Alex's "Meh" mock draft

[Alex]

Oh, in case those who wonder who am I? Am I new? Nah, my former username is Gatoradus. So, yes that's me- anyway!

FREE AGENCY OUTLOOK

I’m not going to get into every detail of the salary cap but I’m fully expecting Mike Mitchell to be a cut, maybe June 1^st. One more player will also be cut. Likely Vance McDonald. We will grant Antonio Brown and DeCastro more guaranteed money. We are going to retain Bell, although I’m seeing the Steelers making a backloaded contract for Bell which means by the end of Big Ben’s contract, he’s done. Unless he’s coming back on a cheap contract- he’s done. This is by commitment approach. I’m very glad to see that we are keeping Alualu for cheap and expect us to retain some veterans for cheap deals too. Expect us to sign very few FAs: free safety, OLB, Offensive lineman and… That’s it. I don’t see us doing anything exciting. One of the names I would like to see the Steelers signing; Cody Davis from Los Angeles Rams. He got hurt and his back-up, Joyner took over and never looked back. Cody is likely to struggle to find a good contract mainly due to the depth of the draft. He makes a good stop-gap and that’s it.

LATE ROUNDS DRAFT OUTLOOK

While I would stock up the prospects for the late picks; right now it’s more confusing than it is now, we have few conditional picks and I’m unsure which picks we are keeping. For now, I’m listing the positions I’m expecting to see us go after a pass rusher, 3-4 defensive end, and defensive back. I know everybody hates late-round prospects at those positions because we haven’t done a good job developing them. That being said, expect those picks to happen anyway, I’d not be surprised to see us trading away one late pick for a better position next year too.

You probably have noticed I didn’t target a pass rusher or inside linebacker within first 5 picks, here’s why. As much Shazier is a big playmaker for us. He’s a luxury on this defense. We definitely can win games without him; we just need to improve other positions first like the safeties and nose tackle depth. Finding somebody to pair up with Jesse James and a back-up for the wide receiver position is more of an urgency than it is for the pass-rushing.

We are immediately in Super Bowl window for 3 years again (including this year) we should be looking for immediate contributors and players who can stick to the roster rather than be picking up more developmental prospects which make no sense. We are going to retain many veterans as financially possible.

5). (traded to 49ers)

5). (from 49ers) Robert Foster, Wide Receiver, Alabama. 6’1” 190 lbs.

 If there’s a prospect that has Connor-like story, it’s Robert Foster. No, I’m not comparing them both to each other, it’s a sort of apple to an orange, regardless- Foster is athletically gifted who was sabotaged by the car accident and after the accident, he is clearly still the same athletic player that he was. Alabama doesn’t utilize their receivers properly, the team overall like receivers who go deep and keep the defense honest. Foster, while he can be a deep-threat (he does have a good speed and hands for it) he’s badly miscast where he should be a Z receiver (slot). He’s at his best when creating separation very close to a line of the scrimmage. He can bet you horizontally, I think the fact he stayed while being a miscast and displayed the leadership makes him a great prospect playing behind JuJu and Brown. I firmly believe he will be competing against Rogers and become a #3/4 (I also believe Justin Hunter will be back). People usually think being short makes a better slot receiver, that’s not true. You just got to have the good separation ability and some bigger receivers displayed this.

NFL Comparison: Cameron Meredith. It’s a wishful thinking to want our slot receiver to be one of the best, you can’t have best-something at everything. JuJu, Bell, Brown, heck James all will command catches in 2018. This doesn’t include the possible other receivers like WRs/TEs/RBs making more catches, so expecting our slot WR to have at least 250-300 yards plus 1-3 touchdowns are moderate and as much as need. Of course, unless the injuries occur; which is why we still should draft a mid-round receiver.

3). Sony Michel, Running Back, Georgia. 5’11” 215 lbs.

 I know many who are fans of either Bo Scarborough, Ronald Jones II, or even Rashaad Perry. Not me, here’s why; Ronald Jones is pretty much one dimensional running back, Bo and Rashaad both are thunder-like running backs and we already have Connor. It makes no sense to draft a similar style player if you aren’t going to give them more playing time. However! What makes this worth it; if your running back can play as a functional receiver and absolutely CAN contribute as a passing blocker. I think we ought to look for an ideal 3^rd down back (everybody else is anyway) and it doesn’t necessarily have to be somebody who got the body for the workload. Michel is lightning to Connor’s thunder. Michel definitely can do damages and give Bell some reliefs. This is a good running back class for 4^th rounds and above, we lost our 4^th round in a trade so I’m treating this pick as a 4^th round pick.

NFL Comparison: Kareem Hunt. Argumentative more dangerous than his counterpart, Chubbs. Chubbs has the looks of every-down back but Michel definitely can kill you every a while.

3). (from 49ers) Troy Fumagalli, Tight End, Wisconsin. 6’6” 248 lbs.

 I know, sorry, none of those exciting prospects who have huge potentials or burners. I strongly feel the way our offense is heading for we will be seeing a lot of two tight ends-sets and for a good reason. Vance McDonald and Jesse James both compliment each other very well, unfortunately, I see Vance being released from the team for the salary cap. Fumagalli is easily the most pro-ready tight end who will kill you with Heath-like routes especially in the deep. I perceive James as a short routes tight end who makes a good last resort, Fumagalli is the best running blocking tight end in the draft who have exceptionally good hands he can win jump balls, something we haven’t had for a while. I can see Fumagalli contributing immediately and become a favorite.

NFL Comparison: Tyler Eifert. I probably should remind everybody this; not only this is a weak tight end class, Tyler was drafted high in a really bad overall- we won’t see the sexy class like last year again for a while. Tyler makes for a great comparison, although Fumagalli is easily a better run blocker and may not be available at all.

*side-note* we got this pick from the trade with 49ers for shipping Martavis Bryant and a 5th round pick.

 

2). Vita Vea, Nose Tackle, Washington. 6’5” 344 lbs.

 Uh- what? I know, people probably are wondering two things: why are we targeting a nose tackle and why is he falling? Vea is a powerful nose tackle who doesn’t offer much as a pass rusher, I’m not targeting him for his pass-rushing prowess, but rather his occupying ability to free up Hargrave, Heyward, Tuitt, and even Vince Williams as the pass-rushers. I mean, look at the running game! Teams tore us apart up the middle! I personally believe we just didn’t have the luxury of past to find a nose tackle not because we didn’t like the players- we just didn’t have that kind of luxury we wanted. It’s clearly the Steelers gave up McCullers project. Behind Hargrave we have nobody. I know everybody else is expecting our OLBs to be our best pass rushers, I think that era is officially over. You try to compliment your best players as possible and this pick just makes too much of sense. Now, why is he falling? More teams are looking for those athletic defensive tackle. I believe Vea will have a disappointing combine (not in strength but 40 yards and agility). He’s really raw as a pass rusher, has some potentials. Players like him can push Cameron Heyward from being a 12 sacks defensive end to a 17-18 sacks guy while players like Hargrave and Tuitt ought to have over 5 sacks a piece.

 Doesn’t the thought of playing with 4 linemen on the dirt excite you? Watt and Dupree both are blitzing outside linebackers who will continue to play in the coverage MORE.

NFL Comparison: Paul Soliai. This may be an insult for Vea- I don’t think it is. Vea is a player who will have a very long career; he’s just in a wrong era. He’s not the player that Jared Reed is or other massive defensive tackles who can pass rush. That being said, he’s quick and strong and has the ability to occupy very well, which is essential.

1). Jordan Whitehead, FS, Pittsburgh. 5’11” 194 lbs.

I’m somewhat surprised he’s not ranked higher, but based on the game tapes from different games, Whitehead is clearly one of the best cover safety we have seen in the past. He’s really quick, instinctive, multi-faceted safety with the swagger you like. I know some have liked DeShon Elliott better- he’s a versatile safety with a better size but he’s not multi-faceted safety that Whitehead is and his return game/ability to play as a running back in a pinch is the key. I wouldn’t be even surprised if we trade up for him at least. He fits the profile of prototypical first-round prospect Steelers like; athletic, instinctive, young (20 years old now), and multi-faceted.

NFL Comparison: Ed Reed. Just watch the highlights. Do it.

TEAM OUTLOOK

Fact: We are 2nd in NFL for the sacks total. It’s increased from last season and I don’t think it’s a coincidence, when we had LeBeau scheme, what made his scheme so unique was the ability to clog down the running lanes, forcing the quarterbacks to throw on us while facing our pass-rushing OLBs. I think the time has changed, now we are doing the opposite- we are going to clogging the passing windows, creating pressures, and turnovers which force the teams to run on us for extra hope. People claims we need a better pass-rushing outside linebackers- that’s farther from the truth. A few years ago this would have been true- now we are generating MUCH more pressure with just 4-men up front and I think that’s what makes this defense exciting and dangerous now. It’s time to make front 4 a better unit, by adding Vita Vea we are doing this and absolutely can play Vita on run downs. He’s a guy who truthfully can play on edges as an occupying defensive end. We can now play with more 4-2-5 packages.

People talk about us almost getting Hightower which says more about Vince Williams. No, not true. It’s got more to do with WHO Hightower is and more than it is for Vince Williams. When you have a shot at getting an elite linebacker you always humor the idea regardless, Vince Williams has been a really good linebacker for us. He’s more athletic than we give him credits for and he’s clearly not a thumper that we made him be. He will continue to be a good linebacker for us and he’ll do fine. I don’t think the Steelers will be in a hurry to find a replacement for Shazier, it’s going to be a while before we can and in the current mode it just… doesn’t make any sense yet. Next year? Yes, this year? No.

Getting Whitehead is going to be really big for us. Many people complained about his size, but come on. This isn’t a Shamarko situation where “he would have been a 1^st round if he was taller” Whitehead is easily a 1^st round prospect and may have to trade up to get him. Don’t get me wrong, I like other players like Derwin James and DeShon Elliott, even Blanding from Virginia. Just none of them are so good at producing turnovers and make by-the-hair plays like Whitehead. He’s been playing on a bad defense and his stats didn’t tell that story. Whitehead is easily a better player than other free agents, drafting him and get a free agent as a stop-gap grant us a good transition period. Sean Davis now can be employed the way he’s best known for- sideline to sideline safety.

I can see us targeting other tight ends, just unsure if they will be available, I love the combo of McDonald/James and I think I haven’t been this excited of a duo since Miller/Spaeth in late 2000’s. However, McDonald can’t stay healthy and I don’t feel good about his durability, expect us to replace his position.

We are reloading the offense and defense; I know this mock would be considered as “Meh” mock draft, but what made this mock fun was I did original mock draft for first 3 rounds based on teams’ need and came to the players available and was surprised by who. Vita Vea may be drafted higher- I’m just not sure where and the same goes for Whitehead. We are likely to trade up this year than we are to down.

So, why the Bryant trade? 49ers front office seem to have so much of hope in Jimmy Garoppolo and perceive their team as the darkhorse to make the play-off (Seahawks are having a firesale for their defense, Rams have been winning based on schedule, Cardinals look like they will be mediocre again, AND it seems like every year there is one team that went from the worst to best just because their division got weaker and the schedule favors them). Bryant would provide them an immediate target for Jimmy and we could have got a 4^th round for Bryant but throwing in a 5^th give us a 3^rd since 49ers have two 3^rd round picks.

Thoughts?

[warfelg]

Using a second round pick on a backup NT is a waste of a pick on LS in the 6th level of bad.

[Armsteeld2]

Foster could go undrafted.  Almost no body of work so hard to guess his value.  I'd rather take a swing at Bama CB Tony Brown.  Limited work as well but an athletic freak who plays the ball really well.  Michell has talent and can double as a returner.  I like Fumagali but teams knock players for minor stuff so the fact that he's missing a finger could cause him to slide in the draft.  Vita would be a perfect pick there if we ran a base 43 or even our base 34 much.  I value a good run stuffer but Hargrave holds his own but the ILBs don't fit fast enough.  Too often Williams will be standing flat footed and then the RB is on him or around him.  I need to watch Whitehead and will come back with a reply.  I like that its different players from the norm.

[Alex]

1 hour ago, warfelg said:

Using a second round pick on a backup NT is a waste of a pick on LS in the 6th level of bad.

Read again about my description for Vita Vea.

22 minutes ago, Armsteeld2 said:

Foster could go undrafted.  Almost no body of work so hard to guess his value.  I'd rather take a swing at Bama CB Tony Brown.  Limited work as well but an athletic freak who plays the ball really well.  Michell has talent and can double as a returner.  I like Fumagali but teams knock players for minor stuff so the fact that he's missing a finger could cause him to slide in the draft.  Vita would be a perfect pick there if we ran a base 43 or even our base 34 much.  I value a good run stuffer but Hargrave holds his own but the ILBs don't fit fast enough.  Too often Williams will be standing flat footed and then the RB is on him or around him.  I need to watch Whitehead and will come back with a reply.  I like that its different players from the norm.

Agree, even I'm not sure about Foster either; got to wait until after the Senior Bowl and Combine we will have better understanding of the unknown prospects.

About Vea; running game is the key. A linebacker wouldn't improve our pass-rushing or and defending the run game. That's the Nose Tackle's job. This pick has a lot to do with Hargrave's pass-rushing, Hayward's increased sack total, and struggles against the runs. I don't project Vea to be just a back-up nose tackle. I strongly feel like Heyward have the ability to play at edge like Keisel did and would only improve Hargrave's game. Players like him help your team become more complete. 

Definitely, check Whitehead again. He's everything Jabril Peppers aren't as a prospect. 

I know Tony has a missing finger (as shown in picture, intended for a reason) it hasn't really stopped him. He's still able to make harsh catches. Catching in the traffic and his blocking is where you want it to be.

Thanks for the inputs! 

[Magnus-Viktor]

No, the thought of 4 down lineman sickens me.  Absolutely no excitement there.  Sorry man.  I hate the 43.  I'm 34 all the way.  If you're looking to add a 4th DL and move to a 43, you don't want 2 nose tackles either.  Hargrave is an ideal nose in a modern 43.  You want a quicker, more athletic DT to play the 3-tech.  Not a sloth.  

I like Sony Michel, but he's redundant with James Conner IMO.  

As for Whitehead, doesn't he have some serious baggage?  I like him as a player, except his size, but with the suspensions (which I don't know the details behind) I can't seriously consider him.  I don't want another Martavis Bryant or LeVeon Bell type suspension risk every season.  

[Armsteeld2]

3 hours ago, Magnus-Viktor said:

No, the thought of 4 down lineman sickens me.  Absolutely no excitement there.  Sorry man.  I hate the 43.  I'm 34 all the way.  If you're looking to add a 4th DL and move to a 43, you don't want 2 nose tackles either.  Hargrave is an ideal nose in a modern 43.  You want a quicker, more athletic DT to play the 3-tech.  Not a sloth.  

I like Sony Michel, but he's redundant with James Conner IMO.  

As for Whitehead, doesn't he have some serious baggage?  I like him as a player, except his size, but with the suspensions (which I don't know the details behind) I can't seriously consider him.  I don't want another Martavis Bryant or LeVeon Bell type suspension risk every season.  

Hargrave is a perfect 3 Tec playing NT. 

[Magnus-Viktor]

2 hours ago, Armsteeld2 said:

Hargrave is a perfect 3 Tec playing NT. 

I'd say Hargrave is a bit of a tweener myself.  I prefer 2 3-tech types in today's NFL, as long as they're stout and can anchor, which he can.  Aaron Donald is your ideal 3-tech, not Hargrave.  Here's a good example of my take on 43 DTs.  Back when the Vikings had the Williams-Wall, they had Kevin as a 3-tech and Pat as the Nose.  It worked.  But having 2 guys like Kevin would've been a lot better for getting after the QB.  Kevin could anchor and stuff the run, but could also get after the QB.  Pat just stuffed the run.  I'd rather have 2 Hargraves than a Hargrave and a pure Nose.  I really like Hargrave btw.  I think our DL is elite.  Tuitt, Hargrave, Heyward = picture perfect 34 DL for today's NFL, especially considering only 1 of them was a 1st rounder.  You got a 2, 3, 1 there.  Only 24, 24 and 28 years old too.  No sense in messing with that!  Just add better LBs and DBs behind them.

[Alex]

This isn't about drafting a back-up AT ALL. It's not about how bad Hargrave is; he's still an elite pass rusher, that being said he's not being utilized right and in the running downs it showed.

Players like Vea will actually start and maybe a co-starter with Hargrave. I know people are satisfied with our depth, it's pretty good considering- Alualu and Walton both are good against the run games. Both also don't offer much as a pass rusher and that's where I want to see Hargrave play. He can play off the center, with our scheme we couldn't do that because we DON'T have the personnel for it at all. That's how bad it is, the fact he (Butler) doesn't even use McCullers at all is saying something.

The pick alone is about making our scheme MORE versatile, not less. Allowing players like Tuitt, Hargrave, heck our inside linebackers to become better players. I think it's a very valuable pick if you can get a player that compliments the front 7 as the whole. It's not going to hurt our defense.

BTW... For those who said "I hate the 4-3" we already play 4-3 a bit, the OLBs play as functioning defensive ends and it's not about playing a specific scheme; you can't simply replace a player like Shazier and before he went down we already had this issues and that's something you can fix with.

[warfelg]

And none of this is about what we are saying.

Taking a guy that high in the draft to be a situational role player is a waste, and that's what people have a problem with.  We have other problem areas to need to fix that are more important than a part time run stopping NT.  We're drifting away from a 2-gap scheme anyways, more to a 1 gap scheme where the OLB's are being counted on more to provide outside support.

 

And you say you want to do it to provide support to Hargrave, Tuitt, and Heyward....but if your plan is to throw all 4 out there at once, smart teams would take advantage of spreading us out knowing we have no speed rush out there on the field.  You take a single on of those guys off the field for Vea and we now have a weakness in the pass rush.

[Alex]

1 hour ago, warfelg said:

And none of this is about what we are saying.

Taking a guy that high in the draft to be a situational role player is a waste, and that's what people have a problem with.  We have other problem areas to need to fix that are more important than a part time run stopping NT.  We're drifting away from a 2-gap scheme anyways, more to a 1 gap scheme where the OLB's are being counted on more to provide outside support.

 

And you say you want to do it to provide support to Hargrave, Tuitt, and Heyward....but if your plan is to throw all 4 out there at once, smart teams would take advantage of spreading us out knowing we have no speed rush out there on the field.  You take a single on of those guys off the field for Vea and we now have a weakness in the pass rush.

Except... Name our currently best pass rusher? I believe that guy is Hargrave. Look at the sack total; It's from everywhere, the majority of the OLBs' sacks are from blitzing. The same can be said for the whole defense overall, that being said, when Hargrave is your best pass rusher and you place him at 0-tech, you are setting him up to fail. 

Smart teams wouldn't be able to tell who's blitzing or not. Heyward got 12 sacks despite being a 3-4 defensive end, he got sacks the most from inside in the whole league and that's saying a lot. Now imagine the situation and scenario where Hargrave have this opportunity? He'd get MORE sacks. 

I understand the distaste for drafting a player that seems to be a bad fit, this mock was intended to make you think and look again. I don't think Vea is a bad fit though, in fact, it is proven when Shazier and Williams both got sacks from inside, it's mainly from Tuitt and Heyward attracting multiple blockers and less to do with Hargrave. 
Really, No beef if we don't get Vea, I don't think we will- but it's something worth looking at. If we do get him, we all know how better our running defense will be.

 

[warfelg]

I read all that and I'll I could think is robbing Peter to pay Paul.  Sorry no matter how you try to spin this it's not a great idea.

[Alex]

34 minutes ago, warfelg said:

I read all that and I'll I could think is robbing Peter to pay Paul.  Sorry no matter how you try to spin this it's not a great idea.

Again... I intended it to be something different and being a devil's advocate.

 

Otherwise I'd have not called it a "meh" mock draft. Sure I like Whitehead a lot but like I said, I'm not even sure he'll be there.

[kethnaab]

Vea is a beast and is far far far from a sloth.  I'd say a better comparison is Haloti Ngata.  He moves a lot faster than people realize until they see him run players down from behind in the backfield.  

that said, we desperately need to draft a MLB.  I'll be pretty damned surprised if we don't go MLB in the first round, or 2nd at the latest

[Alex]

40 minutes ago, kethnaab said:

Vea is a beast and is far far far from a sloth.  I'd say a better comparison is Haloti Ngata.  He moves a lot faster than people realize until they see him run players down from behind in the backfield.  

that said, we desperately need to draft a MLB.  I'll be pretty damned surprised if we don't go MLB in the first round, or 2nd at the latest

If so, who? I don't see any good chase linebacker. Those that could be, is more raw or less athletic than Shazier. Even I strongly feel like Vince Williams would be a better chase LB than any from this class.

 

Getting a true thumper who can pass rush really well however, is other story.

[armsteeld]

Whitehair hasn't impressed me.  Which game should I go to and see him dominate?  I hate the way he launches his body and doesn't bring his arms in to help tackle.