The Draft: Why it's so Important

Building a Team

Ike Taylor doesn't know who will be
starting opposite of him in 2012. 

Starting on April 26th, at 8:00pm, the NFL Draft will begin. The Steelers have 10 selections in the 3 day event that is the NFL Draft. The Steelers have quite a few options with how they should spend their draft picks. Unfortunately, this means that there are "holes" in their roster. Starting in the first round, the Steelers could draft a cornerback, a linebacker, a nose tackle, an offensive lineman, a wide receiver or a runningback.

Cornerback

The Steelers could draft a cornerback to replace William Gay, who is no longer with the team. However, many people fail to realize that the Steelers have recently drafted several cornerbacks that have not had much playing time. The Steelers have Curtis Brown, Keenan Lewis, and Cortez Allen, all of whom have received little playing time. This means that the Steelers will probably go in another direction in the first round.

Linebacker

The Steelers could opt to draft a linebacker, presumably to be a long term replacement for James Farrior, who was released by the team. However, the Steelers still have Larry Foote on their roster, who has started for the Steelers at inside linebacker in the past. Also, they have Stevenson Sylvester and Jason Worilds as reserve linebackers who they have recently drafted. This leads me to believe they will target another position in the first round of this year's draft.

Nose Tackle

The Steelers could draft a big man to anchor their defense moving into the future. Casey Hampton will not be able to play forever and Chris Hoke retired earlier this offseason. This means that if Casey Hampton gets injured the Steelers will be left without a true nose tackle. Also, Hampton is 34 years old, which means that the Steelers could be looking to draft his replacement.

Offensive Lineman
The Steelers have struggled in recent years with their offensive line. Other than Maurkice Pouncey, the Steelers lack good lineman. In the first round, they could look to draft a replacement for Chris Kemoeatu, who they released this offseason. They could also look to upgrade either offensive tackle position, which has been a weakness for the Steelers in recent years.

Runningback

The Steelers will at least start the 2012-2013 season without their leading rusher Rashard Mendenhall because of a torn ACL at the end of the 2011-2012 season. If the Steelers are looking for an upgrade over Isaac Redman, they could draft a runningback in the first round. However, Redman has performed well in my opinion, and the Steelers have depth at the runningback position so I think they will go in another direction.

What is the most likely move?

The Steelers are traditionally known as a Best Player Available (also known as BPA) team, meaning that they traditionally draft the player that they have graded he highest out of all the players available. However, with so many needs, the Steelers could seek out a specific position in the first round. In a best case scenario, the Steelers would be on the clock with the best player on their draft board being a nose tackle or an offensive lineman, meaning that they could stay true to their draft technique and fill a position of need.