I could listen to Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau talk football for hours, but a close second to him is linebackers coach Keith Butler. I was going back through some post draft interviews tonight of Butler after the draft selections of Jason Worilds, Stevenson Sylvester and Chris Carter to refresh my memory on what he said on each and if I could pick up any clues as it might relate to the draft this year. Yes, I have way too much time on my hands, but it keeps my mind occupied and helps with my OCD battles. Below are the three videos I want you to watch and I want your Read more [...]

The Steelers formula for success for many years has been simple. Draft well, re-sign quality free agents and add a low profile free agent or two during free agency for extra depth. That very formula has resulted in 3 Super Bowl appearances over the last 6 seasons with 2 of those appearances ending with the Steelers 5th and 6th championships. The Steelers usually like to bring their draft picks along slow, especially on the defensive side of the ball, because of the complexities of the Dick LeBeau defense. On the offensive side, it is a little bit easier for draft picks to contribute a little Read more [...]

All of the Steelers 2011 draft picks are now under contract as third-round draft pick Curtis Brown has now been signed. No numbers have been announced yet, but it is a four-year deal. The Steelers started the day with only Brown and first-round pick Cameron Heyward left to sign, but Heyward was signed earlier in the day. Brown is a 6-foot, 180-pound cornerback from Texas and should be on the field when the Steelers practice on Saturday. Read more [...]

Another Steelers draft pick is signed, sealed and delivered today as first-round draft pick Cameron Heyward has agreed to terms on Friday. It is a 4-year deal with a club option on the 5th year I believe and Heyward was only a little late for the first day of on field work. He did manage to get some limited practice time in today during a rain shortened practice. Heyward said he was sorry for being late and that he would make up for it. He is excited to be a part of the best defensive line in the NFL and learn from defensive line coach John Mitchell. He said playing for the Steelers was "life-long Read more [...]

With the lockout looking like it will end early next week, the Steelers will have a full plate once the 2011 league calendar begins. Not only will they be tasked with signing their own unrestricted free agents they want to try to keep, but they also will charged with signing undrafted free agents in addition. At the same time they will have the job of getting their own draft picks signed, once they have the cap room cleared to do so. The new proposed CBA, that has yet to be ratified by the players, gives us a glimpse at what the rookies will make this coming season and it is now easy to project Read more [...]

When trying to put a market value on Ike Taylor, the best place to perhaps start would be what the projected franchise tag amount is, which is determined by the average of the top 5 salary cap numbers at each position. The cornerback position was estimated to be between $14-$15 million for 2011. That amount alone was probably why the Steelers chose to franchise LaMarr Woodley instead of Taylor. The top 5 paid cornerbacks that figured into the average where, DeAngelo Hall, Champ Bailey, Tramon Williams, Dunta Robinson and Marcus Trufant. Between those 5 players they have a combined 15 Pro Bowl selections Read more [...]

The hottest story in Steeler Nation right now outside of the retirement of Alan Faneca, the pending free agency of Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor and the Hines Ward run on Dancing with the Stars is the rumored report that Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder said he had a draft day deal in place with the Steelers should a certain player had fallen to the #16 spot. Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post reports that Snyder never made those comments on Sirius however and that the Steelers never called the Redskins about any trade, according to the report. I could end this post right here, but Read more [...]

Episode #54 of The Terrible Podcast is up and in this special edition podcast I interview the Steelers 2011 7th round draft pick Baron Batch, running back from Texas Tech. Baron discusses how he has been received thus far by Steeler Nation since being drafted on Saturday and talks a little about spending draft day with his father in New Orleans and his reaction when he got the call that the Steelers had drafted him. Baron tells about his ankle injury, he suffered early on in his career at Tech and the challenges he had overcoming it and how doctors thought he would not play football again. Next Read more [...]

The Steelers seven 2011 draft picks have been assigned their new jersey numbers according to the Steelers.com website. Below are the newest rookies and the their new numbers, but I will caution you that as roster cuts go on that there could be some number shuffling. Cameron Heyward is unlikely to get his #97 from Jason Worilds though so that #95 should be a safe one to buy. 1st Round - DE Cameron Heyward #95 2nd Round - T Marcus Gilbert #65 3rd Round - CB Curtis Brown #40 4th Round - CB Cortez Allen #39 5th Round - OLB Chris Carter #54 6th Round - G Keith Williams #62 7th Round - RB Baron Read more [...]

Not only did the Steelers draft two cornerbacks over the weekend, they also drafted two offensive linemen in the form of 2nd round draft pick Marcus Gilbert out of Florida and 6th round selection Keith Williams from Nebraska. Much like I did with my post draft look at the Steelers cornerback situation, I will now give you an early look at the Steelers offensive line as it stands today following the draft depth chart wise. The Steelers kept 9 linemen on the active roster in 2010 and may be forced to keep as many as 10 this year depending on how the free agency situation shakes out with Willie Colon. Here Read more [...]

The 2011 NFL Draft has ben over for more than 24 hours now and the Steelers have 7 new draft picks to add to the fold. Several of the seven newest Steelers are also on Twitter as Cameron Heyward, Marcus Gilbert, Cortez Allen, Chris Carter and Baron Batch all have Twitter accounts. Curtis Brown and Keith Williams have yet to be found on the social media giant. Drop me a note when then do and I will update the list. Carter has a private account so you have to request to follow him. I have added the feeds of their last 5 tweets beloe and linked to each Twitter account. Make sure to welcome them to Read more [...]

Lost in the excitement of the Steelers draft this weekend is the funny story about one college football play that links 3rd round draft pick Curtis Brown from Texas and 7th round draft pick Baron Batch from Texas Tech together. When Texas played Texas Tech last season in mid September, Brown intercepted a pass from Tech quarterback Taylor Potts and was on the way to the house until he was chased down by...yep...you guessed it, Batch. The two were asked about the play during their respective conference calls by the media following their selection by the Steelers and their quotes are below. I find Read more [...]

Episode #53 of The Terrible Podcast is up and David Todd and I start by recapping Day 3 of the 2011 NFL Draft. We take a look at the Steelers four picks (Cortez Allen, Chris Carter, Keith Williams, Baron Batch) and come to the conclusion that two are locks to make the team and two will have to be impressive in camp to secure a roster spot. You might be surprised which ones we place where. Stepping back we look at the draft as a whole and discuss picking for need vs. taking the best athlete available. The Steelers definitely filled needs. We take a look around the AFC North to see what the Steelers Read more [...]

In a normal year following the draft, the Steelers usually have already called undrafted free agents and have their agreements in place with them. With the lockout still in place following the draft, no free agent signings can take place until the new league year starts. This could be as early as Monday or could roll on much, much longer. Below is a list I have created of possible target candidates to be signed by the Steelers as undrafted free agents. Feel free to suggest more in the comments. Currently I have the Steelers with 57 players under contract so you could see a few more undrafted free Read more [...]

We wanted cornerbacks, we got cornerbacks as the Steelers drafted Curtis Brown and Cortez Allen in the 2011 NFL Draft. Now that the draft is complete, it is time to take an early look at the cornerback situation as it stands today. The Steelers kept 6 corners on the active roster in 2010 and may be forced to keep as many as 7 this year depending on how free agency pans out and how fast the rookies develop. Here is the Steelers cornerback situation as we know it today under new defensive backs coach Carnell Lake. RCB Ike Taylor - Taylor, as many know, is an unrestricted free agent and there Read more [...]

The Steelers 2011 NFL Draft is now over and we have 7 new Steeler players to welcome to the fold and it consists of 7 seniors this time around. 5 of these 7 players made pre draft visits to Pittsburgh. Day 3 of the draft was as exciting as the first 2 days in my opinion and the draft seemed to move at a good speed. Steelers Director of Football Operations Kevin Colbert clearly did not reach per his usual style at let the draft come to him as expected. Rounds 1 through 3 draft picks, Cameron Heyward, Marcus Gilbert and Curtis Brown were all quality need fills and the players drafted in rounds 4-7 Read more [...]

The Steelers drafted running back Baron Batch from the Texas Tech with the 29th pick in the 7th round (232nd overall) of the 2011 NFL draft. Comes out of a spread offense and measures 5 foot 9 5/8 and weighs 207 pounds. Had 40 times of 4.50 and 4.52 seconds in the 40-yard dash, 7.03 in the three-cone drill and 4.32 in the short shuttle at his Pro Day. Also did 24 reps of 225 lbs on the bench press and turned in a 39 inch vertical jump to go along with a 10 foot 6 inch broad jump. He is projected as a 3rd down back at the next level and keeps coming back from adversity. Batch is regarded as a great Read more [...]

Steelers linebackers coach Keith Butler held a short press conference to discuss the Steelers 5th round selection, Fresno State linebacker Chris Carter, of the 2011 NFL Draft after he was drafted with the 162nd overall selection. Butler tells what he liked about Carter and why was selected and how he will take time to transition from defensive end to outside linebacker in the Steelers 3-4 defense. Below is the audio of the short presser and Q & A Butler had with the media. Read more [...]

Steelers offensive line coach Sean Kugler held a short press conference to discuss the Steelers 6th round selection, Nebraska guard Keith Williams, of the 2011 NFL Draft after he was drafted with the 196 overall selection. Kugler tells what he liked about Williams and why was selected and how he is a nasty, mauler type guard that will be trained at both guard positions. Below is the audio of the short presser and Q & A Kugler had with the media. Read more [...]

The Steelers drafted guard Keith Williams, from the Nebraska with the 31st pick in the 6th round (196th overall) of the 2011 NFL draft. Williams was another pre draft visitor to Pittsburgh and started all 14 games at left guard for Nebraska. He helped lead them to 10 games with 200 rushing yards that included back-to-back 300-yard rushing games early in the season. Williams measures 6 foot 4, 318 pounds. He is a very physical, nasty guard and likes to mix it up and possess good pulling skills. Termed as a smart kid who needs work on his pass protection due to his aggressiveness. Comes from a balanced Read more [...]