Which maked him an 8th round pick. Keep smelling the coffee and buying the brainwashing. 3rd best team in division for at least 2-3 years.
Steelers Draft
- Thread starter Gunga_Galunga
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Not running from anyone. In my opinion the Steelers draft this year is complete garbage. Why? In my opinion you never draft a half back in the 1st round unless you have a guy that is a once in a decade type player.
Especially, when you have a offensive line that some wouldn’t start for Pitt. Anyone involved in the game understands you could have Superman running the ball. If the line can’t block it’s a wasted pick.
For fun I’ll bet you a 100 bucks that Harris doesn’t get a thousand yards this year and next. Ready??
Wade may be a decent slot corner. But he was horribly exposed as a #1 corner on the outside. He always seemed to me to maintain buzz by virtue of being a 5 star recruit and playing at OSU. Slightly bigger version of Lamont Wade.
Searcy started in Super Bowl 30, so while I don't have the starting lineup for the AFC Championship game handy it seems likely that he started that game too.
Since there is more than one position on the offensive line, I wonder why he didn't do the same thing with guards and centers?
OK, you're right, I don't really wonder. I know the reason why.
Tomlin didn’t like that he opted out of his super powers to marry Lois Lane in Superman II.
You got me on Searcy. He played in 2 AFC championship games. But I believe that’s it.
Because everyone is bitching about OT. Marquis Pouncey played on the 2010 team that lost to Green Bay. Alan Faneca played on the Super Bowl teams in 06 and 09. My point is the vast majority of OL come from later rounds.
I spent some time today reviewing this and the only other first round tackle I could find was Wayne Gandy, who was not a Steeler first round pick but still a first round pick.
Nonetheless, I would have thought the figure was much, much higher.
With linemen in general, Pittsburgh has done well with interior first round picks for about 30 years now. Jamain Stephens is the notable example in the past 30 years where they were completely wrong.
FWIW, they had some guys at tackle that were second and thirds that were excellent (and I forgot about a lot of them).
I agree with your general point though that the line can be addressed throughout the draft and Pittsburgh has done a great job of that for a long time.
You do know that in the time frame you specified that the Steelers have drafted more running backs than tackles in the first round, right? Even though they play two tackles at a time and only one running back. Given that, if they had more first round tackles playing in those games than first round running backs that would be a huge indictment of the running backs that they picked.
Although come to think of it, the lineup after Franco Harris actually is pretty much an indictment.
Greg Hawthorne
Walter Abercrombie
Tim Worley
Rashard Mendenhall
Let's hope Najee Harris ends up a hell of a lot better than those four.
Come on Freeport, everyone knows that Superman can be completely shut down by having your defensive linemen wear Kryptonite !!!
I’ll take that bet if the $100 goes to Pitt to a fund of the winner’s choice.
The Thomas kid from Michigan State was a surprise he didn't get drafted. I am sure the Steelers had a "wink wink" agreement with him that he would sign as a free agent.
I think people holding to these "draft rules" as steadfast gospel is stupid and naïve. It is where too much credence is given to analytics, because they exist in a vacuum. Sure, Dealer has 4, you are holding 13, you stand. But...you don't win every time. You win that maybe 55% of the time. Which is obviously better than 45%, but you still lose 45% of the time.
So in the Steelers case, and again people are talking about "first round", but this is the 24th pick. We aren't talking top 10. There was no OL left that was considered any type of slam dunk at 24. The fact that no other was drafted the rest of the first round proved that. The fact that the top 3 picks were gone by the 36th pick, again, you can hold to these steadfast draft geek rules, but every draft and situation is different. This year, with the Steelers needs and draft position, the best player available was Harris. It made sense.
Now pick 2, I really like Friermuth, but man with Creed Humphrey sitting there, that's a tough call and a risk. But Friermuth becomes the next Heath Miller, and the 3rd rounder becomes a great center, then it is a great move. After the third round, your guess is as good as mine.
So in the Steelers case, and again people are talking about "first round", but this is the 24th pick. We aren't talking top 10. There was no OL left that was considered any type of slam dunk at 24. The fact that no other was drafted the rest of the first round proved that. The fact that the top 3 picks were gone by the 36th pick, again, you can hold to these steadfast draft geek rules, but every draft and situation is different. This year, with the Steelers needs and draft position, the best player available was Harris. It made sense.
Now pick 2, I really like Friermuth, but man with Creed Humphrey sitting there, that's a tough call and a risk. But Friermuth becomes the next Heath Miller, and the 3rd rounder becomes a great center, then it is a great move. After the third round, your guess is as good as mine.
Ambercrombie - 4th RB taken (12th overall)
Mendenhall- 4th RB taken (23rd overall)
Worley - 2nd RB taken (12th overall) - productive first season, had drug/off field issues
Harris - 1st RB taken (24th overall)
There is a difference between the four. We took the top RB in the draft at a lower pick than the other three..
Mendenhall was not some terrible NFL football player. He was fine until he fell out of love with the game. He had 2 1,000 yard years and one 900 yard year with the Steelers in 5 years. He had injuries that essentially wrecked his first and last years with Pittsburgh. He clearly lost the heart for it at the end, which happens.
Ha, well you never know. They still have Layne and Pierre, who they supposedly like. Then they took that guy from Oklahoma late in the draft. And I'm sure there's someone on their practice squad who I'm forgetting.
True, the pounding RB's take in the NFL, that wasn't bad output. Like you said he lost interest in football and found interest in 9/11 conspiracies. But at least he wasn't a Kijana Carter type of productivity at the position.
You can add Terrell Edmunds as the rare (but common for their DBs) Steelers 1st round bust
https://www.si.com/nfl/steelers/news/pittsburgh-steelers-decline-terrell-edmunds-fifth-year-option
https://www.si.com/nfl/steelers/news/pittsburgh-steelers-decline-terrell-edmunds-fifth-year-option
Yeah made a super bowl with him
Granted his fumble was a killer that game but he wasn’t
He’s not a bust at all
He’s been a starter all along .
A bust would be a dude who barely played or was cut
that olb from Georgia is a bust
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Pretty hard to call a multi year starter a bust. He wasn't great, or a pro bowler, but he played a lot.
They're looking for more cap space next year, smart if they think they can get the same production out of a cheaper option.
The 5th year option for Edmunds draft slot is only about $4 million and the Steelers are projected with $100+ of cap room. Edmunds' option didn't get picked up because he's not good.
He's played about 3,000 snaps in the last 3 years and he has 3 turnovers. His best season PFF grades were low 70s, which is barely cracking "starter" territory. He allowed a passer rating of 120 when targeted in 2019. I don't care that he played a lot by default, there's not one metric you find find that says he's a good player.
Missed the part where I said he was good??
Said he started a lot of games, played a lot, and was far from a draft bust because of that.
A draft bust doesn't play or gets cut.
The very article you linked said Edmunds would be due $6.75 million in his 5th year! LOL
Why would they invest that kind of $ when they can probably get as good or better production from a much less expensive option??
Ok, so your definition is that anyone who plays like the absolute worst starter at his position group in the league, and was drafted with a 1st round pick (a team's most important resource), and didn't get a second contract from said team, isn't a bust because they played a lot of snaps? That's weirdly circular logic. Anyone who played a lot isn't a bust irrespective of what he did or didn't do on the field.
Sorry, I just find that argument not to be compelling. The dude soaked up a lot of snaps, so what? He was a reach at the time of the pick, had 2 terrible seasons and 1 absolute bottom-starter season. He starts by default and isn't getting a second contract on a team with weak overall talent at DB and $100M in cap room. He's a bust.
Ok so you're saying he's not good, would only be the 15th most expensive safety in the NFL, and the team that drafted him thinks it can still find similar production for less but Edmunds didn't bust, got it.
You just have a weirdly specific definition of bust from dudes in the 80s and 90s that get drafted in the 1st and never played at all. By your definition Artie Burns wouldn't even be a bust because he started for 2 full seasons. Basically no one is ever a bust as long as they see the field.
PG's Gerry Dulac's Steelers Draft Grade:
"Overall: Starting the draft with four offensive players was as surprising as it was rare. Yes, two of the picks were a necessity — getting a No. 1 running back and a replacement for Maurkice Pouncey — but each of the four picks only further highlights the Steelers’ intention to change the running game and the overall scheme up front. Waiting six rounds to find a backup for the most important position on defense was probably not ideal, though that might be offset if Johnson develops into a future starter at ILB. Make no mistake, getting Harris near the bottom of the first round qualifies the draft as an instant success. What’s more, it’s not every day a team finds a starter in the seventh round. From where they were drafting, getting three potential starters for 2021 out of nine picks isn’t bad. Grade: A"
"Overall: Starting the draft with four offensive players was as surprising as it was rare. Yes, two of the picks were a necessity — getting a No. 1 running back and a replacement for Maurkice Pouncey — but each of the four picks only further highlights the Steelers’ intention to change the running game and the overall scheme up front. Waiting six rounds to find a backup for the most important position on defense was probably not ideal, though that might be offset if Johnson develops into a future starter at ILB. Make no mistake, getting Harris near the bottom of the first round qualifies the draft as an instant success. What’s more, it’s not every day a team finds a starter in the seventh round. From where they were drafting, getting three potential starters for 2021 out of nine picks isn’t bad. Grade: A"
See Edmunds is what happens when you are hellbent for a position and you reach for a guy. He was no way projected to be a 1st rd pick. They could have likely gotten him in Rd 2. So all those people bitching about not drafting an OL in Rd 1...just because they needed one, well here's why you take the best player that fits, not just the best remaining at the position.
The weird fixation on Edmonds on this board is silly
He’s not the problem on defense
the cline isn’t a far bigger concern
Isn't it amazing how many draft "experts" there are today?
A previous draft "expert", Mike Mayock, doesn't seem to be nearly as smart with his real selections as the Raiders' GM.
Bust is a very subjective term. Obviously means different things to different people.
Your interpretation is different than mine.
I'm sure the Steelers hoped he would perform at a higher level, they have had other first rounders who have performed much worse, played far less, and didn't last as long.
He'll be a free agent. If there is no interest, they could still bring him back, like JuJu.
The Steelers currently sit at $90 million in cap space for 2022.
Not picking up Edmunds' $6mm option says a lot IMO.
Not picking up Edmunds' $6mm option says a lot IMO.
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