Thanks Dave! As always, I’ve been looking forward to your draft notes.
Some thoughts.
I hope they don’t trade up. There’s appears to be a laser focus on Najee Harris
and I worry that they’d give up too much to move up and snatch him from Miami
or whoever.
If he’s there at 24, I’m fine with the pick. If he’s not there, then a worthy
LT, ILB, or corner will have fallen to us (someone always falls, right?) In
which case, I would say take the best player available from those positions.
On the off chance that NH is gone and the LT, ILB, and CB players left aren’t
worth the 24 pick (nobody fell), I trade back from 24, and take the center (I’d
say Creed Humphrey) because taking the center at 24 would be a reach.
But that’s just me. I guess I should anticipate them taking someone with a 3rd
round grade at 24 if Najee is gone. I’ll call it now. It’s Trey Sermon.
Dan
Amarillo, TX
Sent from my iPhone
On Apr 28, 2021, at 6:42 AM, David Reid <dmarc-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Let’s face facts, they have to come out of this draft with a left tackle, a
center and a running back who can start early as a matter of urgency with
depth across the board.
Opinion is split on whether a) the Steelers will take a running back in the
first round if there is one there and b) whether there will be a running back
there in the first place. Harris is the obvious pick, I’m not sure Etienne is
a fit with them and Javonte Williams is the third back in the draft but who
has a lot of interest in round one, too. The dropoff after these three is
marked, Gainwell can do a job for you, but I’m not sure that he or any of the
others are a 25 carry a game workhorse and besides, I think you’d look for
that second tier of backs to come off the board in round three. I’m usually
against the drafting of a RB in round one, but the lack of depth this year is
marked compared with previous years - there are no Alvin Kamara’s floating
around in round two in this group.
When you look at tackle, probably discount Sewell, Slater and Darrisaw as
they would have gone, Mayfield is a possibility but may be better suited at
guard, I like Jenkins and I like Radunz as a left tackle and he is rising -
could they slide down a few spots and get one of those two guys and an extra
pick? Yes, I think they could. Second round could have some other names like
Brown and Eichenberg, but I think you’ll see a run on linemen early in round
two as teams that focused on skill players in the top ten of round one move
on protecting their assets.
Dickerson’s injury history is a concern at center, I like Humphrey and he may
be around in round two, Meinerz is in the 2/3 area could feature as well.
Leatherwood is intriguing as well, though more as a guard / tackle type.
It’s a tough one to call. My gut instincts are telling me that there’s no way
that Harris will get to pick 24, either the Dolphins will pick him, or
someone will trade up to get him, possibly Buffalo. If that’s the case, then
it falls to what the preference is, the second or third best back, or one of
the linemen that’s there. I like Williams, he’s a better fit than Etienne is
for the Steelers as he can grind it between the tackles, but would they pick
him ahead of Jenkins or Radunz? That’s the question. To summarise, I think
it’s Harris if he’s there, if not, then trade down in round one, get an extra
pick and take a lineman or Williams if he’s still there at the end of round
one.
And, as always, round one will not determine the success or failure of this
draft, in fact, if they get Harris, it just heightens the urgency to fix the
OL even more in rounds two and three, because he won’t have any more success
behind the OL as it stands today than any of the backs they ran out there
last year had.
Could they surprise and go a completely different direction in round one?
Sure, remember, it has been 9 years since they went offense in round one. So,
if there’s a LB like Zaven Collins or Owusu-Koramoah or Parsons if he were to
fall for some reason that were to make it to 24 and they really liked them
more than they like Highsmith or the mess at ILB behind the starters, or if
they think that Asante Samuel or Farley is worth a shot at corner, then I
wouldn’t be surprised. Keep an eye on Collins, especially. It would mean that
there won’t be much of a running game again next year, but it wouldn’t be a
surprise and remember, there is another ticking time bomb in the secondary
with Hilton and Nelson gone, questions about Layne, Haden getting up in
years, and Edmunds entering the last year of his deal so a DB pick would be
plausible, if not a critical need for this coming season.
Elsewhere, DL depth, a mid-tier TE would help and you just know that they
will be tempted by another WR despite last year’s group returning, in a
normal year I’d be begging for them to take a shot at a Rondale Moore or an
Elijah Moore in round two, but needs must. Unless something bizarre happens,
they should pass on the entire QB class and deal with it next year. But
overall, adding quality depth across the board is a must this year.
I’ll be here all weekend, I’ll send any updates if I get any additional
knowledge, let’s do this…...