The day stays interesting for Pittsburgh fans as the Steelers select tight end Matt Spaeth from the University of Minnesota with their third round draft pick.
There are two ways to look at this pick, and we'll walk through both. One is decidedly negative; the other positive.
The Negative View: The Steelers have Heath Miller, and he is good. Very good. Possibly future Pro Bowler good. Why spend a third round selection on a tight end when the team could use depth both in the secondary and the offensive line?
The Positive View: You could make the case that Spaeth will wind up being the best tight end in this draft class. Spaeth is a gigantic six-feet, seven-inches tall, with long arms, outstanding hands, and tremendous short- and mid-range receiving ability. He's not the world's best blocker yet, but there's reason to think he can develop into one.
As optimistic as I'd like to be, this one stumps me. Even if you love Spaeth as a receiving tight end, it's difficult to imagine why a team with Heath Miller believes he'll get the chance to prove that. Jerame Tuman isn't getting any younger, so I'm fine with the idea of drafting a tight end for depth - the question is whether doing it with a third-round selection is worth the price.
From my perspective, it is not, and like our first two choices, I'll be interested to hear what the coaches have to say.
Pittsburgh still has six selections remaining in the 2007 Draft - two in both the fourth and fifth rounds, and one in both the sixth and seventh rounds.
--PB--