Good Tuesday to you Steelers’ Fans!
Now that the Draft is over many are left asking “Now what?” It’s a fair question considering how much hype goes into the Draft and now that it’s over we are left wondering. Don’t wonder too long though because the rookies will be in town in just under two weeks for the rookie mini-camp. This will include the young men drafted as well as all of the players signed as undrafted free agents. Trust me, the NFL is 24-7-365 so I wouldn’t get too comfortable with nothing happening. Which is the way we like it.
The Steelers released safety J.J. Wilcox yesterday which comes as absolutely no surprise. They drafted two safeties and signed two in free agency. My guess is that Kevin Colbert sent the usual emails to all 31 other teams about a potential trade for Wilcox but those fell on deaf ears. That led to his release. Perhaps most disappointing about Wilcox is that the Steelers burned a draft pick to get him. As reader “Heath” reminded me yesterday, that pick could have been used to go up and get Rashaan Evans. Wilcox was a big hitter and that’s as much as I can say. He was a penalty machine on Special Teams and a liability on D. His release is anything but a surprise.
Tweet of the Day… OK… Rant Coming.
QB of the future in PIttsburgh? pic.twitter.com/blgM8mWP20
— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) May 1, 2018
I tend to believe that fans of SCB appreciate and understand that we do things a certain way. At the end of the day, I guess we’re no better than some guy in his basement right? That said, way too many people take Pro Football Focus as gospel and that’s dangerous. The above tweet suggests that Mason Rudolph is the Steelers’ QB of the future based on two stats. For fans who really understand their team and how the NFL works, you take this with a grain of salt. But for the vast majority of fans who see every bit of news as positive and more importantly, as “accurate,” this is dangerous. It doesn’t help that NBC, Peter King and Cris Collinsworth (who owns part of PFF) believe that whatever grade or stat they come up with is truth. My advice? Make your own judgments about players. Learn to understand what you’re look at and looking for because much of what PFF does is accomplished without their “experts” even knowing what the player was doing on each play. Moving along…
With just a few days past since the Steelers drafted Jaylen Samuels, I’m finding myself more intrigued by him than any other draftee. While some view him as a “jack of all trades but master of none,” I think he provides the Steelers with a really interesting option. I can see situations where he’s lined up in the backfield, motions out and becomes a slot receiver. If a linebacker is on him? Advantage Steelers. He’s also a hard runner and a decent enough blocker. I’m really curious to see what Randy Fichtner does with this kid.
Have a great day Steeler Nation!
