What This Draft Tells Us About What the Front Office Is Thinking

I’m still holding out for Sweed to perform at training camp. If he lays an egg, they now most certainly have a contigency plan. If he shines, well…..we have practice squad fodder.
I think Hartwig holds onto the Center position for this yr and Pouncey starts at guard along with Kemo at guard.
It’s frustrating, because I’m not sure when Urbik gets a chance to show what he’s got. Remember, Ramon Foster too……..We’re loaded at guard now
I’m hoping you’re not right in regards to Woodley. He is someone to build around. He is the youngest of the established studs and we really need to keep him. Perhaps we can re-work Big Ben’s 100mil contract so we can give Woodley his much deserved love?? Perhaps we re-work some the vets (Farrior, etc)so we can keep him.
We’ll also have more $ because I’m not sure we’re keeping Ike Taylor after this yr. He has a nice salary.

Nice post.

He has a consistently solid level of play. The man makes plays, and is still young. He appears on all aspects to be a high character class-act player. C’mon Steelers, you can work this contract. Don’t let Woodley go.

those OLB’s for depth, special teams help, and one to be Harrison’s replacement in 3-4 years, not because they cant sign Woodley. They know what he brings them, and they will resign him, especially since they got rid of Holmes

Im not so sure that the drafting of two OLBs has anything to do with the status of Woodley, I see it as our team is trying to emulate our most recent Superbowl winning team.

We have Foote back, lets face it, pass rushing was never his strong point. Farriors pass rushing ability has slid

We want to get back to that stage where we had 5 formiddable pass rushing linebackers at our disposal to throw at offenses in a hectic rotation, like we did on route to XLIII

Harrison had what, 10 sacks after 10 games last season, but then had 6 games to finish the season where he had none. I dont think you can contribute all of that reasoning to double teams or what not because we saw Woodley getting town teamed and still making sacks

Harrison hasnt played as many downs as many players his age, but I do think age is a factor here for him, hes nearing mid thirties, and if we lose Harrison or Woodley to injury, it would mean sliding Timmons back to the Outside and having a Foote/Farrior middle, which i personally dont think is as imposing as it once was

My 2 cents at least anyway. I still see a big contract in Woodleys future with the Steelers

Every draft is different. You never know who is on the board when you pick so you kind of have to make several plans and hope one works out. The Steelers definitely worked a plan (which is step 1) and time will tell if it worked out.

• The Steelers got the C that they have been after since Hartings retired plus immediately upgraded their OL depth being able to move Essex and Foster back to game day back-ups. The youngster they drafted at 5 will push Urbik and Legursky and provide youth on the PS if he doesn’t make the 53.
• With absolutely no OLB depth (except to move Timmons outside) in event of injury, the Steelers instantly got younger at LB. They now have understudies at both OLB positions as well as Foote and Sylvester behind the aging Farrior. As stated above, Woodley is a beast and they will make every attempt to resign him. In case they can’t they now have plan B in place.
• Getting B MAC IS HUGE in that he is the second starter we got in this draft and allows Gay to return to nickle where he excelled. I liked the film of the DB we took late. Looks like a Clemson ball hawk who will push Lewis & Burnett. Thus we upgraded the secondary a bit which was mandatory.
• Sweed is in the seat by the door unless he excels at Latrobe. Logan still has a spot if he continues his play and improves a bit. Returning is a tough business. Logan is a proven commodity. He also can play ST as he made a couple tackles. He may also see himself worked into the O in a “Sproles” role without FWP or a burner. Plus, if they can dust off some of Whiz’s razzle dazzle imagine Hines, El and Logan running gadgets to throw off the D.

Limas Sweed looks like a bust.

I think this one is pretty obvious. However, I do not think that the Steelers drafting the two WRs is saying goodbye to Sweed. I think it says, unlike last year, you now have competition for a spot. If you do not shape up and start catching balls, we are going to kick your rear end to the curb. I love Sweed and his potential, but I realize he is on a wobbly tight rope. I love the security and depth the draft provides us at WR, but I am also a little afraid of what it means for BA’s play calling.

The LaMarr Woodley negotiations are not going well.

I disagree. We really have no depth at OLB, and these pick ups were to assure some depth at that position and provide a possible replacement for Harrison who is growing old. There is no doubt in my mind, especially after trading giving away Holmes, that Woodley will get a deal that both pleases him and the Steelers. It could happen during or after camp, we shall see.

Choosing center Pouncey instead of trading up for guard Mike Iupati gives 2009 third-rounder Kraig Urbik an opportunity to start at RG. Pouncey is likely to compete with Justin Hartwig at center and will probably take over as the starter at some point during the season

I completely disagree. Even Tomlin said that Pouncey will be competing for the RG position this year, and not center. He wants to develop Pouncey at RG before giving him the responsibilities of center. Center has to be a leader, and as a rookie, it would be hard for him to gain that leadership role in one off season. In as short as a year or two I think Pouncey will take over for Hartwig, but not this year. I am pretty certain this will be our OL in game 1 (from LT to RT respectively): Starks, Kemo, Hartwig, Pouncey, Colon.

Will Allen looks like a dependable safety.

I agree it appears so. It also appears that they like what they have in Ryan Mundy. The Steelers also grabbed S DaMon Cromartie-Smith as a UFDA. He should add depth and competition for camp/preseason. He has Cromartie blood in his veins, so he could be a diamond in the rough.

Casey Hampton will last another 2-3 seasons.

Agreed. Also, looks like they like what they can get out of Hoke. I am not a huge fan, but I read a comment by BadMafalla or SteelerBuddha (can’t remember, always get the two mixed up) who talked about Hoke when he replaced Hampton that year he was injured for like 8 games or something. Our run D, even missing Hampton, remained the #1 ranked. We are safe at this position for now, but I assume the Steelers will be looking really heavily at the DT and DL in the 2011 draft.

Stefan Logan is headed for a new team.

He will have a chance to compete in camp. Even after breaking the Steelers yardard season return record, his position is not definite. I love that. It keeps players from becoming complacent if they have to earn their spot. I would not be entirely disappointed to see Logan stay or go. I trust Tomlin’s assessment of the best talent for the team.

Big Ben is not going anywhere.

Could be. Could also mean they are really happy with what Dixon offers and what Leftwich can bring back to the team. I probably think more of the former than the latter, but we will see. If anything, the competition at QB for the first 6 games of the season is going to be a real gem to watch at Latrobe. I think Dixon and Leftwich have the upper hand on old man Chuck, but he is definitely not down and or out. I hope I can get to camp so I can watch these guys compete and toss it to the new WRs.

Sorry for the long comment, but it is sooooooo good to talk about Football again and not the crap off of the grid iron. GO STEELERS!!!

First off, I would love to see Woodley be a Steeler for life. But I’m trying to read the tea leaves here. Going into the draft, I don’t remember anyone here saying that OLB depth was a high priority. The focus, if anything, was on ILB. So to me, for the team to use its second pick in the draft, in what was supposed to be the best 2nd round in years, to reach for an OLB was a shocker.

You don’t draft a guy in the second round to sit on the bench for years. The Steelers, like most teams, expect their top picks to play a significant role by their second year. If the team extends Woodley’s contract, where is Worilds going to play? Sure, it’s nice to have a decent backup, but you don’t use a second-round pick on depth. Maybe a fourth or fifth-round pick.

And having drafted an OLB in the second round, why come back and draft another one two rounds later? How much depth do you need? These are critical picks that the team could have used to bolster other areas. If the team had not been focused on OLB, they could have chosen Golden Tate, for example, instead of Emmanuel Sanders as the eventual replacement for Hines Ward.

I’m sure the FO wants to keep Woodley on the team, but for those of you that think it will be simple to negotiate a fair contract for Woodley, I have two words for you: Drew Rosenhaus. That’s right, Woodley’s agent has a history of outrageous contract demands. So another way to look at this draft is that the Steelers want to negotiate Woodley’s contract from a position of strength instead of being desperate with no alternative. Unfortunately, Rosenhaus knows that some other team will move Woodley to the right side and pay him like a premier pass rusher. Maybe Woodley will decide he is in a good position with the Steelers, but this draft tells me that Rosenhaus is playing hardball and the Steelers are responding in kind.

James Harrison is 32. he could end any day now. two more years max.

i.e. we need a replacement at OLB. and we all know retraining DEs may not translate into the NFL.

thus we drafted two in case one doesnt pan out.

Lamaar Woodley gone after FIRST CONTRACT????

Sorry im not taking the bait original poster….. thats just inflamatory to get responses. I know you dont believe that song and dance.

and judging by responses it was a great fishing trip.

woodley is EXACTLY what STEELERs are made of and what the F.O. looks for. He goes no where. ever.

Lots of thought and analysis. It is sweet when folks have something worthwhile to talk about.

His contract was never going to be renegotiated before the draft. I don’t even think they’ve begun talking. Will be done this summer, he’s the only major one on the agenda.

he’ll be back.

Not sure that I agree with everything – personally I think it’s too early to make the call on Woodley – but for sure there are a few conversation runners here.

I hate to give up on Sweed, but so far there’s been little or nothing from him. It’s really frustrating when you see that talent, and how crazy open he can get…and yet he’s not able to finish off the play. Then again, another wideout in the 3rd sure sounds like the writing is on the wall. Hope we catch lightning in a bottle twice….

Don’t agree with a lot of it.

1. They were sold on Pouncey. They were drafting him unless something ridiculous was happening.
2. Nice that they picked up McFadden, but I don’t think drafting OLBs instead of DBs was a reflection of need, it was a reflection of philosophy. Colbert’s quote some time ago struck me " If you have a great pass rush, it clears up weaknesses in the secondary", or something like that. Not an exact quote, but that was the meaning he put forth.
3. Agreed on Woodley, and that’s disappointing. it’s the main reason I didn’t care one bit for the Worlids selection.
4. Don’t agree at all on Hampton. That may be how they are looking at it, but I think that is a dangerous game to play when running the 3-4. They had opportunities to pick up their NT for the future in the first 4 rounds, and they simply neglected it. Hampton, and Hoke are well over 30, what happens if Hampton gets injured again? I think it was a big mistake to ignore that obvious need.

being the number 1 priority to get an extension, I can’t see negotiations being a problem. Woodley is more than eager to stay a Steeler, and has down played the role of a huge salary. I’m sure we’re going to pay him a lot of $$$$, but I’m just as sure he will be a Steelers for years to come.

Woodley contract extension info.