With the 96th Pick of the 2009 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers Select Keenan Lewis, CB, Oregon State

by Michael Bean on Apr 26, 2009 12:08 PM EDT

And just like that, the Pittsburgh Steelers have had themselves one hell of a busy morning, filling potentially three pronounced areas of need - OL, WR/KR, CB. The latest selection, the final pick in the 3rd Round before the compensatory selections are made, is Oregon State CB Kennan Lewis.

Lewis was a 4-year starter and a 3-time All-Academic Pac 10 selection. Noticing a theme here? Yup, Colbert, Tomlin & Co. want pieces that are going to go about things the right way. Good stuff.

Lewis is pretty bulky and big, standing at 6'0" and 208 pounds. Might he eventually be a safety? Perhaps. His size will compliment William Gay's more diminutive stature at some point hopefully. And before I forget, Lewis will definitely have a chance to earn his keep as a head hunter on special teams.

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More analysis to follow.

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Big physical corner

excellent pick!

by BlackandGoldSSgt on Apr 26, 2009 12:18 PM EDT reply actions

He is not physical

by Dr Del on Apr 26, 2009 12:55 PM EDT up reply actions

Oline Oline

we should have gotten duke robinson or jamon meredith

by tha1andonly57@aim.com on Apr 26, 2009 12:19 PM EDT reply actions

more experience at KR/PR

Wallace will probably be the front- runner for KR, but I the depth we have now at KR/PR. This was a definite need for us. So we have Wallace, K. Lewis, and dude from Canada. Oh BTW, Tone can fill in as needed.

by Hypocycloid on Apr 26, 2009 12:21 PM EDT reply actions

I know its a highlight vid, but

you’ll get a good eye full of this dude on youtube….. be prepared to squint tho

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXgQMiIBYBM&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fcoBGwovZU&feature=related

by Hypocycloid on Apr 26, 2009 12:31 PM EDT reply actions

OL?

Steelers might trade lower picks to move back up into 4th round IF they think they need more help on the OL …. Johnson, LSU or Robinson or Meredith.

But Urbik can play G/T and Stapleton can also play C, so they only need 1 more body for the OL.

by Watty4ever on Apr 26, 2009 12:42 PM EDT reply actions

def can upgrade over Stapleton

If we can upgrade over Stapleton then we should, there are better G and C then him out there. Unless they want to move Colon to G

by BlackandGoldSSgt on Apr 26, 2009 1:06 PM EDT reply actions

RT RT RT!!

We need a new starter at RT for chirst sake!! Are you guys ok with Willie Colon starting another 16 games for us? Come on!!

by setherian on Apr 26, 2009 1:06 PM EDT reply actions

I agree!

Colon is too short to play tackle, his arms are not long enough, he is nasty though , maybe they can move him inside to G, we have picks 168 and 169, two in a row…what do you guys think about Herman Johnson and AQ Shipley?

by BlackandGoldSSgt on Apr 26, 2009 1:35 PM EDT up reply actions

I don’t understand urgency at O-line. They stunk for a while, but they played better in the playoffs. (A few bonehead plays yes, but overall they plated well) I think with experience and more work together this line will be a good one.

They won’t be great, but they are good enough and young. We don’t need to work on the O-line at the expense of these other positions in this draft. I think we will be fine.

by Phantaskippy on Apr 26, 2009 1:17 PM EDT reply actions

Well our line was never good this year - we could never run the ball for tough yards.

We were stuffed in short yardage all season, even against lousy defenses. Our OL must play better if we are to win the superbowl again next year. That was probably the worst OL ever to win a SB.

That being said, is drafting linemen in the early rounds actually going to help us very much for next year? I don’t know if it does. Inserting a rookie or two into the OL generally doesn’t make for good lines. People say that it takes lines a while to gel – teamwork/communication is so important and takes a while to build. Maybe those same 5 guys will play much better this season. Personally I’m hoping that someone can step up and beat out Colon. Colon is terrible but the rest of that line could be OK with another year of playing together.

by houksyndrome on Apr 26, 2009 1:37 PM EDT up reply actions

Tomlin basically said the same thing on ESPN

with the exception of Colon being terrible of course :)

by houksyndrome on Apr 26, 2009 1:39 PM EDT up reply actions

From NFL Draft Countdown.com

Strengths:
Very good size and bulk…Rangy with long arms…Great instincts and awareness…Reads and reacts quickly…Excellent hands and ball skills…Good leaper with nice body control…Physical and will support the run…Real smart…Hard worker…Leader…Has a ton of experience.

Weaknesses:
Not a great athlete…Average speed and quickness…Lacks a burst to close and recover…May struggle to turn and run with speedy wideouts in man coverage…Can be too aggressive at times…Hips aren’t real fluid…Must get stronger..Misses some tackles…Limited schematically.

Notes:
Was a four-year starter in the Pac-10…Native of New Orleans and his family was forced to evacuate during Hurricane Katrina…A three-time Pac-10 All-Academic selection…Best fit at the next level might come in a zone coverage scheme…Might also be able to play some safety…Is able to make up for relatively pedestrian physical tools with top-notch intangibles…Certainly isn’t flashy but should play in the league for a long time…Could quite easily emerge as a starter in the right situation.

by Romain El 82 on Apr 26, 2009 2:13 PM EDT reply actions