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Bye Week Reflections on the 2014 Draft Class and FA Signings



The Blount saga (and the Mitchell mini-saga) made for an interesting beginning to the Bye week. These two stories have led to discussions on the Steelers off-season FA signings and how they look today, 11 games into the season. It's also a good time to take a look at how the draft class has progressed. Yes, it's too early to judge it in totality, but it's not too early to have a feel for some of the indicators as to how things may be headed. Let's take a look...

FA Signings:

FS Mike Mitchell: I'll start with him since he was supposed to be the biggest offseason acquisition. So far, I think most would agree that he's failed to impress. He's had a few big hits (forced 2 fumbles) and is tied for second in tackles with 51, but he has struggled in coverage for the most part. He's also struggled in run support, taking bad angles at times and arriving late in others. To his credit, he seemed to be doing a bit better after getting more accustomed to Troy (until Troy got injured). Unfortunately, Mitchell's antics (particularly on Twitter) haven't helped his cause. At the moment, the jury is still out on whether or not he can be their FS of the future. As the FS of the present, he has 5 more games (plus any playoffs) to prove that he truly deserves to be the FS next season.

DE/NT Cam Thomas: Colbert basically anointed him as a starter at LDE soon after the signing. Of course, they ended up bringing back Keisel who has split time with Heyward at RDE while "Wreck It" has seen time at LDE in a rotation with Thomas and Tuitt. Thomas has raised the ire of many a Steeler fan with his lackluster play at times. On some plays (both at LDE and NT) he is pushed off the line too easily for a man his size. Yet, on other plays, he's seems able to hold his own and keep blockers off the LBs. This really shouldn't be news to us, since that was basically his scouting report coming in...an up and down player who looks fatigued at times. I think the hope is Tuitt is able to develop fast enough so that he can take over for Thomas at LDE next year. For now, it looks like they probably should've pushed harder to resign Al Woods.

CB Brice McCain: I don't think they intended on him being a starter when they signed him. More likely, they were thinking 4th CB and STer, with most of his PT on D coming in the dime (or some nickel). Due to Ike's injury and Cortez's ineffectiveness, McCain was thrust into a starting role. It's been a mixed bag for him, with that pick 6 vs. JAX as his main highlight. He's struggled more than he's been good, but they've been able to scrape by with him for the time being. Since he only signed a 1 yr. deal, it will be interesting to see if they bring him back next year. They may be forced to, depending how things play out in the offseason, and he'll likely come cheap.

OLB Arthur Moats: He's one of the few pleasant surprises among the FA signings. Also thrust into a starter role (although Harrison really is more like the starter at ROLB) due to injury (to Jones), Moats has done a decent job. He has 2 sacks and a FF, while splitting time with Harrison. Also, like McCain, he's on a 1 yr. deal. I think they'd like to have him back either as an experienced backup or possibly as a stopgap starter if Worilds leaves.

RB LeGarrette Blount: Of course we all know the drill here. What looked like a nice FA signing turned into what some may have predicted given Blount's track record. Now it's Josh Harris' time to make people forget about Blount, and give them a reason not to sign or draft a RB next year.

WR Lance Moore: He was brought in to replace Cotchery as the slot WR, but never really hit the ground running and basically lost his job to Justin Brown early on. He has since emerged to be more-or-less the team's #4 WR, while Brown has been mostly a game day inactive (due to the emergence of Martavis Bryant). Moore has 2 TDs and can still be effective for this team down the stretch given his experience. However, thus far, he has mostly been a disappointment.

WR Darrius Heyward-Bey: DHB was brought in to give them some experience as a possible deep threat and STer. He hasn't done much, but not much was really expected of him either. Some thought he wouldn't even make the team. He does have some value down the stretch due to his experience. On a 1 yr. deal, he's likely a "one-and-done" for the Steelers.

P Adam Podlesh: Never played for them since he was out all of camp. Unfortunately, Podlesh had to attend to the more important issue of his wife's difficult pregnancy. At least the Steelers made a shrewd offseason move when they signed Brad Wing. Wing hasn't been stellar, but he's been serviceable...which isn't something we haven't seen much of from Steeler P's lately.

Draft Picks:

1. ILB Ryan Shazier: His season has been mostly derailed due to injury. In the few games he did play/start, he showed some flashes of his potential, but he made a fair share of rookie mistakes too. If he gets back soon, he still has a chance to make an impact this season. However, it's likely that his rookie year will end up similar to DeCastro's and it will be year 2 where he shows what he's made of.

2. DE Stephon Tuitt: Picked to be the LDE of the future, he's shown promise in some of the limited snaps he's seen so far. However, his snap count has been somewhat disappointing given the struggles of the DL (especially Thomas, who's playing ahead of him). Tuitt struggled himself early on, but seems to be progressing nicely. It will be interesting to see how his snap count goes the rest of the way. He has a good shot at winning the starting LDE job next year if he does the necessary work.

3. RB/WR Dri Archer: Seems to be the most disappointing of the draft picks so far. Maybe too much was expected of him. Although, with his speed, the thought was he could be an explosive playmaker for them, even if only on occasion. As a KR, he's been a big disappointment (and couldn't even become a viable PR thus far). He might get more carries as a RB now with Blount gone, but for the moment, Archer looks like a very questionable 3rd round pick (even though, at the time, I thought he was a good pick there).

4. WR Martavis Bryant: If the Steelers RoY voting was held today, Bryant would be the unanimous winner. He exploded out the gate with 6TDs and over 300 yds. in his first 4 games. Against TENN, he cooled off a bit, but he's truly made an impact on this O as a deep threat and red zone target. He's already become basically the 1a or 1b starter along with Wheaton. Expectations will continue to be high for him, so hopefully he will continue to deliver. Chances are he'll have his ups and downs, but I'd hazard a guess it will be mostly positive for him, and he could end up being one of the steals of the 2014 draft.

5a. CB Shaquille Richardson: Unfortunately, the Steelers whiffed again on a late round CB. Their track record has been bleak and the Richardson pick kept that streak intact. There was some hope that Carnell Lake could get him to realize the potential that Lake saw in him as a HS recruit. It never materialized, though, as Shaq did little in preseason and ended up injured. He initially made the PS, but then reached an injury settlement after being waived. I think it's time the Steelers change up their strategy on drafting CBs. They will likely be desperate for one next year and shouldn't wait until the 5th round to address that need.

5b. OL Wesley Johnson: While he wasn't a must keep rookie OL, he was a versatile OL who could play all 5 spots. This made him someone worth having around to develop. He looked liked someone who might have a shot as a starting LG or LT down the road, or at least a 6th OL who can play C if needed. Initially stashed on the PS, the Jets snatched him up. Some will continue to wonder if he should've made the 53man instead of Landry Jones.

6a. ILB Jordan Zumwalt Seemed like a questionable pick at the time given the Steelers depth at ILB and the Shazier pick at the top. Zumwalt presented decent value in the 6th, but looked more like his contribution would come on STs. He could never stay healthy in preseason and landed on the IR. He will get another shot next year, but STs is likely where he'll have to make his mark to make this team.

6b. NT Daniel McCullers: Some anointed him as the next starting NT due to his size alone. Shade Tree looked good in preseason in spite of his issues with technique. After receiving much support calling for him to replace Thomas in the DL rotation, McCullers has received an increased amount of snaps (due to McClendon's injury). He's held his own on occasion and has continued to develop. In time, his technique is likely to improve. While he may never end up as the starting NT, he looks like he has potential to at least be a good run stuffer in certain sub packages (if not the base). Another good 6th round pick for them.

7. TE Rob Blanchflower: He wasn't necessarily picked to be the successor to Heath, but at some point they will need to find Heath's successor. Blanchflower didn't do a whole lot to impress in preseason, but he did do enough to make him worthy of consideration for the 3rd TE job next year. By sticking around on the PS, he'll hopefully learn enough this year to supplant Palmer from the #3 spot next year.

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