Dupree: Are You Buying What He is Selling?

Former Steelers LB blames Mike Tomlin for draft fall
Story by Jacob Punturi • 15h

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers had an impressive tandem at outside linebacker between 2017 and 2020. A pair of young first-round picks anchored the edge rush and became Pro Bowl players.

One of those players is still with the Steelers, as T.J. Watt continues to be the leader of the locker room and a superstar in Pittsburgh. The other, Bud Dupree, is still hanging around the NFL with considerably less success. But while with the Steelers, he recorded seasons of 11.0 and 8.5 sacks to. complement Watt.

Looking back on his time with the Steelers, Dupree made one startling revelation. Appearing on Cam Heyward's Not Just Football podcast, he shared how former Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin might have sneakily helped Pittsburgh land Dupree in the 2015 NFL Draft. During the pre-draft process, Dupree claims that Tomlin gave him the advice to not run another 40-yard dash after the one he ran at the NFL Draft Combine.

"I was about to get ready to run my 40, so I'm warming up and then Coach Tomlin was like, 'Why'd you run a 40 again?' I'm like, 'Why wouldn't I run a 40? Let's try to run a 4.3,'" he explained. "And he was like, 'Nah, don't run a 40, you already ran, you ran fast already.' And looking back on it, Coach Tomlin stopped me from getting drafted higher so I could go to the Steelers. I definitely would've ran faster than I ran at the Combine and I would've been a higher pick."

Did Tomlin Help Steelers Land Dupree With This?
Dupree certainly has a reason to be ticked off. As every draft shows, extremely athletic players rise up the ranks and go earlier than expected. The Steelers selected Dupree with the 22nd overall pick, but if he had posted a more impressive 40-yard dash time, it's possible he would have been a top-15 pick, rather than the third edge rusher taken in that class.

So the question is: was Tomlin really that savvy? The 19-year coach of the Steelers certainly was known for getting the players he wanted, but are we learning a bit of how he worked, or is this a bit of coincidence? It's certainly possible that Tomlin knew that teams would stay away from him with those combine numbers, and it would work out in the Steelers' favor.
Maybe Tomlin was looking out for Dupree and viewed his 4.56 40-yard dash time as more than enough. Looking back at his NFL Draft profile from NFL.com, the book on Dupree was already well-read in 2015. He was viewed as an extremely athletic player who was viewed as an eventual starter in the NFL. It's possible a faster time wouldn't have had any impact on his draft stock.

 

I always liked Bud, but this sounds like a reach. He was drafted 22 overall which seems about right.

 

I don't buy that at all. Seems fishy.

 

Don't need a fast 40 to be an edge setter.

 

I'm one of the biggest Tomlin critics here and I smell bullsh!t.

 

Podcasts need clicks.
I like Cam but I aint clicking.

 

Dupree got drafted about where he was supposed to go, he was considered a raw prospect. Those players usually listen to their agents not some HC.

 

Agree. Why would you listen to a HC when you don't even know who was going to draft you? Wouldn't you want to possibly improve your draft position? Doesn't make sense.

 

Another reason I don't listen to players podcasts they just be saying anything .

 

I watched the interview , it could have happened, all I know is I won big money by betting that he was our 1st round draft picks that year.

 

Took the words out of my mouth

 

It’s not like he kept all the college tape on John Stallworth and didn’t pass them on to any other team…

 

Dupree’s athletic testing was public and strong. He ran a 4.56 official 40 at the Combine (with some pro-day and private-workout reports even better), posted elite explosiveness numbers, and every team that saw him in Indy, at Kentucky’s pro day, or in a private workout had the exact same data. There was no hidden information. If Dupree later felt Tomlin or the Steelers “hurt” his draft stock with public comments, the counterpoint is straightforward: Pittsburgh still used a first-round pick on him (22nd overall in 2015). Teams routinely soft-pedal or downplay prospects they like so they don’t tip their hand or drive the price up. Public skepticism followed by a high selection is a classic move, not evidence that the team tanked the player’s value. Other clubs had the same tape and numbers and still let him get to 22. So....


I think Dupree was a player who mostly got by on talent alone. He hated camp. And still has some sour grapes with Tomlin. If Bud did not like his 40 time, he had many chances to improve upon it.

• 40-Yard Dash: 4.56 seconds (95th percentile among edge defenders)

• 10-Yard Split: 1.60 seconds

• Vertical Jump: 42.0 inches (99th percentile)

• Broad Jump: 138 inches / 11'6" (99th percentile)

• 3-Cone Drill: 7.52 seconds

• 20-Yard Shuttle: 4.48 seconds

 

Well I would say Dupree got on over on the Steelers and not the other way around, he certainly did not live up too a first round pick edge rusher.

 

I agree... Dupree would have been an excellent 2nd or 3rd round pick, but not 1st. Still... Dupree was a better pick than Burns, Bush, Edmunds and Pickett.

 

Bud is full of dung.......Most teams had coaches and other personnel at this workout.... audible gasps were heard while he ran..... there was absolutely no secret here