Ok...I gotta ask this POINT BLANK...

IMO we are ok along the DL except for the fact we have no depth after losing Williams and Mauro. I can live with Mclendon,Heyward and Tuitt. Cam Thomas has to go he isn't even serviceable. I think we need a bigger presence coming off the edge neither Worilds or Jones strike much fear in opposing teams. Harrison is still our best and that's pretty sad that he could come out of retirement and be our most effective pass rusher. Our stunts along the line seem to be generating a little more pressure than usual but that isn't saying much. What happened to the days of seeing confusion along the OL and our guys coming free. I think even when we blitz it's like a conservative type of blitz. I get tired of seeing our guys a step late and a jumbled mess going after the QB. How can we open up our rush lanes to get there faster? Lebeau needs to figure that out....

 

Aaron Smith is widely considered the best 5-technique who ever played.

 

I'm glad there's some out there who see this...

 

I know Big Snack wasn't a pass rushing demon but he completely shut down the run. He made teams one dimensional and I think that made it easier for others to rush the QB. That said I would love to have a dominate DT again.

 

EXACTLY!

 

I don't think Suh could play our two gap style of NT. It would be like having Ziggy Hood playing DE again when he was a penetrating DT. I think he would be a fish out of water. Additionally, Suh attitude doesn't seem to fit the style of a NT. I mean, "a NT must occupy two blockers so the LBs can make plays" meaning you have to be unselfish and I don't think that is Suh. Just my 2 cents.

 

And while I agree that Suh isn't a 3-4 NT, THAT is the kind of caliber player we need at that position!

 

SG, the good news is the caliber of player at NT you're talking about will be on the field Sunday. The bad news is he plays for the Chiefs. Dontari Poe is a monster. Pouncey will have his hands full for sure.

 

Pretty debatable.
Look at the Ravens who, without Ngata, got 8 sacks yesterday.

Main question may be: our Staff likes what they have in McLendon / McCullers, Tuitt and Heyward going forward?
If so, on Defense they'll go DB, which is the most visible and threatened weak link right now.

Can't see them going Oline, WR, RB, QB, ILB.
Besides DL, the other possibilities are TE, OLB (if Worilds / Moats aren't around next year) or DB.

 

Suh could play any spot on our dline and be our best player. He is a freak athletically. But. He will cost way to much.

 

SCG I have banged the "NT" drum rather loudly as well. At least I have banged the "I miss Casey" drum I can certainly say. I feel that a nose tackle is an integral part of a dominant 3-4. You need that guy clogging up the middle to allow guys to come off the edge and keep the qb from having a lane. Maybe I'm wrong about that but I've always felt that way. I personally wouldn't care if we had a shot at a great 3-4 guy or the "next" Casey and then took him. I mean heck he'd sure be better than Landry or Rainey ya know? If we are gonna "reach" for people then let's at least reach for people that are gonna actually see the field and might have some longevity. I know we drafted McCullers and he can maybe be considered a reach but I'm talking about a guy that we could see being our "franchise" guy. The way Casey was.

 

I've seen some analysts say thought that he's not a really "smart" player and maybe DL's scheme would exceed his intellectual grasp of the game? I'm not saying it necessarily would but just that I have seen people say that about him and IF that's the case DL's scheme would certainly pose a problem. I mean it is basically made out to be this system that only people with a doctorate in Greek can understand so if a guy is not a very intellectual player it might not be a good fit for him in spite of his natural athleticism.

 

I think Steelers fans got spoiled with Casey Hampton with what he brought to the team. You just can't replace that talent with the next man up. It takes many draft misses before a replacement of that calibre comes along. Until then you can expect growing pains.

I do agree though that pressure up front makes the average DB look much better.

 

Can't see them going Oline, WR, RB, QB, ILB.
Besides DL, the other possibilities are TE, OLB (if Worilds / Moats aren't around next year) or DB.[/QUOTE]


right now i see the draft like this : best olb /cb in the first two rounds , then a safety and a nose in 3/4 then cb -te-ot in the last 3 rounds

 

As much as I'd like a stud NT. I think our solution...or increase in sacks/defensive efficiency will be determined by the quality of play of our OLB's. Even with the youth and terrible suck of Thomas and an aging Kiesel...we begun to see life when Harrison as rounding into shape. It's not a coincidence. That's what a legit pass rusher on the edge can do for you. With the Ravens it's Suggs and Dumerville. I could play NT and they'll still get pressure. You can neutralize a good NT by formation and packages. Teams used to do it all the time to us, particularly when we were in our base defense. We need to produce a rush and stop the run in sub-packages--which typically would take the prototype NT off the field. More running is occurring out of 11 personnel. Especially when you play the likes of Denver and GB. So I'll take a stud OLB instead.

 

Im going to answer this with out reading any of the following posts....Dont want to be swayed.

You are 100% correct SC. WE NEED A NT. You call him a DT in a 3-4 I call him a NT. We need a guy who lines up across from the center and creates havoc at the line. Shuts down the run. Makes a center and guard block him. I dont need this guy to get sacks. I need this guy to plug up the 0 and 1 gap and make a center and guard block him. Than maybe one of the ILB might be able to get to the QB on a blitz package.I wanted Nixs as a NT. We took Tuitt instead.I have no problem with that as Tuitt in my opinion is playing well. We do need a true nose though. And it AINT Cam Thomas!!!!!!!

 

I agree here. I haven't seen an innovative pass rush attempt by Dick Lebeau in a few years. We are using the same tired blitzes we used when Lloyd and Greene was our OLBs. I must admit I haven't seen that god awful cross-dog blitz we use to use or they just don't do it that much anymore because it didn't work.

I think the league has caught on to Lebeau's blitzes.

 

This is where my logic is. Plus a a good NT takes up multiple blockers which eventually makes it easier for the OLB's.

 

If we had Lloyd and Greene in their prime, those same tired blitzes would work. It's not DL's scheme that doesn't work. It's Worilds and Jones that doesn't work. McClendon vs Hampton. Thomas vs Smith. Troy vs Troy. DL hasn't lost it. Our quality of player has been lost.

 

I mean, how many different blitzes can you come up with? With half the teams in the league using a 3-4 now, I don't think there is a blitz that anyone is throwing at people that no one has ever seen before...

 

The problem I have with investing a high pick on the NT is that we spend half or more of the defensive snaps in nickle with two down linemen. This is not new its just that the OLB's are not getting the QB.

 

While I think the Steelers are reluctant to specifically game plan to take away the opposing teams strengths (i.e Patriots), and prefer to pursue victory via attrition—I don't think the defenses challenges are linked to Lebeau's lack of creative blitzing. A glut of teams in the NFL are using the same 3-4 blitz concepts DL created or made famous...Cardinals D looks pretty good, and that's pretty much the Steeler D....with better players.
Not saying DL shouldn't take some heat and shoulder blame for some of the D deficiencies, but ....you gotta have the horses. And we don't have enough of them.

 

Unless this nose tackle can get after the QB
and produce pressure. I have no need for a plugger. Its a passing league make the qb uneasy
PRESSURE the qb good things will happen.