Pittsburgh Steelers NFL Draft Recap – NFL Preview & Prediction
The Steelers are one team that always seems to keep some great teams going. However, the Steelers are starting to get older and the draft is definitely becoming an invaluable tool for the Steelers to rebuild as the team is getting older and the holes are starting to show for the Steelers. Now, the Steelers did not have as much in the way of draft picks to help fill the holes and that really limited how well the Steelers were able to plug those holes with highly talented players.
Round 2 (17) Chase Claypool, WR, 6’4” 238 pounds
Chase Claypool could be a welcome addition to the Steelers at the wide out position. While the Steelers still have Smith-Schuster on the roster he was injured quite a bit last season and that will definitely have an impact on the amount of playing time that Claypool could end up getting right away. The good news is Claypool is tall and able to go over the corners, but also is lightning quick and can run the field and in some cases outpace the corners.
Round 3 (38) Alex Highsmith, OLB, 6’3” 248 pounds
Highsmith has a good chance of being moved all around the field. However, he is one player that could be the defensive end that can handle the rush on the edge. At the same time, Highsmith does not really have the size that would be needed to hold up to the rigors of the position. With the Steelers, though, Highsmith will be able to come into the game really strong and have a good chance of starting in the 3-4 type of defense that the Steelers have played on really well.
Round 4 (18) Anthony McFarland Jr., RB, 5’8” 208 pounds
Coming out of college McFarland is a little bit on the shorter side of the game. However, he reminds me of some of the other smaller backs that have come out of the college game. Those players tend to have quite a bit of success for the teams they have played for and McFarland has some great speed that is able to show him bursting through the holes quickly. Not to mention his smaller size tends to make him a harder target to hit.
Round 4 (29) Kevin Dotson, G, 6’4” 313 pounds
Dotson is one player that the Steelers would have to spend some time developing. He is powerful and in the running game has shown to get the good strength to blow the defenders off the line. However, when it comes to pass protection, which is not as big of a concern for the Steelers he is not as athletic as what he needs to be and can be turned by the rushers and lose the blocking ability with the average length he has.
Round 6 (19) Antoine Brooks Jr., S, 5’11” 220 pounds
Brooks is a good player that can fill in a couple of positions for the Steelers this year as he can move from the linebacker position to the safety position with a fluid motion. Brooks is known more of a tackler who can chop out the legs from the runners, but if the runner is athletic enough they could easily hurtle over Brooks. The good news is Brooks is able to run with the tight ends and backs and keep close.
Round 7 (18) Carlos Davis, DT, 6’2” 313 pounds
Davis is one player that could develop for the Steelers, but may not be able to play that great in the potential nose tackle position for Pittsburgh. Davis is powerful, though, and can really knock the lineman back and off his game, but could be chipped rather easily. If he does not get the first punch his hand to hand game is not that good and if it comes time to rushing the passer Davis does not do that very good at all.
