that is an interesting theory. If I remember correctly, the only players the Steelers drafted from last years visits was Dixon and Mundy.

I think he will be gone by then….. too much talent but questionable intangibles.

Also, can’t see them not taking an OL on the first day. We have three OL in the final year of their contracts, and we had to tender one at $8.45m even though he had lost his starting job and didn’t get back in until an injury got him back there. Hartwig is old, and was man-handled by Ngata. We need a C, and Mack is the best in the draft.

As for Ziggy Hood, I had thought about him if he fell to the Steelers; however, I don’t think he will fall to them, and the Steelers have only taken one DL in the last 20 years with their 1st round pick (Casey Hampton).

The Steelers have to get back to ball control. The OL needs help. Besides, if they are able to kill the clock by running the ball, it should cut down on the number of plays the defense would be on the field for.

We do need help on the defensive front, but right now, I think the more pressing need is on the OL.

Smith was a 4th round pick, Keisel wasn’t drafted. I’d prefer they take a gamble on the DL in the later rounds, use the early rounds to get guys who can anchor our OL for years.

Good draft. Things could work out similar to that. Here is my final mock before the weekend:

1) DE Jarron Gilbert – Just like Timmons, give this guy 3 years and he could be a monster. Eric Wood is the safer pick, but the Steelers will have to trade up in the 2nd to get Gilbert or Maola if that is the case. And if it is, then a good move.

2) Jamon Meredith – Can play guard next year and LT/RT in the future. In fact, I’d feel better about him at RT with Colon inside at G.

3) Mike Wallace – If the Steelers want him, they’d have to get him here. I’ve seen highlights of this guy, and he is a threat to go everytime he touches the ball. I like the fact that he is already 6’0, 200 lbs. He is no smurf. A couple of years in the weight room and he’s going to be stud — and a starter opposite Santonio Holmes.

4) CB/S Sherrod Martin – I don’t know if he’d drop this far, but I’m an optimist. The Steelers like him a lot and could take him in the third round. If he’s gone, then the choice is CB Mickens from Cincinnatti. I have a feeling that Tomlin knows whether this guy is a true baller or not, having been a coach with the Bearcats.

5) NT/DT – Sammie Lee Hill – With he and Gilbert in the fold, you have some prospects to work with and learn from the best 3-4 D-line coach in the business.

5) LT Joel Bell – He is raw, but has a lot of tools to work with. He could pay big-time down the road.

6) RB/FB Frank “The Tank” Summers – If he’s not going to be there in the 6th round, then I’d take him in the fifth. The Steelers are in dire need of a short-yardage goal line back and The Tank would look good catching a few of Ben’s swing passes out of the backfield.

7) DE Zach Potter – The Steelers take another flier on a Brett Kiesel clone. He’s not as athletic as Kiesel, but he can put on 20 pounds and be heck to try to run against in 2 to 3 years.

7) OLB Philip Hunt – 6’0, 245 lbs, but has had 24 sacks during the past 2 years. What is a draft without the Steelers taking a linebacker anyway.

 Man, BMF, I do like your draft. If things go down like that, I wouldn’t be mad at all. Would love to hear your feedback as always. I do wonder if the rumors about the Steelers looking at Roscoe Parrish have any merit. Truth be told, I think I’d rather have Wallace than Parrish. I thin Wallace is going to be more than just a 3rd WR and return man.

Thoughts?

imike29, the day where you can wait until the middle and late rounds before even thinking about getting a 3-4 DE are gone because now you have about a third of the teams in the NFL running a 3-4 D. If teams continue to take the attitude that we can get those at the end of the draft, the bones could be picked clean, especially in this draft.

At pick no. 32, if the Steelers don’t take A. Mack, E. Woods, or Darius Butler, then the pick had better be Gilbert. I think this guy could get 10 sacks a year in the Steelers D. When is the last time that they had a DE do that? He’s not going to be a 2-down DE.

Thoughts?

Hey Bad, I like your mock btw, but was wondering if the Steelers went Safety in the 1st round who would you add. Though I personally hope they don’t go that direction, in the back of my head I think they may if he is the BPA. Just like last year, I never thought they would draft a RB in the 1st round, but Mendy fell to them.

The reason why I’m so high on Gilbert is because he’s going to offer the team something that it has rarely had under Dick Lebeau — a 3-4 DE that can get 10 sacks rushing the passer. He’s already 6’5, 288, with 37inch arms. I can see him easily adding another 12 to 15 lbs without losing that quickness and explosion. I don’t think pick no. 32 is too high for him because you are talking second round area that late anyway.

We know the Steelers have a history of getting good 3-4 DE players later in the draft, but the Steelers have a history of getting good running backs later too, but they went against that by taking Mendenhall this past year. I wouldn’t mind if that trend continued with Gilbert. I just can’t see him busting with John Mitchell as his coach and Smith and Kiesel to tutor him and Mike Tomlin there every day to challenge him. Don’t forget he’s on a D with Deebo, Woodley, Troy & Timmons as well. Just think, after Gilbert, you still got 8 picks to fix your offensive line.

That’s just my 2 cents. Thoughts?

Im just going to throw it out there, but I love the Vontae Davis pick.

Overall, I like where his mind is at. His or my draft and I would be happy. Although I think Lydon Murtha is a probowl left tackle and every draft should have him.

thanks for this. No offense to the rest of the mocks, but I enjoy BM’s the most. I very much think the Steelers will go with a pick like Davis in the first, contrary to most people’s logical o-line or even d-line pick. Hood would be interesting, depending on when he goes, but I would not be surprised with Moala in the 2nd and a high talent guy like Davis in the first should he be there.
Interesting to hear about Miller as potential Big Snack replacement. I would also like some more definitive decisions on the o-line regarding scheme and personnel fitting together better.
It was worth the wait.

Will someone explain why we need a 1st round CB? So he can be a dime back?

I have the feeling that Eric Wood will be the pick for the Steelers at no. 32. If that happens, I’m okay with that. I believe they will have to trade up to get Jarron Gilbert or Moala from USC in the second. They could stay put and take NT Ron Brace at the end of the 2nd round, but that would be a reach.

A player that I like more and more is WR Mike Wallace. He is extremely explosive, has good size and will only get better. He’s a game-breaker. A sleeper as a WR that the Steelers would consider is J. Iglesias from the Sooners. Everytime I watched him play this past year, I said there goes Hines Ward Jr.

This is what Jim Wexell had to say about the DL prospects on the Steelers’ first-day board:

Here’s the breakdown of the seven college prospects on the Steelers’ first-day board:

• B.J. Raji – The Steelers believe any of the nose tackles, such as the 336-pound Raji, could train as defensive ends as management considers the final year of Casey Hampton’s contract. But Raji, drug rumors and all, will be long gone.

• Tyson Jackson – He’s a true 3-4 end who, in a normal year, might slide to the bottom of the round because of his average workout numbers and lack of the speed rush required of 4-3 ends. But with so many new 3-4 teams, Jackson will also be long gone.

• Peria Jerry – Classic 4-3 playmaking tackle who’ll also be gone and thereby won’t tempt the Steelers to make a schematic reach.

• Evander "Ziggy" Hood – Another 4-3 tackle who thrived off of shooting gaps last season, but in the process had trouble against the run. The Steelers like him, and he has athleticism (4.88 40) to give them an inside guy on pass downs and the size (6-3, 300) to learn to play the run. If the Colts don’t take Hood, he could intrigue the Steelers in the first round.

• Ron Brace – Raji’s 330-pound sidekick at Boston College is a second-rounder who also projects to nose tackle, but would initially learn defensive end, again, as the Steelers gauge Hampton and Hoke this year.

• Fili Moala – Some draft analysts feel this USC tackle should be the Steelers’ first-round pick, but a source with the team believes the 6-4, 305-pound 24-year-old is too inconsistent to be drafted that high.

• Jarron Gilbert – This 6-5¼, 288-pound defensive tackle from San Jose State has the perfect size to become a 3-4 end, and he has the speed and athleticism as well. One key source loves Gilbert’s ceiling, but also worries about his passion for the game and his strength at the point of attack. Gilbert’s a boom-or-bust prospect who’d be an ideal second-round pick.

Of the group, Moala and Gilbert are the most likely to land with the Steelers. But the team would have to either trade down in the first round or up in the second to get the proper bang for its buck.

Thoughts?

Seems if they are going to get someone to learn DE while they gauge Hampton and Hoke, they should go after Sammie Lee Hill later in the draft. He is another boom or bust guy, but using a 4th or 5th round pick on someone like that is better than using a first day pick.

If there was a sure fire DL than fine, but reaching is something we should not do. We reached for Huey Richardson, we reached for Alonzo Jackson, we need to forget about the reaching for defensive players and concentrate on the OL. Mack has been called the best C coming out of college in years! Max Unger can play every position on the line….. these are the values you look for at the end of the first round, not boom or bust players!

Further, last I checked Pittsburgh is into character guys, those that love the game and play hard every down. How does Davis, Harvin or Gilbert fit those criteria?

For me it is Mack, no questions asked. If he is not there, than Wood or Unger (whom I would prefer or Wood).

imike29, I hear you. I do get the feeling that the Steelers would take Eric Wood over A. Mack because he’s more physical, better suited to play some G, and plays nastier.

It’s fun to speculate at draft time, but the Steelers know what they are doing. Besides drafting a WR and CB, I wouldn’t be upset if the rest of the 7 picks were OL and DL. The Steelers have to get it right at those 2 positions this year.

Thoughts?

Guys, the Steelers are up against the cap, but could free up $2.9M by releasing LB Larry Foote. I’d like to keep him, but if the Bills would give you Roscoe Parrish for a 4th or a 5th round pick and you needed to clear salary to make it happen, would you do this? And yes, the Steelers might be able to trade for Parrish and keep Foote as well.

One good thing is that the Steelers would have Parrish under contract for 3 more years (2009-11) at about a $1M base salary for each year (with a $500,000 roster bonus each year). See Len Pasquarila’s take from ESPN below:

Roscoe Parrish, WR/KR/PR – Bills officials and Parrish’s agent began advertising a few weeks ago that the four-year veteran is available. Parrish, 26, has been all but buried on the Bills’ wide receiver depth chart, but the second-round pick in 2005 has speed and quickness as a receiver, and elusiveness as a kick returner. He has 97 receptions for 1,052 yards and five touchdowns, but 35 of those catches came two years ago. Formerly of the University of Miami, he has averaged 23.7 yards on 18 kickoff returns and an impressive 14.0 yards on 94 punt returns. As a punt returner, he averaged 13.3 yards or more in three of his four seasons, and has one return for a touchdown in each of the past three years. Some unsubstantiated rumors have linked him to the Pittsburgh Steelers. His contract might be palatable enough, with base salaries of $1 million (2009), $1.025 million (2010) and $1.025 million (2011), with $500,000 roster bonuses due each year.

Would you guys do this?

How about trading Foote for Parrish? Swap picks with the Bills in the 4th and give them a 7th. Frees up cap space for us, gets Timmons in the lineup now, and gets us an earlier selection in the 4th round. (To use on Frantz Joseph)

I would trade him before I cut him…… We don’t play Buffalo this year, I doubt we would have resigned him next year…..

Personally I just dont see CB in the first round. Its not a glaring enough weakness for us. I know we like to do the BPA thing as often as possible but in this case, we have bigger issues.

The O line really should be the first pick and if it is not, then D line is a close second.

Now if a really amazing CB falls, and all the other good O-line guys are gone I could see it then.

But yeah until then I have to humbly disagree with the CB in the first