The Pittsburgh Steelers 2016 draft:
Quote:
1. Eli Apple, CB - Ohio State
2. Darian Thompson, SS - Boise State
3. Bronson Kaufusi, DE - BYU
4. Sebastian Tretola, G - Arkansas
6. Vincent Valentine, NT - Nebraska
7. Cole Toner, OT - Harvard
7. Trevor Davis, WR - Cal
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This is almost the opposite of my Giants draft; I think this draft started shaky but got better as it went. Apple was a no-brainer; perfect fit of need and BPA. The only thing that keeps him from going to Pittsburgh is if Jackson is still there and in our draft he wasn't. Had I made my first pick a week later, I'd have probably taken Jackson over Apple here but I can't complain; both are good picks. I've gone over Thompson in the draft regrets thread - feels like a panic move. Lost Bell and Joseph, wanted to get DB help and took the next DB rather than risk sifting through dregs in the 3rd.
Starting with the 3rd, however, I think I got nice picks across the board. Kaufusi is a little older than you'd like but he's also a 3rd rounder with freakish measurables who's stood out in showcase games. Tretola has a very good chance to start on day 1 and if he can get his pass protection ironed out, he could be a good one. To me, he's an upper middle-class version of Zach Fulton. Valentine is just a big ol' body who came out early so he has some room to grow. Not a great fit in most schemes but a solid guy to have about in Pittsburgh. Toner's a similar story, not a perfect fit everywhere but a smart technician with plus athleticism for the position that should play up a bit in Pittsburgh's ZBS. Finally Davis is just a hell of an athlete and if anyone can unlock him, it's Pittsburgh. If he could just run halfway decent routes underneath he'd be a hell of a weapon.
Final scores: Giants - B+, Steelers B-
Solid drafts for both, my 4th and 5th round picks for NY keeps me from giving myself an A and some indecision in the first 2 rounds for the Steelers knocks them down a bit further than that.
I expect that the Giants will give me the best 'score' I've had in these drafts with the Steelers probably checking in at an even or perhaps a little bit on the negative side. I do not expect to have the issues I've had in years past where 2nd or 3rd rounders have gone undrafted for me, nor do I expect to have an Olivier Vernon kind of pick where I snag a guy in the 6th that ends up going high 3rd.