By Christopher DiMarino
This article continues along with my pre combine look at key positions for the Pittsburgh Steelers. For an explanation on how the rankings are calculated please reference the link below:
The Steelers had one of the worst running attacks in recent memory last season. Whether or not the blame is on the offensive line or running backs, it\’s clear that both need work. The Steelers should figure to still have Isaac Redman and Jonathan Dwyer in the mix, but adding another running back would be ideal. Neither Redman nor Dwyer have shown that they can be a full time back, so the Steelers may draft a 3rd down type back or a franchise back. With the needs in this draft and the fact that Dwyer is still so young, it might be wise to opt for a speedster for 3rd downs and pass this decision to next year.
| Name | School | Class | Height | Weight | Rank | Round | Position |
| Eddie Lacy | Alabama | rJr | 5\’10 | 220 | 81 | mid 2nd | 43 |
| Giovani Bernard | North Carolina | rSo | 5\’10 | 205 | 85 | mid 2nd | 46 |
| Montee Ball | Wisconsin | Sr | 5\’11 | 215 | 76 | early 3rd | 77 |
| Andre Ellington | Clemson | rSr | 5\’10 | 197 | 76 | mid 3rd | 69 |
| Jonathan Franklin | UCLA | rSr | 5\’10 | 201 | 67 | late 3rd | 92 |
| Stepfan Taylor | Stanford | Sr | 5\’9 | 216 | 66 | late 3rd | 103 |
| Jawan Jamison | Rutgers | rSo | 5\’8 | 200 | 71 | late 3rd | 125 |
| Marcus Lattimore | South Carolina | Jr | 6\’0 | 220 | 65 | 4th | 97 |
| Joseph Randle | Oklahoma State | Jr | 6\’0 | 200 | 73 | 4th | 111 |
| Kenjon Barner | Oregon | rSr | 5\’9 | 188 | 69 | 4th | 114 |
| Mike Gillislee | Florida | Sr | 5\’11 | 207 | 70 | 4th | 115 |
| Christine Michael | Texas A&M | Sr | 5\’10 | 221 | 60 | 4th | 116 |
| Le\’Veon Bell | Michigan State | Jr | 6\’2 | 244 | 74 | 4th | 147 |
| Ray Graham | Pitt | Sr | 5\’9 | 192 | 62 | 5th | 151 |
| Cierre Wood | Notre Dame | rJr | 6\’0 | 215 | 55 | 6th | 191 |
| Kerwynn Williams | Utah State | Sr | 5\’8 | 196 | 48 | 6th | 180 |
| Theo Riddick | Norte Dame | Sr | 5\’11 | 200 | 41 | 6th | 213 |
| Miguel Maysonet | Stony Brook | Sr | 5\’9 | 205 | 50 | 7th | 213 |
| Zac Stacy | Vanderbilt | Sr | 5\’8 | 215 | 54 | 7th | 216 |
| Dennis Johnson | Arkansas | rSr | 5\’8 | 212 | 66 | 7th-FA | 263 |
| Knile Davis | Arkansas | rJr | 6\’0 | 226 | 62 | 7th-FA | 283 |
| Rex Burkhead | Nebraska | Sr | 5\’11 | 210 | 52 | 7th-FA | 254 |
| Stefphon Jefferson | Nevada | Jr | 5\’11 | 210 | 45 | 7th-FA | 282 |
The chart shown below is all of the data I tabulated for you to get more insight into what these sites think about each player. A * means that this ranking was in a different category than the rest.
| Name | NFL.com | ESPN | CBS | DraftTek | Walterfootball | Draft Insider | ||||
| Score | Score | Pos Rk | Ovr Rk | Pos Rk | Ovr Rk | Pos Rk | Ovr Rk | Pos Rk | Ovr Rk | |
| Eddie Lacy | 82 | 79 | 1 | 36 | 2 | 49 | 2 | 1-2 | 2 | 1-2 |
| Giovani Bernard | 84 | 85 | 2 | 59 | 1 | 33 | 1 | 1-2 | 1 | 1-2 |
| Montee Ball | 75.6 | 77 | 3 | 74 | 3 | 80 | 8 | 2-4 | 4 | 2nd |
| Andre Ellington | 79.7 | 72 | 4 | 78 | 1* | 59 | 10 | 3-4 | 7 | 2-3 |
| Jonathan Franklin | 72.3 | 61 | 7 | 94 | 3* | 90 | 9 | 3-4 | 11 | 3rd |
| Stepfan Taylor | 75.6 | 57 | 9 | 122 | 4 | 83 | 5 | 2-3 | 3 | 2nd |
| Jawan Jamison | 71 | 71 | 12 | 146 | 6 | 104 | 4 | 2-3 | 5 | 2nd |
| Marcus Lattimore | 74.9 | 56 | 6 | 88 | 7 | 105 | 23 | 5-FA | 17 | 5th |
| Joseph Randle | 80.6 | 65 | 5 | 85 | 9 | 137 | 3 | 2-3 | 10 | 3rd |
| Kenjon Barner | 69.3 | 68 | 13 | 151 | 2* | 76 | 13 | 4-5 | 12 | 4th |
| Mike Gillislee | 70.3 | 69 | 11 | 138 | 5 | 92 | 6 | 2-4 | 13 | 4th |
| Christine Michael | 71.4 | 49 | 8 | 107 | 8 | 125 | 25 | 6-FA | 6 | 2nd |
| Le\’Veon Bell | 71.2 | 76 | 10 | 134 | 11 | 160 | 7 | 2-4 | 8 | 2nd |
| Ray Graham | 70.9 | 53 | 15 | 184 | 4* | 117 | 12 | 3-5 | 15 | 5th |
| Cierre Wood | 61 | 48 | 17 | 199 | 13 | 182 | 14 | 4-5 | N/A | FA |
| Kerwynn Williams | 56.7 | 40 | 18 | 212 | 5* | 148 | N/A | FA | 14 | 5th |
| Theo Riddick | 51 | 30 | 14 | 174 | 19 | 252 | 22 | 5-7 | 9 | 3rd |
| Miguel Maysonet | 59 | 41 | 19 | 234 | 14 | 191 | N/A | FA | 20 | 6th |
| Zac Stacy | 69 | 39 | 16 | 190 | 17 | 241 | 21 | 5-7 | 46 | FA |
| Dennis Johnson | 70 | 62 | 25 | 325 | 15 | 201 | 19 | 5-6 | 16 | 5th |
| Knile Davis | 65.4 | 58 | 28 | 393 | 12 | 172 | 20 | 5-6 | 18 | 6th |
| Rex Burkhead | 66.5 | 38 | 20 | 261 | 18 | 246 | 18 | 5-6 | 19 | 6th |
| Stefphon Jefferson | 60 | 30 | 30 | 407 | 10 | 156 | 15 | 4-6 | 53 | FA |
* Denotes change of pace back candidate
With all of the information out there, at least a baseline is established for future conversation. I will try to break down this data before the combine, but if not, please give me an idea of who you like at RB by commenting below. Please try to keep the discussion about the RB position only for this post and I will continue thru the positions ASAP. Also, if you have any other sites that you think have thorough and insightful draft information, please post them below.
Sites:
www.nfl.com
www.espn.com
www.cbssports.com
www.drafttek.com
www.walterfootball.com
www.draftinsider.net
