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The Steelers nailed the draft this year

Discussion in 'Steelers Talk' started by steelersrule6, Oct 20, 2021.

  1. steelersrule6

    steelersrule6 Well-Known Member

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    Considering Najee and Freiermuth are homerun picks, and they're getting contributions from seven picks I would say they nailed it. I will leave the clickbait to you, that's your thing.
     
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  2. steelersrule6

    steelersrule6 Well-Known Member

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    7th round pick making plays
     
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  3. Maddog78

    Maddog78 Well-Known Member

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    Too early to tell if they're "home runs", although I don't know how you define that.
     
  4. Rel

    Rel Well-Known Member

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    As much as I like Harris, I'm sitting here watching undrafted D'Ernest Johnson run over Denver like Harris did and it just reminded me again why RB's are a waste in round 1.

    It then prompted me to look at the current top 10 rushing leaders:

    1. Henry - Rd 2
    2. Chubb - Rd 2
    3. Elliot - Rd 1
    4. Mixon - Rd 2
    5. Taylor - Rd. 2
    6. Robinson - Undrafted
    7. Jackson - QB so I'm skipping him but he was Rd 1
    8. Harris - Rd 1
    9. Jones - Rd 5
    10. Henderson - Rd 3

    Again, I love Harris.....I still just don't see the value in Rd 1 RB when the same performances can be had in Rd 2 on
     
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  5. steelersrule6

    steelersrule6 Well-Known Member

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    The tape don't lie :shrug:
     
  6. steelersrule6

    steelersrule6 Well-Known Member

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    And what RB would the Steelers have gotten, if they passed on Najee?
     
  7. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    Johnson is doing that behind one of the best offensive lines in the NFL and the Broncos lost Von Miller during that game. Harris did it behind a much weaker line, so it isn't exactly the same thing.
     
  8. Rel

    Rel Well-Known Member

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    you are kind of making my point. The offensive line is where high draft picks should go.
     
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  9. Rel

    Rel Well-Known Member

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    they could have had Chiba Hubbard, Trey Sermon, Michael Carter, or a slew of free agent options.

    Listen, I’m happy we have Harris for the next 5 years. He, IMO, was the best RB in the draft no doubt. I personally just think the difference between a round 1 RB and a round 3 RB is minimal.
     
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  10. Bob in Canada

    Bob in Canada Well-Known Member

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    The problem with the argument is you can't base it off the current top 10 in the league because none of those except harris were available to the steelers in the draft but Najee.

    If they wait till their second round pick, it was highly doubtful that najee, etyienne (sp), or Williams was going to be there.

    There are no other rookie RB in this class even in the top 50 in rushing stats except for Hubbard who is currently 27th.
     
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  11. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    Actually, it doesn't make your point because Harris tore them up, too. Remember, he put up big numbers despite missing much of the fourth quarter. Success in the running game is a combination of the backs and the line. It also involves having a passing game that defenses must respect. The Steelers needed a running back. Connor looks great for Arizona, but the Steelers weren't going to trust him again after years of injuries. The best back in the draft fell to them, they took him, and he is playing like it. Offensive lines can be built fairly quickly. The Browns did it. So did the Bucs. The Steelers should have been putting more resources into the line and that needs to be the focus in the upcoming offseason, both in the draft and free agency.

    Sure, teams can get lucky with late-round picks and undrafted free agents at running back. The Steelers did it with Willie Parker. Look at the top backs in Pittsburgh the last 20 years other than Parker. Conner was the lowest pick of them. The others were taken in the first or second round. That includes Bettis, a first-rounder for the Rams before they were stupid enough to trade him to the Steelers.

    I think the mistake was passing on Creed Humphrey in the second round. I know the Steelers liked Green and they thought they were better off getting both him and Freiermuth, who would not have been available in the third round, but they needed to prioritize the line. Following up the Harris pick with Humphrey would have allowed them to do that.

    I don't hate what they did because I really like Freiermuth, but it's hurting them this season and possibly beyond.
     
    Last edited: Oct 22, 2021
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  12. Maddog78

    Maddog78 Well-Known Member

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    Especially when your OL stinks and you have holes elsewhere. Browns are going to regret extending the oft-injured Chubb - you can get backs anywhere to run with that kind of OL.

    Let's also not forget that they have a great OL coach and play caller. Their use of play-action last night was fantastic.

    The Steelers promoted two guys from within into their first jobs at their respective positions in the NFL.
     
    Last edited: Oct 22, 2021
  13. Maddog78

    Maddog78 Well-Known Member

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    Maybe we should have traded for Keenum?

    Harris was 23-122, Johnson was 22-146. One was the first RB taken in the draft, one was a UDFA. If both get injured tomorrow, the Steelers run game will collapse, the Browns will not, because they'll just plug in another guy. That's the point.

    Conner, Parker, Bell, and Bettis all ran behind great offensive lines. As you point out, Conner suddenly looks good again. In Bettis' first year with the Steelers, Erric Pegram ran for 500 yards at 5.2 YPC. Steelers better fix the OL in a hurry, otherwise their entire run game will rely on one guy, and they're putting an enormous workload on him as a rookie.
     
  14. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

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    Taking the 6th or 7th best offensive lineman is not a high draft pick.
     
  15. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    The Steelers could have gotten the impact starter on the line in the second round. That is what you are missing, or willfully ignoring.

    Also, that wasn't exactly the same Denver defense last night. They have lost even more guys to injury, including Von Miller getting knocked out of the game early on.

    I rushed through my previous post and overrated what Conner is doing for the Cardinals. He is actually only averaging 3.4 yards per carry, well below his 4.3 mark for the Steelers last year. He has five touchdowns, but I was wrong in using the word great. he was actually better early last season for the Steelers. People tend to forget that the Steelers' running game was effective the first six games last season, then mostly disappeared.
     
    Last edited: Oct 22, 2021
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  16. KMM

    KMM Well-Known Member

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    I look at that and my thought is the most productive backs are drafted early, rounds 1 and 2. Seven out of the Top 10 and all of the Top 5 seems pretty lopsided particularly considering that many teams will not draft a RB early at all. You'd probably have to look back at the success rate of RB's by round drafted and compare to other positions' success rate by round to see where the value really lies.

    The best argument against drafting a RB early IMO is not productivity per se, but duration of productivity in terms of how many good seasons you get out of them. That, however, may be blunted by the fact that if you have a really good player at other positions you might not be able to sign them to that second contract.
     
  17. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    next one we need to nail a QB obviously, interior OL, CB, DL, WR. :cool:
     
  18. Blast Furnace

    Blast Furnace Staff Member Mod Team

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    Conner is also offering nothing as a receiving RB. The Steelers tried for years to find impact RBs in the later rounds, didn’t work.

    Harris was an obvious fix for the running game. Easy choice.
     
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  19. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    Careful. You are swimming upstream against unanimous NFL groupthink or some such nonsense.
     
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  20. SteelersFanIrl

    SteelersFanIrl Well-Known Member

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    You could argue the same about the TE position, James, Gentry etc drafted over the years.

    I thought they’d select Humphrey in the second round and I thought picking a TE was nuts given their other needs but the early signs are good to be fair, if Friermuth can be the next Heath and offer high level play for nearly a decade you can’t knock the decision.

    If Green works out long term it will vindicate the selection further
     
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  21. Blast Furnace

    Blast Furnace Staff Member Mod Team

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    Surprised me, too but from what I have read, they wanted Greens athleticism as they felt it fit better with what they wanted to do.

    Time will tell.
     
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  22. AskQuestionsLater

    AskQuestionsLater Writing Team

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    Kendrick Green should not worry anyone really. As I had stated, have stated and will continue to do so, trial by fire. He is going to take his lumps; this entire rookie class doubly so and no less. What should be discussed here is not the amount of lumps taken but how often these rookies rise up from them and improve their overall abilities.



    For that difference matters.
     
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  23. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    That is the key. If they are right about Green and Moore, then that removes all doubt about the Harris pick. (This assumes that he is as good or better than he looks so far.)

    The Steelers needed help at center, tackle, tight end, and running back. Some people can't get past the generalization about running backs to see that they were pursuing the best overall value in filling all four positions rather than following some NFL groupthink about which positions you should draft when.
     
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  24. Maddog78

    Maddog78 Well-Known Member

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    55 catches in 12 games in 2018 is....nothing?
     
  25. Maddog78

    Maddog78 Well-Known Member

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    Buy "some people", I assume you mean actual NFL results the last decade or so. The game has changed, and obviously passed some teams and fans alike.

    When is the last time a RB-centric team won a Super Bowl? Broncos late 90s? Ravens 2000?
     

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