The Steelers 2004 draft: A
Risky Proposition.
Going
into the draft the Steelers had several needs, but none more pressing than the
secondary and the offensive line. The Steelers went about the draft with these
needs in mind. In addition to their needs, the Steelers seemed to be looking
for players with �upside�. With some of these picks, potential seems to have
outweighed experience, or actual production. This seems to be a change in
drafting philosophy for an administration that in the past seemed to look for
players who might never have the physical gifts to develop into a starter, but
would certainly be a competent back up.
A lot of
the complaints that I have read so far have to do with people feeling that
other players would have been better, Butler instead of Starks, or Strait
instead of Colclough. I�ll have an article later with that type of look at
these picks, but for the moment, lets just look at who we got.
Round One, Pick 11, QB Ben
Rothlisberger, Miami Ohio
Frankly,
this was the only pick to make, an absolute no brainer. The first rule of
drafting is that you don�t pass on a franchise QB. Combined with the fact that
the best OT and the best two CBs were already off the board, there simply was
no other pick to make. Many so-called-experts have compared Roth with Manning
and Rivers, and some of them, such as The Sporting News, had Roth as the top QB
in this draft. The first mocks that had him dropping to 11 were shocking, but
I�m glad to see they were correct.
Now is
Roth a sure thing? Of Course not.� No
Rookie is. Given that he comes from the MAC and hasn�t been playing QB all that
long, he is a bit of a risk. His upside is tremendous. Additionally he gives
Steelers fans hope for the future.
The
Skinny: ����������� Possibly
the best QB in this draft. Definitely Steelers QB of the future.
The Fear: ������ Could be the second coming of Ryan Leaf (This comparison some
have made is a bit unfair and has more to do with both QBs being drafted the
same year as a Manning rather than any similarity between Roth and Leaf)
The Hope: ����� He�ll take the Steelers to the places Bradshaw did, or at least
make us forget passing up Marino.
Round Two, Pick 38, CB
Ricardo Colclough, Tusculum
A
smallish CB from a small school.� I�ve
only seen him play once, and that was at the Senior Bowl. I liked what I saw.
The Steelers had him in for a visit, and watched hours of tape. The big
questions: Can he adjust to the speed of the NFL, and can he improve his
technique? Simply put, he is a boom or bust type. He has the physical skills
and reports are that he improved greatly with coaching at the Senior bowl, but
one has to wonder about a guy who�s academics forced him to go to a division 2
school. The biggest problem I have with this pick is trading a 4th
round pick to move up 6 spots. My question is why? No CBs were taken in those 6
spots. Did the Steelers know someone was going to take Colclough in those 6
picks? Not from what they have said since the pick.
Here is
what Lebeau said about the trade when asked by the official Steelers web site,
Steelers.com, �What made you think you had to trade up to get him?�
Lebeau, �I don�t know that we had
to, but we thought it was reasonable to do, that he was attractive enough to us
to make that commitment. You never know what is going to happen in a draft. We
have all been sitting there with the player that you wanted and have the team
right in front of you pick him. We feel good about the depth at corner
positions and we feel good that if we could add one more really agile, quick,
aggressive athlete that we would be in pretty good shape there. He was it,
obviously. That is why we made the trade.�
WHAT? If you didn�t have to, why do it? Why make a �commitment� you don�t have to make? Wouldn�t picking him with the original 2nd round pick have been� �commitment� enough? Folks, that is how you waste a 4th round pick.
The Skinny: ��� Got scouts talking with Senior Bowl Performance. A coachable, talented cornerback with big upside.
The Fear:�� ���� Second coming of Scott Shields, another small school DB the Steelers took in round two who had lots of physical skills that never translated.
The Hope:������ A CB that can cover, play a ball in the air and an eventually replacement for Scott.
�Round 3, Pick 75,
OT Max Starks Florida
It has been said that this massive OT may not to have the best feet, or to lean too much. How many 350 pound tackles hasn�t that been said about? He might not be Ogden, but he has the natural skills to be a good starting Right Tackle if Grimm can get him to play to his potential. He was a good student at Florida, and compared to some of the other OT prospects comes with less �character� baggage.
The Skinny:����������� Has the skills, injury is behind him, improved his last year at Florida.
The Fear:����������� Stephens, Farris, Conrad, Wiggins, Nkwenti, Starks? The list goes on?
The Hope:����������� That he can start at RT this year and solidify the line.
Round 5, Pick 145, Adibi Nathaniel OLB Virginia Tech
A college DE who the Steelers will try to transition into a 3-4 OLB like has been done with Porter, Haggens, Gildon, etc. While he is small for a DE, he is the perfect size for OLB. Rush skills are excellent, and for a LB he will be good verse the run. The question, as with all these DE to OLB projects is �Can he cover?�
The Skinny:����������� You know the deal. Won�t see much playing time until next year.
The Fear: ����������� Steven Conley or numerous other DE to OLB projects who busted.
The Hope: ����������� Gildon�s replacement.
Round 6, Pick 177, Bo Lacy OT/G Arkansas.
Arkansas other OT. You know, the 294 pound skinny one.� Grimm has indicated that they found Lacy while looking at films of Shawn Andrews. Interestingly I also noticed Lacy by watching Arkansas games with the intent of watching Andrews. I actually thought Andrews was the Left Tackle, and was keying on the LT. He looked pretty good, although not first round worthy. It wasn�t until the end of the first quarter that I realized I was watching the wrong player. The rest of that game, while trying to watch Andrews on the right side, I just kept going back to Lacy, thinking I liked him better. He is a scrappy blue-collar type. Worth the risk in round 6.
The Skinny:����������� Might have to move to guard.
The Fear: ����������� Stephens, Farris, Conrad, Wiggins, Nkwenti, Lacy?
The Hope:����������� Second coming of� Strzelczyk?
Round 6, Pick 194, Matt Kranchick TE Penn State
The tallest TE in the draft. That is the only �st� he is, meaning he isn�t the fastest, nor the biggest, nor does he have the best hands, not is he the fastest, or the best blocker. While still quite raw, Kranchick has the makings of a typical PSU TE, but that also means he has the tools to become a typical Steelers TE. He spent most his college career as a WR, and is still learning the TE position and to block. He wasn�t even the starting TE at PSU and is still a work in progress, but he has upside.
The Skinny: ����������� Typical PSU TE who will be given time to develop.
The Fear:����������� Won�t learn to block like a Steelers TE is expected to. (extra OT)
The Hope:������� Will learn to block and be the TE the Steelers will get involved in the passing game.
Round 6, Pick 197, Drew Caylor C/DE/LS Stanford
Jack-or-all trades, master of none. Was a solid DE prospect, before switching to Center last year. Now is an inexperienced Center, but might long snap well enough to make the roster. Has some upside, but still will probably never be a starter other than snapping.
The Skinny:����������� Has to show he can long snap to earn a roster spot.
The Fear:����������� Doesn�t do anything well enough to earn a roster spot.
The Hope:������� Will beat out Schneck for Long Snapper job while, unlike Schneck, providing depth at another position.
Round 7, Pick 212, Eric Taylor DT/DE Memphis
The best of many short wide-body run-stuffers still available. The Steelers feel he has enough quickness to provide some pass rush as well.
The Skinny: ����������� Can play DE or NT.
The Fear:����������� Can�t beat out Clancy.
The Hope:����������� The next Kimo.
Wrap up
�Almost every player taken has some upside, maybe even enough that one could envision each of them developing into a starter, and that isn�t something I would say every year. Day two of the 2002 draft, for example was full of players who simply didn�t have the physical skills to be legitimate long-term starters in the NFL. So why do I say this is �Risky Business�? Simple � most won�t reach that potential. Some will bust. This draft, like most will be defined by how the first day prospects pan out, especially Rothlisberger.
The other reason this draft was risky business, is that it may take a couple of years for many of these players to develop, and Cowher and/or Colbert may not have that much time. Colbert, for example, is only under contract through 2006. I might have changed a thing here or there, but from top to bottom I like this draft more than any other these two men have put together. It at least shows they understand where the holes are, and is an attempt to fix them long term. Now the question is can Cowher and his staff develop this talent, and will he be given time to do so. If not, some coach will be drawn to a team with a young QB like Rothlisberger, and such solid players as Ward, Faneca, Bell, Farrior, Porter, Hampton, Smith, etc.