Home 2018 Offseason SCB Steelers’ Quick Hitters: The “Tackle Turnstile” Edition

SCB Steelers’ Quick Hitters: The “Tackle Turnstile” Edition

by Steeldad
Quick Hitters

Good Wednesday to You Steelers’ Fans!

One of the things that I believe has gotten lost in all of the discussion over lack of an inside linebacker being drafted or the logjam at safety is the fact that the Steelers have invested a lot in their offensive tackles. To be as simple as I can, the Steelers are solid at left tackle with Alejandro Villanueva who signed a new deal last season and at right tackle where Marcus Gilbert is in the midst of his five-year, $30.8 million deal. With Chris Hubbard off to Cleveland in free agency, that means the important “swing” tackle position likely falls to former fourth round pick Jerald Hawkins. Then consider they just spent a third round selection on Western Michigan’s Chuks Okorafor. So what exactly is the end game here?

The easy argument is that they’re stacking their depth but let’s also remember that Gilbert has missed 12 games over the last two years and some inside the organization have questioned whether or not he’s lived up to his worth. I’ll leave that discussion for another day though. Hawkins would appear to be the guy to replace Hubbard based on his experience and expectations and the fact that Okorafor is pretty raw. If one of those guys turns out to be “ready for primetime” sooner than expected, don’t be surprised if there aren’t some changes up front.

Tweet of the Day… Interesting how differently other pro sports leagues deal with concussion issues isn’t it?

Here at SCB we are in the midst of our five-man “all-time Steelers Draft” where we are creating our own team based on only Steelers players. The only rule is that they must have been a Steeler for two years or more. Pretty interesting with this many guys drafting because the Hall of Famers go quickly!

As we know, the Steelers have drafted players the last two seasons with very high character. I would take that one step further though… They’ve also drafted players who are known to be hard workers. That’s a trait not to be dismissed easily either. Pittsburgh is a hard-working city and appreciates that from it’s players in all sports. It helps build connections between the fans and the team. That’s no small thing in today’s world.

Have a great day Steeler Nation!

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