Stillers Post-draft
Analysis
This won't go down like the
1974 Stiller draft, but it's hard to stockpile a plethora of quality picks in
this day in age when drafting 27th.� The
Stillers seemed to have gotten a couple of football players, but as I
often cite, it takes a couple years to see how many picks pan out, and it takes
the strapping on of pads and competition against NFL players to see what these
young men can really do (or can't do, as often is the case).� And, despite the fawning and gushing over each
& every draft pick by the front office, coaching staff, and a majority of
the fan base, we all can easily hearken back to the same fawning we'd heard
just a few years ago in regard to Jeremy Staat, Scott Shields, Jason Simmons,
and so on.�
I'll go through each pick,
with a "plus" and "minus" annotated for each player, and
then summarize the Stiller draft at the end of the article.
Round 1 - Troy Polamalu,
S, USC.�� The Stillers made it open knowledge that they coveted Pola, and
paid to move up to #16 by shipping their #3 and #6 to the Chefs.� Obviously, Polamalu is just about the
equivalent of manna from Heaven for a team whose starting safety combo last
season was slower than the pond water.�
Pola will immediately start at SS and give the team a tremendous boost
over Lee Flowers.� What's hilarious, is
some "experts" claiming that the Stillers are settling for Troy as an
"in the box safety" to replace an "in the box safety" like
Flowers, and thus are gaining nothing in the exchange.� Nothing could be further from the
truth.� Fact is, Flowers was a total
nobody coming out of Ga. Tech as a 5th rounder.� Polamalu, meanwhile, was rightfully heralded as on the very best
safeties to enter the NFL draft in the past few years.� Flowers was a total zero in terms of
athletic ability, whereas Polamalu has exceptional athleticism and speed.
Flowers talked a big game, but no one can cite more than about 3 big hits that
he'd made the past 3 seasons combined.�
Pola, meanwhile, is known as a devastating hitter in the mode of Trojan
safeties like Ronnie Lott and Dennis Smith.�
- Pluses:�� More than a "one year wonder".�� Played against big-time competition in the PAC
10 and played in the huge media market in LA.�
Hard, devoted worker who possesses all the tools.� Should be able to step in and start from
game 1.� The last Trojan to be selected
in the first round by the Stillers didn't turn out too shabbily�went by the
name of Swann�.
- Minuses:� Is still a bit green in coverage and will
need to work on the finer points.� Unlike
numerous previous #1 picks by the Stillers, will have enormous pressure placed
on him because he fills the void that is generally perceived as being the one
and only missing link from a championship run.�
Stillers paid a price by shipping #3 and #6 to KC, so Pola will have to
have a banner season to justify the expense.�
Has had some concussion and injury problems, and based on the current brittleness
of fellow Hawaiian/Samoan Chris Fu, there's always a concern of China Doll
Syndrome (CDS).�
Round 2 - Alonzo Jackson,
DE, FSU.�� Following in the mold of former draftees Gildon,
Porter, and Haggans, the Stillers selected a DE -- this time Alonzo Jackson -- in
hopes of playing him at OLB in the 3-4 defense.� Jackson had a superb couple of years at FSU, giving opponents
fits with a strong speed rush from the RDE spot.�
- Pluses: Has the size,
frame length, speed, and quickness to excel at OLB.� Burst off the snap will make him dangerous as an OLB in the
3-4.� Faced strong competition at FSU
and is accustomed to being under the glare of the major media and the "big
lights".� Could make the defense's
biggest weak link -- LOLB -- a strong point by supplanting Jason GilDong.�
- Minuses:� Doesn't have great speed.� Pass coverage will obviously be as raw as
sushi.� Should be groomed at LOLB to
replace Jason GilDong, who has never once had any NFL-caliber competition
in 7 (seven) seasons as an NFL starter, which could spell B-E-N-C-H-R-O-T for
Jackson.�
Round 3 - none (Traded to
KC)�
Round 4 - Ivan Taylor,
CB, La-Lafeyette.� �Big, fast CB
from the virtual unknown of the Sunbelt Conference.� Has great potential based on size and speed, and for a 4th round
pick this selection appears to be as good as one can possibly hope for.�
- Pluses: Blazing speed; was
timed at 4.33.� Nice size of 6', 200
pounds.� Is considered a good
hitter.� Impressive 350-pound bench and
450-lb. squat for a man of his size.�
- Minuses: Played in rinky
dink conference against subpar competition.�
Will be green in terms of intricate coverage and intricate passing
offenses.� Could be nicknamed "Ivan
the Terrible" if he falters.�
Round 5 - Brian St.
Pierre, QB, Boston College.� Stillers have a near-annual desire to "check the
block" in terms of drafting a QB in round 5, 6, or 7, and this year St.
Pierre helps get the blocked checked.� 2-year
starter at BC who did little to impress this writer.�
- Pluses: None.�
- Minuses:� Too many to succinctly list here.�
Round 6 - none (Traded to KC)
Round 7 - JT Wall, FB,
UGA.�� The Stillers, after several years of a mandatory
annual selection from CU, have now turned to UGA to make its annual mandatory
selection.�� Wall will have to fight
with ex-Bulldog V. Haynes for the backup FB spot.
- Pluses:� Good, squatty build -- unlike giraffes like
Jon Witman -- for a FB, and good strength.�
Played at major college against top competition.� Has strong desire and hard work ethic, and
is willing to run thru brick wall for his team.� Could be a good wedge-buster and skull-cracker on spec
teams.�
- Minuses: Limited rushing
and pass-catching skills, although the Stiller offense -- other than the 2-yard
out -- doesn't task out a lot of chores for the FB in the passing game nor in
the ball-carrying realm.�
Overall Stiller Draft
Synopsis:� I'll obviously need to see these men perform in preseason to get
a better feel for the overall effectiveness of this draft.� On the plus side, the Stillers
selected a couple players who had multi-year starting experience at big-time programs.�� In other words, not many Chris Conrads' or
Jamain Stephens' or Scott Shields' among this bunch.�
This draft fits the Colbert
model to a "T" -- players from big-name conferences who showed more
than just a "1-year wonder" and had the combination of good
collegiate performance; good measurables; and good potential.� Polamalu and Jackson certainly fit that
bill.� Taylor doesn't, but I absolutely
love the pick.� In past years, the
Stillers spent 3rd & 4th round picks on CBs like Poteat, Townsend, and
Simmons -- fellows who were neither big nor fast.� Taylor, at the very least, is big and fast.� He might be a total washout, but the upside
is tremendous, especially for a pick near the end of the 4th round.�
The most wasted pick was
obviously St. Pierre.� This is a pick
that has virtually no chance to excel in the NFL.� The team would have been better off spending a pick on someone
who might help in a platoon role, &/or a spec teams role, such as a RB, DE,
or LB.� I saw enough of St. Pierre in his
collegiate career to be thoroughly unimpressed by this selection.� For the umpteenth year in a row, the
Stillers refused to use the draft to address the single most important position
in all of pro football: quarterback.�
They'll once again use the same theory that much of America uses to
attempt to accumulate wealth: eschew practical investment strategies and opt
for buying a lottery ticket in hopes that the 1-in-a-billion chance happens to
hit.� Having no acute, do-or-die needs
to fill, this was (once again) the year that the Stillers could finally
invest a fairly high pick on a QB (although the loss of the round 3 draft pick
hurt their flexibility).� Instead,
they'll again kick the can down the road for another year, at which point
they'll again kick the can down the road for another year�
The best overall value, in
my opinion, could turn out to be Taylor, who could develop into a starting CB.� And Polamalu fills a glaring need at SS
while being a top-flight athlete and football player.� My biggest beef with the Polamalu pick wasn't the pick itself,
but the fact that Colbert -- very un-Stiller like -- showed his hand a couple
days before the draft, and then paid a king's ransom to move up to 16 to select
Pola.� By unveiling his hand so early,
Colbert basically begged to be beaten and flogged, and as such, had to give up
both a #3 and #6 draft pick.� ����
Biggest question mark is
obviously Jackson.� With the 2nd round
pick, the Stillers had ample flexibility and ample talent to choose from.� We know we'll get quality production from
Pola; we don't quite know that from Jack.�
They chose a tweener in Jackson, which could be considered risky with a
2nd rounder.� The key here will be three-fold:
�a.)�
Will they allow Jackson to fight for meaningful playing time and will he
be provided it, or will he be given the Hank Poteat treatment and planted firmly
on the bench for the better part of three seasons?�� b.)�
Will Jackson be given any meaningful work as an edge rusher as a rookie?� Despite blowouts and other late-season
meaningless games, Jason GilDong has played 99.8% of every snap at LOLB in the
past 7 seasons.� If Gildon had any
tighter grip on PT at that spot, he'd be known as Saddam Gildon.� Will Billy Cowher dare rest his darling Jason
once in a while, and will he dare give PT to a rookie when he isn't forced to
do so?�� c.)� Will Cowher be content to leave Jackson at OLB, or will he play
the Mike Vrabel game and shuttle Jackson back & forth between DE and
OLB every 3 weeks in order to prevent Jackson from every mastering the OLB
position?�
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