April 27, 2008

Well, That Went Alright I Guess...

"It broke pretty well for us...We didn't feel like we reached for any positions."

- Kevin Colbert
Six rounds, seven picks, and I missed all but about three of them. Nonetheless, from what I've heard and read after the fact, Kevin Colbert took it to the bank, and we picked up a rather noteworthy stable of picks.

Unfortunately, our draft day discussion thread was pretty much an epic fail, despite what I thought was a pretty slick photoshop job (reused here) and some solid pre-draft rhymes. So I guess I'll just have to hear what you all think about this year's class this morning.

What do I think? Well, based on what little I know, I'd say it's fair to give the Steelers a B to B- for their performance. Outside of Mendenhall, Sweed, Dixon and Mundy, I'm pretty clueless as to these other dudes. So maybe they're studs, but I honestly couldn't tell you.

Hence, I only have a couple of things to comment on today, then I'll be more than happy to hear what you guys think...

The first two picks I couldn't have been happier with. Rashard Mendenhall is a solid between the tackles runner that will certainly give our offense a boost next season, as he'll presumably share the load with FWP (something I believe the Fast one will welcome). To get him at 23 was just unbelievable.

In kind, Limas Sweed was another guy that I am amazed we were able to steal at 53. Big Ben ought to be pretty psyched about getting a 6'4", 212 pound monster to throw to. Can't really go wrong there. If he lives up to the Plaxico Burress-esque playmaking abilities (without the attitude), this could prove to be an even bigger steal than anyone thought.

Dennis Dixon was clearly a head scratcher in the 5th round. While I personally like Dixon, it just doesn't make a ton of sense what with the Steelers signing Jared Zabransky this offseason and Chuck Batch still in relatively good health (for the relatively old man that he is). Plus we really could have gone D-Line here...

Ryan Mundy was a good call. Who knows if he'll amount to anything on the Steelers roster but I like to see that homegrown talent come back to the 'Burgh. If the analysis of his abilities is correct, and he's more of a centerfielder than an explosive tackler, maybe that won't be such a bad thing. With Polamalu all over the place, it would be nice if we had a guy that could capably handle the deep zone. Still, there's a reason why he wasn't picked until late in the 6th round. So let's not get ahead of ourselves.

And really that's all I got. I'll bet you're thinking - "man, that's three minutes I'll never have back...awesome."

I know less than nothing about Bruce Davis, Tony Hills, and Mike Humpal. So if you've got thoughts/assessment, I'm all ears.

Now, on a completely unrelated and unfortunate note -- due to my neurosis about finals, and strange, unexplainable desire to get good grades, I'll be taking my bellyaching offline for the next two weeks. IE - no blogging, just studying. But never you fear. I have solicited a replacement...err...well, Domski. Whatever you want to call him. So while I'm off trying to figure out why it was so important for me to read 50 friggin cases about Depraved Indifference Reckless Murder, the Dominator will do his best to keep you all entertained with the latest Steeler news. My head may surface here and there in the comments. But predominantly I'll be imposing radio silence until May 13 or 14, depending on how many days it takes me to recover from the traumatic events of May 5 (Criminal Law), May 8 (Civil Procedure), and May 12 (Lawyering).

So wish me luck, I'm off to enjoy self-imposed isolation. Keep it real, gangstas.

REFERENCE MATERIAL:
Rashard Mendenhall
Limas Sweed
Bruce Davis
Tony Hills
Dennis Dixon
Mike Humpal
Ryan Mundy

4 comments:

tecmo said...

The Dixon thing confused me at first since we did sign Zabransky.

My only guess is that Zabransky goes to the practice squad and Dixon goes third string/playing the 'Twaan/Slash role. Since he has a bum knee, having Zabransky on the squad will help, since we all know the Steelers love holding 3 QBs. Brian St. Pierre anyone?

Anonymous said...

I did hear that Dixon wouldn't mind playing some WR in order to be more attractive. It was in an interview a while back.

Cotter said...

Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I feel like he could be a huge asset as a converted WR.

Not bad to have as another weapon.

Anonymous said...

Dixon as WR? a la Hines Ward? I can dig it...and we could surely use another Antwaan-type who can run/catch/throw. It's becoming a Steeler trademark.