Pittsburgh Steelers
Owner: Dan Rooney
Founded: 1933
Stadium: Heinz Field
2010 record: 12-4
Last playoff appearance: 2010, 12-4 AFC Champions, W31-24 BAL, W24-19 NYJ, L31-25 GB SB XLV
General Manager: Kevin Colbert (2000 – current)
Head Coach: Mike Tomlin (2007 – current, 43-21 as head coach)
Offensive Coordinator: Bruce Arians
Defensive Coordinator: Dick LeBeau
Defensive alignment: 3-4
2010 NFL Rankings:
OFF: 23.4 PTS (12th) 345.3 YDS (14th) 225.1 PASS (14th) 120.2 RUSH (11th)
DEF: 14.5 PTS (1st) 276.8 YDS (2nd) 214.1 PASS (12th) 62.8 RUSH (1st)
Pro Bowlers: Maurkice Pouncey C, Brett Keisel DE, James Harrison OLB, Troy Polamalu SS
2011 schedule:
1 Sep 11 at Ravens 1:00 PM
2 Sep 18 vs. Seahawks 1:00 PM
3 Sep 25 at Colts 8:20 PM
4 Oct 02 at Texans 1:00 PM
5 Oct 09 vs. Titans 1:00 PM
6 Oct 16 vs. Jaguars 1:00 PM
7 Oct 23 at Cardinals 4:05 PM
8 Oct 30 vs. Patriots 4:15 PM
9 Nov 06 vs. Ravens 8:20 PM
10 Nov 13 at Bengals 1:00 PM
11 Bye
12 Nov 27 at Chiefs 8:20 PM
13 Dec 04 vs. Bengals 1:00 PM
14 Dec 08 vs. Browns 8:20 PM
15 Dec 19 at 49ers 8:30 PM
16 Dec 24 vs. Rams 1:00 PM
17 Jan 01 at Browns 1:00 PM
TEAM NEEDS: OG
Potential Free Agents:
Mewelde Moore RB – re-signed
Willie Colon OT – re-signed – 5 yrs, 29 million
Jonathan Scott OT – re-signed –
Trai Essex OG
Chris Hoke NT – re-signed
Lamarr Woodley OLB – re-signed – 6 yr, 61.5 million
Keyaron Fox MLB
William Gay CB – re-signed
Ike Taylor CB – re-signed – 4 yrs
Anthony Madison CB
Shaun Suisham K – re-signed -
Daniel Sepulveda P – re-signed
Greg Warren LS
Free agent acquisitions:
Free agent losses:
Antwan Randle-El WR
Matt Spaeth TE – Signed with Bears
Flozell Adams OT
Max Starks G
Nick Eason DE – Signed by Cardinals
Picks in 2011 NFL Draft
(overall draft grade: B+): The Steelers were starting to get old along their defensive line (excluding Ziggy Hood), so it was no surprise to see them select someone early to fill that space. The Steelers have had depth and injury concerns all along their offensive line the past few years. They drafted Marcus Gilbert and Keith Williams to help with that. And no Steelers draft would be complete without a linebacker pick. Chris Carter, taken in the fifth round, was a pretty good pass rush threat at defensive end, and he’ll make the transition to outside linebacker in the Steelers’ 3-4. There were also improvements made for the secondary in Brown and Allen. The values of the Steelers’ picks were up and down, but the players that were selected I can see making contributions early on.
(! Indicates draft pick who was interviewed, had a private workout, etc. prior to the draft according to my compiled list):
Rd 1, Pick 31 (31) Cam Heyward DE, Ohio State! – Good pick and value, despite Heyward’s less than consistent senior season. The Steelers’ defensive line was getting older, so it was clear the Steelers were going to address it at one point in the draft.
Grade: A Rated: 25
Rd 2, Pick 31 (63) Marcus Gilbert OL, Florida! – Upgrading the offensive line has been needed the past few years for the Steelers. Gilbert will help. He was a riser according to some reports, but I didn’t think he should be in top 100 after being ranked so lowly after watching him during the season.
Grade: C+ Rated: 115
Rd 3, Pick 31 (95) Curtis Brown DB, Texas! – The second of the trio of corners from Texas. Has great speed and will be able to stick on receivers well. This is a steal at the end of the third round.
Grade: A Rated: 56
Rd 4, Pick 31 (128) Cortez Allen DB, Citadel! – a little early for Allen, but more help on the way for the Steelers’ secondary, which was one of their top needs.
Grade: C+ Rated: 163
Rd 5, Pick 31 (162) Chris Carter OLB, Fresno State – Great pick. This is why Kevin Kolbert has the Steelers so successful year in and year out for the better part of his over 10 years heading the Steelers personnel department.
Grade: A+ Rated: 96
Rd 6, Pick 31 (196) Keith Williams OL, Nebraska! – Powerful run blocker for Nebraska.
Grade: B+ Rated: 204
Rd 7, Pick 29 (232) Baron Batch RB, Texas Tech – elusive runner but is undersized.
Grade: C Rated: NR
2010 Steelers Draft review:
Here are some interesting nuggets of information I saw while watching the 2010 NFL Draft praess conferences for the Pittsburgh Steelers: According to Kevin Colbert, preparations and evaluations had remained the same as in the past, and hadn’t changed because of the Ben Roethlisberger situation. Colbert felt that a fifth rounder was the best they could get for Santonio Holmes. They met with roughly 100 players in individual interviews (30 brought to Steelers’ place, 60 at the combine, and the rest when Colbert and Head Coach Mike Tomlin visited college pro days). They do take certain players off the board due to character. Roughly 400 guys, 225 draftable, then free agents are on their board. Colbert estimated that there’s about 100-120 players that the Steelers would take based on if they were a fit for the Steelers. Scouting staff and coaching staff first met on March 29th. They met in detail with coaches and came up with final evaluations on the Wednesday before the draft. The Steelers like to groom linebackers for their system, as evidenced by the great tradition of Steeler linebackers. Linebackers coach Keith Butler said that he hadn’t had a rookie linebacker start in their system in all the years he’s been there. They interviewed first round pick Maurkice Pouncey at combine. They received calls asking them if they wanted to trade out of 18th, but they wanted to take Pouncey. Emmanuel Sanders really grabbed their attention at the East/West Shrine Game. They brought him in for a player visit. The Cardinals initiated the contact between the two teams about the trade of Bryant McFadden. They followed their board “to a T.” I had been waiting through about 100 minutes of draft press conference video to hear about Colbert’s draft philosophy. They’re yet another top NFL team that goes best available player.
Rd 1, Pick 18 (18) Maurkice Pouncey C, Florida – 16 starts
Rd 2, Pick 20 (52) Jason Worilds DE, Virginia Tech – 14 games, 17 TCK, 2 SCK
Rd 3, Pick 18 (82) Emmanuel Sanders WR, SMU – 13 games, 1 starts, 28 REC, 376 YDS, 13.4 AVG, 2 TD, 1 FMBL LOST, 25 KR, 628 YDS, 25.1 AVG, 4 PR, 15.0 AVG
Rd 4, Pick 18 (116) Thaddeus Gibson DE, Ohio State – cut, picked up by 49ers
Rd 5, Pick 20 (151) Chris Scott OT, Tennessee – no games
Rd 5, Pick 33 (164) Crezdon Butler CB, Clemson – 4 games, 1 TCK
Rd 5, Pick 35 (166) Stevenson Sylvester LB, Utah – 16 games, 14 TCK, 1 FF
Rd 6, Pick 19 (188) Jonathan Dwyer RB, Georgia Tech – no games
Rd 6, Pick 26 (195) Antonio Brown WR, Central Michigan – 9 games, 16 REC, 167 YDS, 10.4 AVG, 17 KR, 397 YDS, 23.4 AVG, 19 PR, 5.8 AVG
Rd 7, Pick 35 (242) Doug Worthington DT, Ohio State – cut, signed to Buccaneers practice squad
Looking back at my grades for the 2010 Steelers draft class: After the 2010 NFL Draft, I gave the Steelers an overall grade of B. Maurkice Pouncey was an absolute gem, starting all 16 games. He clearly deserves an upgrade from B+ to an A+. I still feel that Sanders wasn’t the best receiver when they took him, but an upgrade from a D to a B is in line for him. Jason Worilds could be in line to compete for Woodley’s spot if the franchise tag goes away and he isn’t re-signed (not likely, though). However, Gibson (B+), who ended up with the 49ers, was a fourth rounder, which isn’t good (C). The Pouncey pick alone makes the draft successful. There were some key contributors on the offense, but the defensive front is getting older, so hopefully they’ll get to address that in the 2011 draft. Their overall grade for the 2010 NFL Draft is getting a raise to a B+.
First Rounders From Last Five Years: Maurkice Pouncey C, Ziggy Hood DL, Rashard Mendenhall RB, Lawrence Timmons LB, Santonio Holmes WR
2010 Stat Leaders
Ben Roethlisberger 240-389 61.7% 3200 YDS 8.2 YPA 17 TD 5 INT 97.0 RTG
Rashard Mendenhall 324 ATT 1273 YDS 3.9 YPA 40 LNG 13 TD
Mike Wallace 60 REC 1257 YDS 21.0 AVG 56 LNG 10 TD
Shaun Suisham 14-15 93.3% 48 LNG
Lawrence Timmons 135 TCK
James Harrison 10.5 SCK
Troy Polamalu 7 INT
Out of Season Storylines (Because there is no offseason)
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