Dan Moore and the OLine going forward.

[DudeWhat???]

I just wanted to gauge different views, approaches, and strategies concerning the OLine going forward. 

 

I'm pretty sure the overall feeling is that the Line should be our main focus. 

 

What are your feelings on Dan Moore? We saw him progress  ....is it enough for us to focus on interior first? What about Chuk in his RT... Should we focus on replacing or demoting or did he do enough? 

 

The top center will mostly be gone by the time we pick...what other centers do you view as a possible starter and what round ...if any? 

Do we try go OG and C in the first 3 rounds? Or should we focus on OT? Which side? 

[jebrick]

Chuks is a FA. 

As for the oline, they need to decide what they want to be.  They have 2 OGs that are power blockers.  They have Banner at OT that is a power blocker.  They have Green and Moore which are more outside zone blockers.  They have N. Harris who would work better in a power running scheme.  If you brought back Chuks he is a outside zone blocker.

 

IMHO, they need to get some roadgraders.  Get the best OT they can.  Get an OG like Sayler from Georgia.

[43M]

Moore will get his opportunity somewhere on the line....but I wouldnt pass up any opportunity to upgrade every spot.

Im fairly certain Moore will be starting somewhere on the line in 2022, but I would make him work for it.

[DudeWhat???]

7 hours ago, jebrick said:

Chuks is a FA. 

As for the oline, they need to decide what they want to be.  They have 2 OGs that are power blockers.  They have Banner at OT that is a power blocker.  They have Green and Moore which are more outside zone blockers.  They have N. Harris who would work better in a power running scheme.  If you brought back Chuks he is a outside zone blocker.

 

IMHO, they need to get some roadgraders.  Get the best OT they can.  Get an OG like Sayler from Georgia.

You mentioned Banner.....does his recent struggles with his injury concern you? I do believe we need to go with a power running style ...  I agree

[mwalker]

Agree that we need to decide what we want from the OL, athleticism and movement or more power.

Frankly, I'm not sure as we have a series of slightly contradictory skillsets assembled at the moment.

I personally feel like we're getting bullied and pushed around, so I'm craving some power and push -
so folks like K.Green, D.Kinnard and D.Faalele appeal to me.

K.Green is scheme versatile and position versatile. J.Salyer is as well. But Salyer is more of a 2, 3 guy for me.

If K.Green is there at 20, he's hard to pass on.

Highly ranked C.Cross is very athletic and strong in pass sets. Maybe a bit less of a bruiser in the run game.

B.Raimann and T.Penner are powerful and pretty athletic. Solid.
N.Petit-Frere is talented and great if you can get him in RD 2. Maybe a touch high at 20 (my opinion).

Mid-rounds, I like both the Tulsa interior players - T.Smith and C.Paul. Both are nasty and powerful.
R.Walker from Penn St has unteachable talent, but maybe not the finished craft at this stage.
I think O.Eze the 6'8 tackle and D.Rosenthal at 6'7 are both interesting. So is OG S.Reeves from Florida.
I also think in later rounds, the OC from both Alabama and NC State (names escape me) are both interesting
and battle tested. 

M.Hayes, OG from OU, I've seen ranked as high as the fourth rated G and also as a seventh rounder,
so I'm not sure where he sits exactly. Big guy. Experienced. 

 

[warfelg]

5 hours ago, 43M said:

Moore will get his opportunity somewhere on the line....but I wouldnt pass up any opportunity to upgrade every spot.

Im fairly certain Moore will be starting somewhere on the line in 2022, but I would make him work for it.

My biggest fear always with this team is when they have a young starter, they consider the position set, so they won’t try to upgrade on Moore. 

[Cbrunn]

I think you can lock in moore for the Lt position for the next 10 years , for a 4th round rookie he was serviceable, you can only guess he'd take a step in his second year 

Maybe if he struggles alot next year you look to upgrade... but you give him a chance 

You can't keep wasting draft assets on the same positions year after year when the rookie was at least serviceable when thrown into the fire 

I feel the same way about Green. Him and JC battle it out in camp

[MOSteelers56]

I'm expecting to be ridiculed for this, but I don't think we should write off Kendrick Green as the starting center. He was terrible, you'll get no argument from me there. He was also about as raw of a center prospect as possible. He barely played it in college. He needed a year of bench time to get acclimated to the position and to the NFL. Remember how horrid JC Hassenauer looked when he started 2 years ago? He looked like the second coming of Sean Mahan *shudders* When he started this season he looked serviceable. Hass barely played in college so when he came to the NFL he was terrible. Green has a much better foundation of strength and athleticism than Hass has. I could see Green turning into a pretty good center for us. Maybe not one of the Steelers dynasties at the position, but I could see him being a top 10 center in the league in a year or two.  

I'm less worried about Moore. He showed some flashes of elite talent. Green didn't do that, but he was far more raw of a prospect. I don't know if Moore is the LT or RT of the future, but I think he's in the long term plans. I think Green is too. 

[warfelg]

15 minutes ago, MOSteelers56 said:

He was terrible, you'll get no argument from me there. He was also about as raw of a center prospect as possible. He barely played it in college.

But he played other positions a lot and the skills were a struggle. 

[AFF]

38 minutes ago, MOSteelers56 said:

I'm expecting to be ridiculed for this, but I don't think we should write off Kendrick Green as the starting center. He was terrible, you'll get no argument from me there. He was also about as raw of a center prospect as possible. He barely played it in college. He needed a year of bench time to get acclimated to the position and to the NFL. Remember how horrid JC Hassenauer looked when he started 2 years ago? He looked like the second coming of Sean Mahan *shudders* When he started this season he looked serviceable. Hass barely played in college so when he came to the NFL he was terrible. Green has a much better foundation of strength and athleticism than Hass has. I could see Green turning into a pretty good center for us. Maybe not one of the Steelers dynasties at the position, but I could see him being a top 10 center in the league in a year or two.  

I'm less worried about Moore. He showed some flashes of elite talent. Green didn't do that, but he was far more raw of a prospect. I don't know if Moore is the LT or RT of the future, but I think he's in the long term plans. I think Green is too. 

People forget about JC being beyond terrible last year...he looked decent this year.

Green while somewhat warranted became the piñata for the whole OL.

Im not saying he should be starting next year for sure...I’m just saying he deserves a shot.

[MOSteelers56]

30 minutes ago, warfelg said:

But he played other positions a lot and the skills were a struggle. 

Center has a lot more responsibility than guard. He never got to adjust to the speed of the NFL because was trying to learn a new position while playing against the best in the world. He needed a year of seasoning. He shouldn't have started a game at center last year. Maybe spot duty at OG, but he needed to adjust to the game. He didn't even play against the best of the best in college. It's not like Illinois is a powerhouse. 

[warfelg]

59 minutes ago, MOSteelers56 said:

Center has a lot more responsibility than guard. He never got to adjust to the speed of the NFL because was trying to learn a new position while playing against the best in the world. He needed a year of seasoning. He shouldn't have started a game at center last year. Maybe spot duty at OG, but he needed to adjust to the game. He didn't even play against the best of the best in college. It's not like Illinois is a powerhouse. 

Those are more excuses than reasons though. His pad level was still bad, his base was still bad, played with terrible leverage. Changing to center means little on those things. 

[MOSteelers56]

Just now, warfelg said:

Those are more excuses than reasons though. His pad level was still bad, his base was still bad, played with terrible leverage. Changing to center means little on those things. 

How? Snapping into blocking is completely different than just blocking. Plus, all of those things can be corrected with time in the league. He was learning a new position PLUS trying to correct the technical flaws in his game. I'm not expecting him to be an all-pro or anything. I'm just cutting the dude a little slack.

[Dcash4]

40 minutes ago, MOSteelers56 said:

How? Snapping into blocking is completely different than just blocking. Plus, all of those things can be corrected with time in the league. He was learning a new position PLUS trying to correct the technical flaws in his game. I'm not expecting him to be an all-pro or anything. I'm just cutting the dude a little slack.

Agree. Yes, his pad level can be bad, but it's hard to concentrate on that when you are thinking about the audible Ben just called and are adjusting the line call. It all winds in together and he showed to be overwhelmed, especially as the year dragged on. There is a reason why these dudes drill, and drill, and drill, and drill at basic things. You want everything to be second nature to you so you start reacting and stop thinking. Knowing your gameplan, while understanding their gameplan, while working to correct your own flaws can be a lot. 

He needed a year to concentrate on his game before he worried about anyone else's. Teammate or opponent. 

His physical skills needed adjustment and refinement. They threw a ton on his plate mentally and then asked him to do both at the same time at a position that is largely foreign to him. A move to guard would have absolutely seen the same flaws he has in his game, but it could have potentially simplified some things and allowed him to work through to make corrections a little better. 

[warfelg]

54 minutes ago, MOSteelers56 said:

How? Snapping into blocking is completely different than just blocking. Plus, all of those things can be corrected with time in the league. He was learning a new position PLUS trying to correct the technical flaws in his game. I'm not expecting him to be an all-pro or anything. I'm just cutting the dude a little slack.

Yes and no. Shooting out of your stance isn’t something that’s all that different. I’d suggest this: watch his get out at guard and center at Illinois and tell me if it excites you. Watch him pull in the NFL year one vs Mike Pouncey (made the same move) at Florida (same age same time at the position). You see two guys moving wildly different. 
 

Steeler fans seem to be the last general group in on Green as a center.