Monthly Archives: April 2014

steelers draft

Shazier, Zumwalt, And Bucannon Have Pre-Draft Visits With Steelers Today

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The Steelers are hosting LB Ryan Shazier (Ohio State), LB Jordan Zumwalt (UCLA), and S Deone Bucannon for pre-draft visits today.

The Steelers met with Zumwalt at the Combine. Oddly enough, Shazier said that he already had a visit with the Steelers. I know a lot of energy goes towards the Steelers taking a tall WR or the top CB available in round one, but don’t be surprised if Shazier is the Steelers first pick.

Zumwalt is a bit over aggressive at times, and will need to add weight to his 6’4″ frame when he gets to the NFL. He’s likely a mid round prospect. Here’s a gif of him cleaning Logan Thomas’ clock.

Here’s Shazier and Zumwalt sharing a table at Primanti Bros.

Deone Bucannon might be one of the hardest hitting safeties in this draft class. I could probably fill this post with youtube “hit clips” featuring him drilling someone. While being known as a violent hitter, he also has a nose for the ball. The former Washington State defensive back had 15 interceptions during his career there. Here’s a couple games of him in action. Thanks for stopping by, and as always, share with your friends.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4x6J0cicds
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftssF4HfMg8

steelers draft

[Audio] LSU WR Odell Beckham Jr Had Dinner With The Steelers Last Night

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Former LSU wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was on SiriusXM’s Moving The Chains with Pat Kirwan and Jim Miller this afternoon. During the interview, he told the hosts that he had dinner with “the Steelers” last night. Presumably, he had dinner with Mike Tomlin, Kevin Colbert, and Todd Haley who were all in attendance for today’s Pro Day at LSU.

Here is the audio from that portion of the interview:

[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/siriusxmsports/lsu-wr-odell-beckham-talks[/soundcloud]

Beckham Jr. is 5’11, 198 lbs, and ran a 4.43 official at the combine. His 2nd attempt was a 4.31. His overall combine performance was pretty spectacular, which only helped his stock after 3 very good seasons at LSU. Last year, OBJ had 59 receptions, 1,152 yards for a total of 8 TDs.

Many have the wideout projected to go in the first round, but the Steelers are not likely going to want to use the #15 pick on him. Here are a couple videos of him in action. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to share with your friends.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_M52KgXSJ8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOXnTM2OsWk

steelers training camp

Pittsburgh Steelers 2014 Preseason Schedule Announced

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The NFL has released the Pittsburgh Steelers 2014 preseason schedule today. Here it is:

Week 1 at Giants (AUGUST 7-10)
Week 2 Bills (AUGUST 14-18)
Week 3 at Eagles (AUGUST 21-24)
Week 4 Panthers (Aug. 28)

The Steelers will be hosting the Bills this summer for 3 joint practices at Latrobe. This is the 12th consecutive season that the Steelers play the Panthers. None of the Steelers preseason games will be nationally televised live this year. FWIW, I got 3 of the 4 opponents right earlier. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to share with your friends.

steelers draft

Mike Tomlin, Kevin Colbert, And Todd Haley Attend LSU Pro Day

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As you might expect, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, GM Kevin Colbert, and Todd Haley are in attendance for LSU’s Pro Day today.

 


Obviously there’s a handful of prospects performing today that the Steelers could have a legitimate interest in, but one would have to think that LSU’s receiving corps is going to be their main focus there. Here is a list of LSU’s attendees.

LB Lamin Barrow
WR/RS Odell Beckham Jr.
RB Alfred Blue
WR Kadron Boone
FB J.C. Copeland
DT Ego Ferguson
LB Seth Fruge
LB Jarett Hardnett
DT Anthony Johnson
RB Jeremy Hill
LB Tahj Jones
WR Jarvis Landry
S Craig Loston
QB Zach Mettenberger
G Trai Turner
OL Josh Williford
WR James Wright

Beckham Jr. stood on his excellent 40 time from the combine of 4.43. Jarvis Landry, who had a very poor showing at the combine for his 40 yard dash (due to a hamstring pull reportedly), improved on it today going from 4.77 to 4.58. Landry is a legitimate possibility for the Steelers in my opinion. He’s an excellent route runner and has great hands. He could very well have a successful future as a physical possession receiver in the NFL.


I’ll close this with a couple videos of both Landry and Beckham Jr. if you haven’t seen them in action. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to share with your friends.

Landry
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TN3lII9T3XE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHZVb8vPRWU
OBJ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cjvErKu35g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTARGC1MBos

Steelers 53 Man Roster

Predicting The Steelers Preseason Schedule

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The NFL will be announcing the preseason schedules for all 32 teams later today. I thought it would be fun to take a shot at predicting the schedule. The league tries to include opponents who are not divisional foes, and who are relatively close in proximity. Here’s my shot at the Steelers preseason opponents this August. Feel free to point and laugh at me later. 🙂

Week 1- Philadelphia Eagles

Week 2- Buffalo Bills

Week 3- @ Detroit Lions

Week 4- @ Carolina Panthers

The real schedule will be announced at 3:15 est. today, check back then for an update. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to share with your friends.

 

 

steelers draft

[Gifs] Kevin Colbert And Mike Tomlin Represent Steelers At Penn State Pro Day

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Steelers GM Kevin Colbert and Head Coach Mike Tomlin were in attendance at Penn State’s Pro Day today.

 


Here’s the list of prospects who participated today:

  • Punter Alex Butterworth
  • Linebacker Glenn Carson
  • Receiver Brandon Felder
  • Offensive lineman Garry Gilliam
  • Offensive lineman Adam Gress
  • Defensive tackle DaQuan Jones
  • Tight end Matt Lehman
  • Defensive back Stephen Obeng-Agyapong
  • Receiver Allen Robinson
  • Offensive lineman Josh Urschel
  • Defensive back Malcolm Willis

As you may already know, there’s one guy on that list who is high on my radar, and likely the team’s radar as well- Allen Robinson. Robinson improved greatly on his combine performance today, posting a 4.4x 40 yard dash and a tremendous 42 inch vertical jump. To put that into perspective, that’s higher than what any receiver posted at the combine, and 5 inches higher than Mike Evans’ vertical jump in February.

The 6’2″, 220 lb Robinson had 97 receptions, 1,432 yards and 6 touchdowns last season. One of Robinson’s stats that jumps out at you is his yards after catch on screens. You may have seen this in the forum a couple months ago, but here are some gifs that capture how shifty he can be in those situations.

Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.

2014-04-07_2154

[Video] Time Lapse Of Baron Batch Painting Troy Polamalu Tribute

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As you probably already knew, former Steelers running back Baron Batch is a painter. A pretty awesome painter. Occasionally, he sells his art to help with a good cause. Recently Batch shared a behind the scenes look at the creation of his tribute to Troy Polamalu.

About the painting, the former 7th round pick said, “I played with Troy Polamalu in Pittsburgh, and if black and gold had a face…it would be his.” Here is the video of Batch painting Troy. Enjoy.

[xyz-ihs snippet=”BaronBatchTroy”]

steelers draft

Steelers Hosting Safety Calvin Pryor For Pre-Draft Visit Today

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The Steelers are hosting former Louisville Safety Calvin Pryor today according to Ed Bouchette of the Post-Gazette.


The 5’11”, 207 lb defensive back played mostly at free safety, but can play either free or strong. Many were surprised when Pryor went from being that “big safety” who was listed at 6’2″, to that averaged sized safety who shrunk 3 inches at the combine. Regardless, Pryor is a first round talent who is the best or second best safety in this class, depending on who you ask.

The big hitter’s specialty is zone coverage, as he didn’t play much man in college. Here are some of his games if you haven’t seen him in action. Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Io0tKa1cCeU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=2D6uqoUpNgs

steelers contracts

Darrius Heyward-Bey Contract Details & Steelers Salary Cap Update

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The details of Darrius Heyward-Bey’s contract are now available, and as I figured the other day, the deal is for one year at the veteran minimum, including a $65,000 signing bonus. As such, the contract qualifies for the veteran minimum salary benefit. Here’s how it breaks down.

[table]

Player, Year, Base Salary, Signing Bonus, Salary Cap Number

“Heyward-Bey, Darrius”, 2014, “$730,000”, “$65,000”, “$635,000”

[/table]

After displacement of the top 51, I can tell you that the Steelers should be sitting at roughly $380,000 under the salary cap right now.  Believe it or not, the Steelers still have room to add more veteran depth to the roster before the draft.

They may likely choose to do so without making any moves to clear additional cap space. The team could also work out a long term contract with Jason Worilds at any time, which in turn would clear at least a few million in cap space this year. Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.

Grove_Ryan

Steelers Assistant Athletic Trainer Hired By Dolphins

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The Dolphins announce that they have hired Ryan Grove as their new Head Athletic Trainer.


Grove has been with the Steelers for 18 seasons. Grove served as a graduate assistant athletic trainer for the Steelers from 1994-1996, after being an intern athletic trainer for the ’92-’93 season. He has been one of the team’s assistant athletic trainers since 1999.

In Miami, he replaces longtime athletic trainer Kevin O’Neill, who the Dolphins fired at the combine for his involvement in the Martin-Incognito scandal. About the hiring, Grove said, “I am excited to join the Miami Dolphins. The organization has a great history and storied tradition, and this is a great opportunity for me.”