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Friday, April 23, 2010

Second-day thoughts

Now that the dust has settled from a pretty fast and furious first round of action from the NFL draft, it's time to sort through what's left for day two and try to figure out what direction the Steelers will go.

Pittsburgh got the offensive lineman it coveted in the first round, grabbing guard/center Maurkice Pouncey.

Now, the Steelers will look to fill some other trouble spots.

There was a big run on cornerbacks late in the first round that sucked away some solid talent, but there are still a couple of DBs out there that they like, Brandon Ghee first and foremost among them.

If the Wake Forest corner is available when the Steelers pick at 52, look for another big smile on Kevin Colbert's face.

Notre Dame wide receiver Golden Tate would also interest the Steelers a great deal as the heir apparent to Hines Ward.

If both of those players are gone, it could get interesting. In that case, you could be looking at wide receiver Arrelious Benn from Illinois, linebacker Koa Misi from Utah or Akwasi Owusu-Ansah from IUP.

Owusu-Ansah would be interesting not just from the standpoint of having played just up the road from Pittsburgh, but because a few years ago the Steelers took a chance on a D-II cornerback in the second round following a run on corners and ended up with Ricardo Colclough. Penn State's Navorro Bowman and Sean Lee are also possibilities.

I don't know if that will scare them away from Owusu-Ansah, but it may.

17 comments:

Darius said...

Take the guy from IUP!!!

GaBlackNGold said...

Dale,

You don't think they will try to trade up to get someone that want?

keevin said...

I dont see how Bowman and Lee are possibilities and I am a Penn State fan.

Bowman can only play OLB in a 4-3.

Lee I guess could play ILB in our 3-4 but I dont trust his health and think he could be a bust

Patrick said...

Hopefully TB gets that tackle they've been dying for in Saffold....

sorry Dale, had to.

I really am lost on who the Steelers take. Here's a possible sleeper: Dwyer

Anonymous said...

i like gerhart alot more than dwyer

Anonymous said...

agreed, i'd like to see gerhart in black and gold.

carync said...

I'm pimpin Linval Joseph ECU.

Anonymous said...

i bet linval moves before we get a chance and Colbert said we wont be moving up. if tate and ghee are gone i could see us moving down like last year

Jim said...

Tate and Ghee are projected to be gone by 52, but you never know.

AOA scares me to death because of the Colclough comparison. Take him if he's still there in the third round.

Bowman has character concerns, and Lee seems like just a guy.

Dwyer has weight and speed problems. Gerhart would be awesome, but round two might be earlier than the Steelers want to take a RB.

If I had to take a guess for round two, I think they may be looking at OLB projects like Worilds/Misi/Norwood. Unless they're all gone.

For round three, probably RB, WR, or DB.

Why in the world wouldn't the Steelers trade up if there's someone they really want? They still have 9 freaking picks!

Homegrown Misanthropist said...

Nice guess Jim, Worilds it was, bulls eye. Does this mean that they believe Kennan Lewis can develop into a good CB? The disregard of Tate and Ghee make me think that Sweed and Lewis/Burnett might be getting the opportunity they feel they needed. That or Gay will still be out there making a fool of himself. I have a lot of trust in Sweed, the guy just needs to feel the game once again.

Anonymous said...

love baltimore taking the fatass. hes gonna eat himself out of the league or be a liability anytime hes out there to just have a heart attack.

adamg said...

Disconcerting to hear Keith Butler talking about Worilds taking 2 or 3 years to start. Personally the Steeler defense wasn't that great that they can afford to spend a 2nd round pick on a project rather than one who might be able to start right away.
A non-playoff team can't keep giving "scholarships" to its draft choices.

carync said...

adamg, I agree with your sentiment. He's a project, and had a poor, injury riddled 2009. Colbert seems to miss most of these 2nd rounders, except for Woodley, and that was probably luck. I would rather have had Tate, or if they wanted an OLB Ricky Sapp.

Homegrown Misanthropist said...

Third round prospects? Is there a chance we get Ghee?

Anonymous said...

steelers #1 pick was good, looks like rest of their and lack of trades stink

jfam99 said...

Homegrown, I agree with you about Sweed. I think all Steelers fans out there should get #14 jerseys while they're still cheap! Just a guess, but I really liked him coming out of Texas and I think he will ultimately be better than Mike Wallace.

jfam99 said...

or grab a Sanders jersey, I guess the WR pick means the Steelers don't feel the same about Sweed that I do.