The Steelers have a loaded offense. That’s pretty obvious. From the arm of Ben Roethlisberger to the incredibly soft hands of Antonio Brown, to the agile feet of Le’veon Bell, the team is confident in their trio of superstars.
The needs really aren’t all that pressing on this side of the field, with TE, OL, and RB depth as the main issues. But depth can be crucial, as we all painfully realized during the first drive against Baltimore in the playoffs this past season.
Let’s focus on the TE depth behind Heath Miller. Now don’t get me wrong, Heath still has plenty of gas left in the tank. But the time draws near when we have to say goodbye to ‘ol reliable.
This year’s TE draft class isn’t very deep at all. After the athletic freak that is Maxx Williams, there is a significant drop off in talent.
Assuming the Steelers don’t want to pull the trigger so early on Williams in the first round (he likely won’t make it to when the Steelers select in the 2nd round), there is one player that could be an intriguing prospect in the 3rd or 4th round. Jesse James out of Penn State showed that he can be an asset to the Steelers.
Towering at 6 ft 7 in, and weighing 254 lbs., he certainly has the height to be a redzone threat. This is evident in his 11 touchdown receptions for Penn State in his 3 years playing there. He caught 38 passes for 396 yards this past season with them.
Not only is he a huge receiving threat, but he’s a decent blocker as well. He realizes this is a skill he must better master in order to become a more successful player in today’s NFL.
Jesse showed off his skills this past week during the Combine when he ran the 40 in 4.83 seconds and did 26 reps on the bench. Not bad at all, considering his size. Despite this, he definitely has room to grow.
The Steelers met with James during the combine, who likely was very ecstatic to interview with his childhood team.
Jesse James is an exciting player who I hope will hear his name called by the team he shares a city with.
Stats are courtesy of ESPN.com and foxsports.com
Photo courtesy of ESPN.go.com
