List your top 3 draft needs

List your top 3 draft needs in order and give a brief supportive statement.

1) SS- Our biggest need. Shark is not the future we hoped for. Golden is ok but we really need that Top tier talent @ SS to pair with Mitchell. Today's Offenses require this.

2) OT- We have no viable OT backups. AV is as raw and inexperienced as they come. Beechum is a UFA and injuryed. We may not resign him,at least not until after the start of the season. Adams??? Please.

3) BPA TE/DL- Heath is not who he once was. We need that TE weapon. I'm supposing Heath has another year or two. DL is a solid need. Tuitt and Heyward were logging insane snaps. There is no viable backups or reliefs. With Butler turning loose his DL he's running alot of 4-3 sets with 3-4 personnel. We could really use a dynamic Pass rushing DE or Run stuffing DT. Either would really help.

* CB- Hard not to place CB in the top three. Cortez is most likely done. I am optimistic Gay, Cockrell will be the starters.... Blake is learning and being forged in the fire.... He should be improved by next year. Boykin I expect to be resigned and given a chance to fight for a starters role in camp. Golson should be back in full contention by camp. Then there's Grant, PS, who's learning the NFL and our team.... by camp he should be better prepared to contribute.

Cajun

 

Nice! I love these threads. My response will probably come Monday.

 

The season isnt even half over yet. Lets see how this season shakes out before we start thinking about what we need for next year. REALLY

 

Safety.

Hate to say it, but OLB.

G/C...future Ramon replacement, and back up for when Pouncey gets injured.

 

Actually, I think now is the perfect time to start thinking. We've played enough games to gauge what we have, we kinda know who may not return and by thinking of what we need gives us something to look for on Saturdays.

Being in ACC country I'm looking at DBs from Duke and NC State.

Cajun

 

MJ STEWART at UNC too underclassman tho

State has a real good defense

BUT in all honesty Cajun you are close enough to check out the Chesapeake area because we all know that's where our players come from

 

Funny..... I go to Norfolk once a week, this past week some people were talking about a player @ Norfolk state....... I looked him up, he's an OLB named Deon King.... will probably go undrafted. Another player in the area that has national attention is Torian White....OT from Hampton University. Now William & Mary, Tomlins al la mater, has a FS that may be drafted, DeAndre Houston-Carson.

Cajun-

 

Safety, CB TE really hard to evaluate CB position, when I
feel we have some good ones that aren't seeing any playing time?

 

I thought they had a good defense Too until Clemson came to town ... Ugh

 

In no particular order - OLB,DB,TE

 

DB - We have so few guys under contract for next year, and we need a talent spike, either safety or CB. Any round of the draft for this, but ideally a top talent.

DL - I think Walton will be good for us as DE depth, but I'd like to see a penetrating DT that can come in on passing downs and disrupt things and give Heyward/Tuitt a breather. Not looking at the first or second round, but if there's a guy with superior talent around I'd consider pulling the trigger. Quick pressure on the QB is critically important.

An athletic, versatile OL - We'll need depth everywhere and also a potential replacement for Foster. An upgrade over Wallace is necessary, but maybe that's Finney. Like DB, I'd be comfortable selecting an OL anywhere, but ideally not in the 1st.

 

1. SS- we need someone to become a starter at this position. Allen is old. Golden is a good option as a 3rd S, but we could use a young starting quality player here.

2. OT/G- only if Beachum leaves in FA. We are good with Villanueva as the back up if Beach stays. We can find another guy in the late rounds if we are just looking for depth. We could also look to take a G (not in 1st round tho) to eventually replace Foster. We have decent depth with Wallace, Finney, and Hubbard tho.

3. CB- mainly because we have a ton of FA's. If we re-sign Gay and go with Cockrell, Blake, Golson, and Grant I think we won't go CB in the top 3 rounds. If we let Gay or Blake go, we will need to get another guy in the top 3 rounds.

Honorable mentions

OLB- only for depth though. Another guy to rotate in would be great. JJ and Dupree is a solid lineup with Moats and Chick rotating. Maybe just go for a later round guy here.

WR- we don't know what's going to happen with AB's contract, or Bryant's contract/pot smoking habit, or even with Wheaton long term. With how well we evaluate late round WR's we should snag one almost every year just in case we hit again.

RB- DeAngelo isn't getting younger. While I anticipate him being around and playing well next year, it wouldn't hurt to draft a player we like in the late rounds. He could sit for a year and get up to speed, then come in as a back up to Bell in his second year.

TE- gotta look for Heath's replacement sometime. I know we like James, but Spaeth is old too. If there's someone who fits what we like with our TE's we should try to get him.

DL- Thomas is likely out of town, and our depth is a little thin here. Maybe snag a DT/DE guy to be a multiple position back up, or maybe just go for a starter and make McLendon the multiple position back up.

 

I would say my top three would be 1. S 2. OL 3. DL

S - I would like a safety drafted in the first 2 rounds. ST29 doesn't seem to be the answer and W. Allen is getting up there in age. I hope he retires tbh. I think Golden can hold the fort more than adequately until the rookie is ready.

OL - A lot depends on Beachum and his free agency. If he stays, we have 3 good tackles and the interior can be upgraded. I like C Jack Allen out of MSU. Don't know if they would draft a Center with Wallace on the roster though unless they think Allen can back up either G and C. If Beachum leaves, a T will be necessary.

DL - We need to get another DE to spell Heyward/Tuitt. I think Walton will develop but another guy needs to be in the fold for depth and to upgrade Cam Thomas. I think we're set with Big Mac and Shade Tree for DT. Big Mac's contract is up after this year, but I bet they re-sign him on a 2 yr deal.

QB - no
RB - not in the first 3/4 rounds
TE - I think H Miller retires after next year unfortunately so we have one more year before a high pick is needed if at all. Jesse James is very young so we'll see how he develops after 2 years in the NFL. They may just need another mid rounder.
WR - Wheaton is probably gone imo. Another 4-6 rounder should be added.
OLB - no
ILB - no
CB - I think they wait to see what they have in Golson/Grant. I doubt they draft one in the first 3 rounds unless a top talent is there for the picking. I would draft another but I don't think the Steelers will.

 

my thoughts exactly..i could not have written a better post thne yours turtle...exactly what this team needs.

 

safety, interior lineman, TE, ILB, OLB, RB, DL.

safety first and foremost.

foster replacement but a guy that can play guard and center.

TE needs added to even with james. spaeth and heath are getting near the end. this is a pretty important position for this team.

timmons isn't what he once was and that turf toe scares me. spence may not be back. williams struggles in coverage. shazier is often hurt and out of the lineup.

silverback is old. moats could be upgraded and jj is average at best. maybe we find a diamond in the rough to work in. dupree could be a beast.

bell has had two knee injuries the last two years. RB's don't last long in the league for the most part. those injuries add up quickly for RB's, so maybe a young guy brought in to start learning. d-will is good but aging quickly.

definately a need for some good youth here on the DL.

 

MAC.

do you think this team can get by with Golden and Mitchell as safeties for next year, thus focusing on OL and DL in the 1st 2 rounds?

 

possibly but he'll have to be re-signed. do we try to sign him at a low offer for 2-3 years or will he want more money knowing he would be the starter and then we are stuck with having to start him because of the money we are paying him then? slippery slope really.

 

still going
defense seco dary

but I guess the only Tar Heel I can put out there this year is OG Landon Turner (rd2)

 

I think S, OLB and Oline, I usually get into the draft pretty soon but I have a name of a safety that I have read about and was wondering if anyone has seen him play. Kevin Byard Middle Tennessee, from what I have read looks to be having a pretty good season, one website says he has a nose for the ball and is a tackler. Thoughts anyone????

 

These lines always make me laugh...kinda like when someone mentions a game 3-4 weeks down the road and someone flips out about how we need to focus on only the next game. No, the FRONT OFFICE is who needs to let the season shake out. We can start talking about it anytime! Just like the TEAM needs to focus on Indy...we can talk about Cincinnati or any other game...

 

Nothing is going to change so i'm pretty sure you're safe to make your Christmas list now.

 

S/CB jeremy cash please.

if we can re-sign gay and boykin i think we could be OK with cockrell, golson, grant and another corner for some depth. i don't think we need to get one real early in this draft. safety is a different story. golden re-signed for depth and cash and mitchell could make a decent backend. one more young guy later at safety would also be needed or a FA. cortez and blake could go as far as i'm concerned. shark could go too.

TE spaeth could be replaced. james is looking better but we need another younger one added.


DL, cam thomas needs to go. we have a young guy here and will get one back from IR.

OL adams needs to go.ramon could be replaced.
i think with finney, wallace and hubbard in place as depth we could be ok. i may try stingley as a OT re- signing. we should get a couple of guys back off of IR to compete for the O-line too.

OLB maybe.

ILB, though i'd like to re-sign LJ fort for this spot.

 

Top 3 Needs

1. CB
2. CB
3. Probably CB

 

After spending a few min on our 2016 team I have to say now our #1 and #2 needs have to be CB. Blake(thank god), Gay, Cockrell, and Boykin are all UFA. Now who we re sign will matter as to how much we need a CB, and we are getting Golson back but let's face it he is more of a rookie at this point coming off injury.

I feel this is a very good year in FA for a corner and we all know we are not in the Norman/Smith race cause the Steelers aren't big spenders. However a guy like Boykin, or Powers could be a nice value later in FA. I could see guys like Fuller and King being guys we target in the 1st.

I am not a guy who think just because we need a CB we have to draft on in the 1st, I am all about BPA. Also we have lots of holes, maybe one just as big as CB in a true 3-4 NT, Billings and Clark are guys I need to look more into. Safety is another big need and I am not so sure Kearse is our guy, we will get another look at him in the Championship game. I see some here are high on Cash so I need to check him out.

The other thing is we may need a LG, LT and of course a LB, so with us losing picks for Scobee and Boykin I feel we trade down and so far what I have seen in this draft the bottom of round 1 could be nice. If guys like Elliott and Henry fall some may want to come up and that would be a good chance to replace lost picks!

A name that I want to check out for the bottom of round one is Scooby Wright OLB Zona he was pretty impressive the little I watched him.....yeah I know not another LB!!!!

I can't wait for the Shrine game, Sr bowl and combine....but I hope that can wait a bit as we talk more about playoffs the next week or so......Let's go Bills!!!!!!!!!!