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Each draft pick analyst

FordFairLane

FordFairLane

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Terrell Edmunds S Virginia Tech
I know he’s an unpopular choice and to be honest I didn’t have him as a first round pick until I went back a year and saw his sophomore tape. Edmunds was hampered by a shoulder injury and played more of a traditional safety role last season. And it’s not like he did a bad at it just flashed less often. And that could be attributed to his injury as well. Now watching his Sophomore tape he was asked to do a lot of what Shazier was asked in our passing packages. Edmunds really played that rover hybrid safety/linebacker and man he flashed all over the field. I really think year one they put him in on sub packages where we really missed Shazier. I think Butler will keep Bostic and VW in on those more traditional sets but in today’s NFL that’s half the snaps now.

Pros- quick twitch athlete with rare size speed combination. NFL pedigree with both brothers and father playing in the league. Position flexibility. Instinctive, the game comes naturally to him.

Negatives- jack of all trades but will that hinder him from finding a true position in the nfl. I think Butler is going to expect a lot from him in terms of lining up the defense and calling plays (not this year) so even though he’s instinctive I would like to know his football IQ. Steelers saw something in him but did the rest the of the NFL? Maybe see if any trades for 28 were available.

https://www.mockdraftable.com/player/terrell-edmunds

Grade B+

James Washington WR Oklahoma State
My guy was Anthony Miller but went to the Bears. The Steelers definitely liked Washington and after trading Bryant WR became a need position. Washington is a highlight reel and he has some freaky production numbers over the last 3 seasons. I heard a lot of Golden Tate comparisons but to me he reminded me of Hines Ward. Good athlete but not great, good hands but nothing special, could use some route finesse but finds a way to get open, and when he takes his shirt off not going to win any beach body trophies. That said he has a love of the game and backs it up on the field.

Pros- Production, motor, and self driven.

Cons- Not the greatest athlete and not sure he runs much besides a go route.

Grade B
 
Mason Rudolph QB Oklahoma State
Again this was a guy I didn’t know much about until the Steelers started sniffing around him. I did like him more as I watched more tape. Big kid, decent foot quickness, enough arm, and good deep ball accuracy with the balls to air it up to his guy. He seemed to improve each and every year and I saw no reason to believe he has topped out. I think sitting behind Ben and learning the offense while fighting it out with Dobbs can only improve him and Dobbs while giving us a shot at Roethlisberger’s replacement.

Pros- Mechanics are solid, reads a defense and goes through the progressions, did a nice job airing it up and used play action well.

Negatives- Midget hands might hurt him fumbling and throwing in the cold. Hangs onto the ball too long will need to that clock in his head to speed up.

Grade B+
 
Chukwuma Okorafor OT Western Michigan
Not gonna lie I’ve watched a total of 6 minutes of video on Okorafor so I’m not an expert. But what stuck out was him vs TJ Watt and in fact I bet that’s how he got on the Steelers radar. TJ had his hands full with Okorafor and more often than not #77 won vs #42. He seems to get his hands on you and it’s over even though he’s technically not that sound. I think that’s the appeal is if you coach him up he could be Jonathan Ogden. If not he’s Michael Orr and a turn stile out there.

Pros- size and strength and carries it very well. Long arms with massive hands and has natural strength abs talent.

Negatives- technique is very raw. Doesn’t finish off blockers and tries finesse. Needs a mean streak.

Grade B
 
Marcus Allen S Penn State
Allen is your classic in the box type safety. One of the best tacklers I’ve seen and definitely not afraid of contact. I’m confused at the pick as the Steelers took Edmunds in the first. Idk if they plan on running some crazy sets putting a couple of safeties in at LB or what but if not I just don’t see Allen making the 53 man here. I see them try to sneak him onto the PS and probably getting snaked by another team.

Pros- active player who is always around the ball. Sure tackler and stops the guy flat. Smart player with tons of big ten production.

Negatives- in the box type safety not gonna offer much in terms of pass coverage. Lots of safeties not a lot of spots open.

Grade C+
 
Jaylen Samuels RB/FB/TE NC State
Really loved this guy and his production and versatility. He runs routes like a WR, runs like a RB, can block if needed and was productive at whatever he did. Again a versatile player who can play several positions.

Pros- above average athlete. Great hands, nice route runner, very good vision as a runner.

Negatives- jack of all trades but is he good enough at any to be a full time starter?

Grade A-
 
Joshua Frazier DT Alabama
Again this is a tough one because he played so few snaps so very little tape.

Pros- top 100 recruit coming out of HS. Seems quick and strong for his size. Had a lot of talent in front of him. Our new d-line coach might know something about him.

Negatives- couldn’t scratch the starting lineup.

Grade D
 
One thing on Rudolph and his hands. Did he have fumbling/accuracy problems at OK State? I'm asking because Oklahoma isn't exactly Cali when it comes to weather. I'd imagine that any issues related to cold/snow and his hands would have shown up while he was in college
 
SteelBuckeye said:
One thing on Rudolph and his hands. Did he have fumbling/accuracy problems at OK State? I'm asking because Oklahoma isn't exactly Cali when it comes to weather. I'd imagine that any issues related to cold/snow and his hands would have shown up while he was in college
Click to expand...

Lost 11 fumbles in his career. That worries me. Daunte Culpepper had tiny hands and fumbled a lot and that’s why I keep track. Goff has tiny hands and didn’t worry the Rams and he played well last year.

Maybe I read too much into it but I’d prefer a QB to have close to 10” but that’s just me. Roethlisberger has 9 7/8, Favre had 10 3/8, Brees 10 1/4. I look for the same thing in receivers and maybe that’s why I liked OBJ when he was drafted and Anthony Miller this year.
 
Edmunds I think you use him as how you used Davis and Gay. Allen as you used Shazier. If you axe Wilcox I think there is a spot for both. Okor played against decent competition so like you mentioned Steelers see him as a high boom or bust player. They are hoping Munch and the Oline can install some good work ethic in him. With some nudging and schooling. Love the Hines comparison for Washington. I think he shares some similar traits. I thought Frazier being a rotational player could have easily came in as a UDFA. He doesn't have to be an all pro to stick. He simply has to beat out Big Dud er Dan for a spot. My preference there would have been Tate who was drafted shortly after the pick. JaySam you can carve out a Slash role for him and see how it goes. I don't think he was drafted to be a starter, more of a gadget type of player. To see if he could cause some match-up issues. Rudolph's ceiling IMO is the Ben of now. The less mobile version. But that's ok if he can slide in the pocket,and hit those WRs.



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Make no mistake Wilcox will be cut very soon. We have no need for him whatsoever and we'll save $3 million under the cap. We also saved $1.3 by trading Bryant. That should give us some room to sign the rookies and maybe make a trade in August like we did getting Vance McDonald etc.
 
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