up coming draft could be huge for steelers

watching the game this past weekend I realized a few things. we could have alot of open roster spots next year. I see big decisions for the front office. see if anyone agrees with me.

smith will be gone
farrior could be although I doubt it
I wonder about hampton I think his play has dropped off and I dont know his cap number
I think mendy will want alot of money that i dont want them to pay him. it needs to go to wallace
I have seen alot of articles about troys concussions and his future
hines is being phased out. I wonder if he comes back knowing he is 4th or 5th on depth chart
the oline is a toss up. starks has played good but I think he signed a 1 year deal. kemo needs to go along with foster
I think mcfadden and will allen are in the last year of their deals

I was just thinking it might look different next year. I kinda hope not. I want hines and casey to stick around. I think troy will but he only knows one way to play and head injuries are serious.

 

We already have Smith's replacement (Hood or Heyward), but some depth would be nice
We need to spend a good pick on an ILB
We need to spend another good pick on a NT
Since we hardly run the ball, what is the point of having a high paid RB?
i think we will get three more years from Troy so we should be okay there this year
WR is the one place where we have crazy depth. No worries
We always need better OL and CBs

 

Hampton's cap hit is significant next year I believe? probably a gonner for sure.

Having Hines as a back up is a great position to be in. If he could hold on to being a back up to extend his career I'm all for it.

Mendy still doesn't hit the holes like he should. He is very gifted, but I think the offense would run smoother with power running with Redman. If I was in the FO it would be a tough decision for me to make.

 

I agree. We could be looking a drastically different team. Running backs are a dime a dozen and BA is here to stay to the end of time, like Somathus said we don't need a high paid RB.

We may even have to trade for more picks or something because we REALLY need to find at least 2 OG, probably an OT, and at least one high round CB. Not to mention a NT and an ILB. I just don't see all that being done with one draft but i guess we won't know until we have a better picture of the prospects.

I would hate to see Ward and Hampton go but we may not have a choice however I do think there is a good chance Ward may stick around. Troy isn't going anywhere, you can bet on that.

 

Don't forget about Baron Batch!!! He could have been a special added element to this offense this year, so assuming his recovery goes well he could provide a great third down/change of pace package. This kid is special! As far as the draft we cannot overlook the Safety position this time! Troy should have some good years left but who knows and Ryan Clark hits like a truck but his speed in coverage is definitely lacking a bit. Mundy is really our only capable backup.

 

If OG is not in are plans than we are in trouble, whether thru the draft or FA
we must address this weakness. ILB, Safety, NT.

 

yep we gotta get some help on OL

 

I wish we would have kept Urbik vice Foster. Urbik is a starter for the Bills and he even played center for them this past game. Foster is terrible and I think Kruger could have made Urbik into a nice RG. We definitely need a very good guard. I think we are fine at skill positions. ILB is maybe a need depending on Sylvester - I really like his instincts and I think with another year and a full offseason and camp he will develop well. I think alot of our young guys are going to start to blossom, I think Lake will have the young DBs ready next year too.

In the past several years, I have been a proponent of trading away (up) some of our many picks and instead of getting 7-8 guys, get 3-4 that will definitely make the team. If you are drafting PS guys in the latter rounds, you may as well trade them away for a little higher pick who might make the team and fill the rest with UDFAs.

We may need a BU QB this upcoming year (depending on Lefty's health and what happens with DD). Batch is just getting too long in the tooth.

I think we need another safety and another DL. I think OLB is fine with Worlids and Carter comming along. I like Cortez and Brown to develop and hopefully Mundy continues to get better under Lake. Lewis is showing good signs and will get better with a full offseason under Lake too.

 

Line on both sides of the ball should be the first priority, OL & DT. As for Mendenhall I am torn. I agree backs are a dime a dozen so maybe he doesn't command the high salary we think he might get. If it gets too high let him go. Need to make sure we lock up Wallace for a long time. I would still like to draft a FB in the later rounds. And find a kicker. Suisham has done ok for us but I have zero confidence in the guy to hit the big kick.

 

This draft will be huge, I agree, but I thought that last year as well.

Offense

QB: We need a #3 guy. Dixon won't be back and Batch is at the age where him being counted on to be more than a glorified coach is scary.

RB: I agree that Mendy may be gone. Dwyer and B. Batch both look like they can contribute. If Moore is gone as well though we will need another guy. IMO, Mendy would be stupid to stay. He just isn't used properly in this offense. We will draft some depth here or at a minimum add some UDFAs.

WR: Battle is the guy who I think will be gone. Ward will take a lessened role. Sanders, Brown, and Wallace are the top 3. Cotchery I doubt will be back as well. That leaves 1 or 2 open spots at this position. It seems weird that we once again could be drafting WR talent. I prefer a couple of big guys in order to be zone receivers who help move the chains, but that is my stance, not the FO.

TE: I don't see any need to change here. Saunders will pass Johnson on the depth chart prior to next year giving the O more options to pass out of the 22 formation which Ariens will love.

Center: Set with Pouncey and Legs, who I think will be back.

Tackle: Colon and Starks are the keys here. Does Starks come back? Can Colon recover and does he stay at Tackle? Scott is okay as a #4, but shouldn't be a starter. Gilbert you have to choose which side he is going to play on sooner rather than later. I personally move Colon to G and draft a Tackle. Starks/Gilbert/Draftee/Scott is an okay group of 4 tackles.

Guard: 9 or 10 lineman determines how many G you keep. With 4 tackles and the 2 centers, this leaves you 3 or 4 spots for G. Colon should start. Foster can be depth. This leaves you 1 starter and maybe a backup. That still leaves you with the question of Kemo...can his knees hold up? Is he smart enough and good enough to keep starting?

Dline: McLendon has earned a spot. Hood, Heyward and Keisel take up another 3. That leaves 2 spots up for grabs. Would anyone be willing to take A. Smith who is already getting paid back as a #4 DE or do we need to look elsewhere? Hampton I am hoping we can have back as he buys us another year of McLendon development prior to finding another guy. I personally would skip this position in the draft IF we have faith in Corbin Bryant or Al Woods. NT is not a position I am too concerned about. Teams throw the ball and that NT comes out so much now, that it just doesn't make sense to me to use a high draft pick on the position.

Linebacker: Carter and Worilds. Harrison and Woodley. Timmons and Sylvester and Foote....wait what? Is that all we have at ILB? IMO this is our biggest need. Give me a middle LB who can play the run the way Farrior used to and I think MOST of our D rushing issues go away.

CB: McFadden is done. Brown, Allen and Lewis have all gotten better this year. We need 1 CB.

S: Clark, Troy and Mundy. All 3 have been pretty solid this year. We need 1 S as W. Allen isn't cutting it IMO.

Okay, Summary.
1 ILB
1 Tackle
1 G
1 CB
1 S
1 or 2 WR/Special Teams guy

If you get supplement Draft Picks, you probably go #3 QB or RB depth.

 

If BA is going to stay we need to make a lot of changes......We need to let Ward,Cotchery,Mendenhall and Johnson go .....Then IMO we would need a big WR target a OL another TE who is receiver like.....

As stated if we our going to run this spread we need the right people...Trade some picks and go up and get a top notch OL to play Guard who can start day 1.....
We would also need another WR who is big and strong to keep Teams from playing man or man/zone all the time.....Then add another TE/WR type guy who can split out and beat his guy 1 on 1 as well.....
The 2 big targets should allow more space for our Speed WR'S to get open....
Now with Starks,Doug,Pouncey,Draft pick, and Gilbert we should be able to protect Ben a little better,,,and with the added weapons at WR and TE the BA O would work a little better.....

Not the way I would go ,,,but if going the BA way it is really the only choice....

 

Next draft is not that dire if the young guys really make some strides....

 

its dire as people think and no need IMO to trade for more daft picks we always find scaps and turn them into players McLendon J Harrison W Parker N Washington all the way back to Y Thigpen so no worries from me

 

i agree 100%except for cotchery that i would keep , ilb is the priority , first round hightower/ teo /burfict ,one should be taken

 

Re-reading what I wrote, I should have been more clear. I wasn't saying that I think the FO would like to get rid of him, only that I think he chooses to leave for a team where he can have a larger role. If that shot is made available to him, he will take it IMO.

 

i think cotchery could replace ward and be 3rd /4th wr , soon or later ward has to retyre better keep cotchery that has experience and is good while he is still around

 

Guard: Round 1, possibly move up if necessary.
S: If a star is available, use round 2, then CB would slide to round 3.
CB: Round 2
Dline: possible round 3-5 NT
Inside Linebacker: possible round 3-5
Tackle: Bring in a monster if available round 3 or later.
QB: We need a #3 guy. (use mid-late round pick)

 

ilb has to be rd 1or 2
the only one i could take later is audie cole from nc state in rd 3 hoping is there

 

ward is due 4-6 million no way the steelers keep him at that price. I see ward hampton farrior kemo mendy and possibly clark all gone. and bmac for sure

 

Smith should be done, so should Farrior, Kemo, Ward, Mendenhall, Allen, McFadden, Moore, and either Hoke or Hampton. Time to move on. Baron Batch is Moore's replacement. Getting rid is Kemo is a must and drafting a high round Guard should be a priorty. Mendenhall is not the one. Doing there homework and coming up with a good running back in the 3rd or 4th round is what they should be doing, or making some type of trade for a good back or more draft picks would help. Redman is better then Mendenhall for what the Steelers offense should be built for.

The big thing for the Steelers first and foremost is getting rid of BA. It's time to move on from him. Hope he retires or gets a college job, then we can start building the draft the right way. Get an experience OC who knows how to develop a running game and can control Ben. Thats the ticket. First things first FO. Say good bye to BA!!!!

Get rid of most of the for mentioned names and bring in some fresh talent via the draft and at least one good free agent.

 

Our run defense has been poor this year, and I credit that to 2 things:

1. We are flat out playing the pass more...period. More nickel and dime than I remember in a long time.

2. Farrior was our run stopper in the middle. He is now at times late to the hole or gets blocked off. His replacement is paramount to me.

 

I think Farrior's replacement will be Sylvester but agree we still need ILB depth. I would love to see us find another playmaker in the defensive backfield, just to continue to add depth. But I think we really need to focus on both the OL and DL in the first two rounds. A guard and a DT. After that find an ILB and then take the best player on the board.