Darius Leonard

We may never know if we don't get a competent DC first

 

This.


Keith Butler is not the answer. For that matter, Keith Butler is not even a problem. He is a liability. Get rid of him.

 

Let it go disco, let it go.

 

You and I must have been looking at very different pre-draft rankings, because what I saw on Leonard was a late first, early second-round grade.

Leonard is an All-Pro already. It's not too early to call that draft pick a mistake.

 

Question is would he have been an allpro on the Steelers this year? I'm voting no. Keith Butler & all.

Edit: JH would have had his ear also. Joking

 

I followed the draft pretty closely. I don't recall any draft site that had Leonard rated as a 1st rounder. It is to early to call the selection of Edmunds over Leonard a mistake. Edmunds could have a break out year in 2019 for all we know. Like I said, let's give it a few years before we start to evaluate these guys careers.

 

Leonard is already an All-Pro. That would have to be one hell of a breakout next year for Edmunds to somehow surpass Leonard.

Or we could face reality. Leonard is an All-Pro. He's better than Edmunds and passing on him was a mistake.

 

So glad that Terrell's future has been preordained.


Does Pittsburgh win any Super Bowl's in that future in which Terrell is average?!

 

We can all play the what if game...The most troubling part imo is...Our 2 biggest priorities going into the draft were...ILB & DB...sans Leonard and Edmonds...

I just " think " we could have drafted Leonard 1st rd. and had a real " shot " of still getting Edmonds in the 2nd...

But not the other way around... It would have been great, But who knows!

 

Hate to break the news to you but the Steelers will not win another SB within the next 5 years,

 

Who is more likely to be better going forward, the established All-Pro or the guy who was a part-time starter due to injury?

Edmunds could make a Pro Bowl next season and still not live up to what Leonard has already done in the league.

 

Get back to me when Keith Butler is canned. For that matter, get back to me on whomever the next Steelers Defensive Coordinator is. I will have your answer then.

 

I don't see the point of hindsight exercises. All it seems to do is create more animosity towards the organization for some.

 

It's not as if an inside linebacker couldn't do great things with Butler as the defensive coordinator. See Ryan Shazier's work before he was injured in case you forgot.

 

It's not hindsight. I said the pick was a mistake at the time. The season's worth of evidence has backed up my point.

 

Exactly. Who knows? What seems like a mistake today might not be tomorrow. You simply can't judge a selection as a mistake in the first year. There are simply too many variables that can't be predicted. Let see where we are 3 years from now. Current success doesn't guarantee future succes. Never has never will.
I still remember Kendrell Bell thinking he was gonna be the next great Steeler LB and look what happened.
Right now Leonard looks like the better choice. Doesn't mean that will always be the case. You can assume and predict but at this point it's a opinion and opinion only.

 

Really? Based off one season we already know that Leonard will be better than Edmunds going forward? Look at the year we selected Shazier over Mosley. Initially it looked like the Steelers chose poorly, but Shazier eventually became a far more dynamic player than Mosley, while Mosley remained a steady contributor. You never know how things are going to play out going forward.

 

Mosley was a better pick than Shazier in the grand scheme of things. Steelers didn't get enough ROI on Shazier, while Ravens defense has prospered with Mosley. It's not Shazier's fault, just really bad luck... for him and the Steelers.

 

I remember very well what Ryan did for this defense



I also remember Janauary 22nd of 2017. Keith Butler's greatest playoff failure. Putting Ryan Shazier in unwinnable situations that day marked the beginning of the end.


This is precisely why I have stated, for days, that even if we could have drafted Darius Leonard, Keith Butler would have found a wonderful way to place Leonard in unwinnable situations. Leonard is being primarily used as a zone coverage linebacker. He is not being placed against Wide Receivers going man to man just about every series.

 

A few graphic upgrade options for ya SG.

 

Mosley is a fine player, but Shazier was on the verge of becoming a once in a generation type guy. No one could have predicted that sort of catastrophic injury. My point is that the Steelers chose a player with a far greater upside, even though Mosley was clearly the most NFL ready between the two.

 

Nothing can be done about past drafts now. What's the point of playing the hindsight game? Sit and he beat your chest and say "I" was right and the organization was wrong? The nature of the draft is that most players are not going to pan out.

One season isn't evidence that a pick was a mistake. Time will tell.

 

Leonard is already an All-Pro and Edmunds would have been there in round two. It was a mistake. That doesn't mean Edmunds can't be good, which is the part some of you seem to be misunderstanding.

 

If Leonard continues to play at his current level, or as is more likely, he improves, Edmunds is going to have to become an elite player to make that a good pick.

It's not hindsight for those of us who made the claim before the season. Please be more accurate in how you characterize arguments with which you disagree.

 

Leonard was the better player in college, the higher-rated prospect and he has great upside, too.