Oregon DL Derrick Harmon

He has the size they need at 6'5 310lbs.

 

A little to tall for my liking if they are lining him up at NT?

 

Wonder how Stackhouse plays NT in the third round? Any SEC/ Dawg fan comment?

 

Maybe he wouldn't be a NT in the Steelers defense.

 

We know Benton is not good at NT, If we kick him out to Larry O's DT position leaves void at NT
spot

 

They need more than one guy on the DL you can find a NT in the later rounds.

 

Regardless of who's on the board, if this guy is available I'm running over Goodell to get to the podium.

 

They barely run with 3 down lineman. They aren’t drafting him for nose. Tomlin doesn’t put alot of value in the nose position.

 

And that is the problem with the Steelers run defense.

 

Bingo .... I have been saying it for years. But Tomlin is as stubborn as they come and he does not adapt or adjust so we will continue to try to fit a square peg into a round hole. The only time our defensive line was truly effective under Tomlins scheme was when we had TUiit and Heyward in there as they both were massive and athletic and commanded double teams while also penetrating the gap. Its very difficult to find two guys like that.

Mush easier to get a 350 lb guy to plop in the middle and occupy two blockers while your smaller quick athletic DT’s penetrate or better yet bigger DT’s gap contain laterally to completely clog up the rushing lanes. But for some reason we love our DT’s to penetrate. They weren’t asked to do that under Lebeau. The ILB’s were protected under Lebeue and had a free clear to attack the run downhill. But now we employ smaller more athletic linebackers and don’t protect them and expect good results. Doesn’t make any sense to me.

 

He should!

 

He hasn’t for years. But hey lets go with smallish quick DT’s to penetrate and let the inside linebackers get mugged by blockers. Its worked so well for us.

 

Harmon has some good looking film. If he and Grant were both there at 21 it would be a tough call. Grant's athleticism is great for a guy his size, but Hamon's nearly as large and projects better as a three-down player.

I think we're going to see a number of D-linemen moving up the boards after next weekend.

 

The Steelers rarely plan a NT anymore.

 

And we saw how that worked out for them at the end of last season, you can't be giving up 300 yards rushing in the playoffs like the Steelers did against the Ravens .

 

I think that had more to do with age and lack of talent than it did not playing a NT.

 

If it is such a big problem, then how were we the 6th best rushing defense in total yards and 4th in ypc allowed last season? The NT position is a low priority because most teams regardless of their defensive style run a ton of sub package defense in today's game with all the passing success (and rules that promote the passing game) and the evolution of the TE and RB position to be high quality pass catchers. DT's that aren't NT's can be great run stoppers...

The "4-2-5" between 3-4 defense and 4-3 defense is nearly the same. The 3-4 team takes a DL off the field and the 4-3 defense takes a LB off the field, but it is still 2 DT's, 2 pass rushers, and 2 linebackers that accompany the 5 defensive backs in sub package play.... Yes, 4-3 pass rushers tend to be a bit bigger than 3-4 rushers, but that is really it.

It makes Kenneth Grant look more like an attractive target, as he would play base NT and DT in sub package play (hopefully). Then the other DT would be Heyward or Benton in that case (we'd likely rotate the 3 anyways in this situation). Harmon is a nice player too, but he is essentially the 1 for 1 replacement of Heyward. He would get a lot of 3 tech work in his first year or two(Larry O's current spot) and then eventually take over Cam's responsibilities. It really depends on what we want to do.

If we are truly looking to draft DL in the first round, Grant is likely target #1. Harmon would be a consolation prize. If we are looking in the second round, maybe a Tyleik Williams or a Darius Alexander would be the right choice. Williams would be a fantastic replacement for Larry O as a strong run defender and the tools to be a force in sub package play too. Really good size and athleticism for the position.

 

I wonder what FA options he would be looking at (or trade options). Jonathan Allen (Commanders) just got permission to seek a trade, and could eventually be cut outright if it gets that far. Obviously BJ Hill would be a quality option in FA... Interesting to see what they might be targeting. It really feels wide open with Khan and Weidl making the moves. Much less "predictable".