pick Frazier is a runstopper on 3rd down, but will have a lot of problems if he needs to play on the first 2 downs. I think I don't need to say anything about McCullers. Again a position where we lack both quality and depth.

This means a lot will depend on our backs. While I absolutaly love our group of CB's, they're all still young and need time to develop. So we have to wait how much progress Burns, Sutton, Brian Allen and Hilton will make. Burns had a mediocre 2017 campaign after a more than decent rookie season. Can he make the next step? I believe Sutton can become one of the best CB's in the league in a few years if he can stay healthy, but that's a big if as he's already had many injuries the last 2 years. Allen is a project and no one knows what he will bring this season. Is he finally ready to play some snaps at CB or does he need another year? Hilton had a great 2017 season and will likely confirm. The only proven and experienced CB we have is Haden. If he's healthy he's an excellent player. But again, that's a big if as he was injury prone in the past.

Our safety group has changed a lot and that's a good thing. No Mitchell, Wilcox or Golden anymore. Burnett is a superb FA signing and is a great SS who can play in the box too in subpackages. Our rookies Edmunds and Marcus Allen can do the same, but we don't know how much time they need to adjust to the NFL. Especially Allen is raw and has limited skills as a SS. It's no coincidence that he had only 1 interception in his rookie career as he's not good in coverage, his strength is helping to stop the run. Davis will probably make the move to FS. We will have to see if this position will suit him better than SS where he struggled in 2017. Berhe will be a nice ST player if he makes the 53, but will have limited snaps at safety.

Making a long story short a lot will depend on the development of our young players. Watt, Dupree, Hargrave, Burns, Sutton, Davis, Edmunds and Marcus Allen in particular. Some will succeed and some will fail, we just need to wait what the ratio between the two will be. A lot of question marks and we will need a lot of positive answers to succeed.

Think we'll see tons of sub packages using these young safeties as situational ILBs.
I think Chikillo is a pretty good pass rusher. Better than Dupree. The key I think is the secondary's ability to support the run while covering the TE and slot receiver in the middle.

this new Steelers defense two down linemen Watt and Dupree will be DEs, OLBs will be SSs with Bostic ILB on running downs on passing downs SS will be the ILB.

Dupree is really a rush and pass rush DE Watt is a DE that can drop into coverage. what Tomlin is doing is an up date of the Bud Carson 70s defense Tony Dungy Tampa defense into his version of the 4-3 defense.

instead of having true OLBs it is about having in the box SSs playing OLBs Tomlin is looking to really simplify the defense, eliminate sub packages and have as many DB on the field to stop the run or the pass.

you 3-4 Steelers defensive guys it is kinda messing with the head and messing with ESPN draft nixs why the Steelers drafted Edmunds with the 28th pick.

Burnett was signed and Edmunds and Allen drafted to pretty much play LB.

Jack Ham OLB played the run and played the TE seam on oneside of the field same with Jack Lambert play the run and drop back and play the other TE seam Andy Russell was more of in the box OLB same Robin Cole.