Steelers Draft - Signs that K Butler is on the RIGHT Track

Okay, haven't posted in a while, nice to see you guys...

Thoughts on this year's draft implications regarding our defensive potential (note potential is the key term here):

1. Butler, as our LB coach, surely recognizes the importance of a zone scheme succeeding by creating consistent pressure on the QB. Shazier last year, fast and athletic, and now we see the following (Keep in mind that CONSISTENT FAST PRESSURE is the key to my premise for our D to succeed:

Dupree enters the mix, and at his size will be pushing for Moats spot. I believe the EXPECT J Jones to play more to his 1st round expectations this year. If the two of them are performing well, and we have Moats and Harrison to fill in, then OLB should be able to get consistent pressure and hold the edge. Keep in mind, this may take the full season to play out, depending on Dupree's learning curve and readiness in general

ILB is already set up to be fast, explosive and reliable with 4 guys that could technically start on any other 3-4 defense in the league.

2. and now for the DB's: My personal take is that Shamarko will never be as dynamic as Troy, but he will be hard-hitting and aggressive (again, plays into the idea that we must get consistent pressure on QB's). That leaves the CB's... if Golson and Grant can contribute to what will likely be a rotation of CB's throughout the year (I just don't see C Allen and A Blake being the answers by themselves). BUT, what we've all agreed on over the years, is that our CB's have not been able to get the interceptions we need, too many drops, and just didn't have the quickness/speed/intelligence to get in the right spot (except for Troy). If Golson and Grant can improve that, then we're in a great spot.

3. The DL is primed to do it's job of simply shutting down the run by holding the line with Tuitt and Hayward and McLendon. If the other guys can handle rotational support, there are no concerns here.

So, in short, I really feel like Butler knows what he needs this defense to develop into to become a league force, and has taken the RIGHT steps and CORRECT choices to make that happen....

but, as we all know, scheme doesn't win games, so here's to hoping that this new core of LB's can play at elite levels and make QB's nervous with consistent fast pressure. To me, this is the closest we've seen in years to throwback Steelers Blitzburgh D, and it appears to me that Butler knows exactly what needs to happen. This year's D success (minus injury) will simply come down to players playing well.

I excited to see what we get... more excited about our D's potential than I've been in a few years, that's for sure.

Have a great day everyone... can't wait to start hearing some media reports from mini-camp...

 

Good post blitz, nice to see you too. I agree with what you're saying. Our DLine is shaping up nicely, and we have the pedigree at LB (we will start 4 first round picks once Dupree's game is there) that you would expect a 3-4 team to have. We used the draft to try to upgrade the corner position, and have a quick and aggressive SS coming into his first year as a starter.

I don't expect a top caliber defense this season, but I think we will steadily improve all year long. By the end of the year we should have a group strong enough to compete for a SB with our high powered offense. I'm excited to see what Butler has in store for us this year.

 

When I saw "K Butler", I was going to mention that Drew Butler stopped being the team's kicker back a few years back.

 

Yep, I scratched my head at that one too.

 

To me, the funniest thing is that I can type our Defensive Coordinator's name now without being reported to the "message board police".... any old timers should get a chuckle out of this.

 

Oh Jesus, that stupid ass piss poor excuse of a message board. The NFL/Steelers should be ashamed of that garbage...what a joke. That thing caused me more stress than I care to admit

 

I found beer helped.

 

I think it spoke a great deal to how little the franchise understood about what they could do with the Internet and social media. I don't think it's a coincidence that when Art started having a bigger role in running things you saw the website improve in leaps and bounds, the production department got better and they were doing more to utilize the Web. Just a shame that so many got fustrated with the previous site and it's function or lack thereof

 

I'll be honest. I am happy you bring up zone. If anyone is disappointed in our 2nd round pick. Go to YouTube take a look. Be excited.

 

This exactly... and, of course, the likelihood that the throw is not perfect is highly dependent on the pressure we get on the QB and his comfort level in the pocket.

 

Agreed, the site was an absolute mess considering what other teams were doing with their sites at the time. With a fan base as large as the Steelers and all the college kids rotating in and out of Pittsburgh, the fact that they had that hot mess up was insulting to say the least.

 

The "Steelers.com" site improved getting updated and relevant to the Times. The message board was considered a great place for fans to interact , early on but as social media expanded the view and opinion of a message board declined and when you look at the members of the board, most notably active participating members when compared to other media outlets in numbers it became cost prohibitive to maintain. They reallocated their resources and let the site message board slowly die. There were other independent boards out there already, but the "official" one even with its many flaws to me was special, mainly due to its link to the Steelers but also due to its community. I joined, then travelled for a few months and upon returning couldn't log back in, changed my name, got banned ( my fault ) and rejoined as cajunyankee, and as the board died I decided I would stay with her till her death.

I thank TTF for building a site for that community ( and all others ) to move to and enjoy as the old board died. You sir, have done a good job building, maintaining, growing a site in a forum many felt was outdated as social media grew,expanded and experimented.

Cajun

 

Although, remember back in the earlier days (01-04ish) there was a chat room as well as a messageboard. There were some other interactive things as well - it was like they threw the whole of the internet at the site, and then gradually whittled it down to just the messageboard, and then let that go.

 

I think you may be a bit premature. We don't know anything about Butler as a DC. There one sign we have is a positive one. He devided the responsibility of coaching the LBers up. This is key. OLB and ILB are two very different positions from scheme to responsibility to type of player needed to perform those duties. The Steelers have for a long time had the smallest coaching staff among its peers. As the game has evolved the need for more coaches has grown. Butler first hand knows this and by having two LB coaches they can better focus on the task at hand.

We'll start to get a hand on Butler as DC during camp and then preseason on how he builds his defensive scheme and tools it. We'll get even better understanding during the season on game days with his playcalling and adjustments.

I too look forward to every tid bit of info and watching our once vaulted defense return to its rightful place.

Cajun

 

one thing for sure is we are getting guys that can run on defense. we had slowly gotten older and slower. we've added speed team wide in the last few years.

 

Again Mac, this exactly. Companies don't haphazardly develop long-term plans, and neither do football franchises... it's a matter of time and hoping we put the right people in place.... as is the case with any business.

 

x2

i don't remember how many post i had on the off.mes board ... but were a lot ..i loved that board this one is doing the same job , i don't know how many we lost but there are ...the good of that board was we were all out there ..

r.i.p. old glory steelers mb