It's official I'm a Pittsburgh Steeler! Definitely enjoyed my time in Buffalo & all the support that I received from the fans! Thank you!
For some reason, Joey Porter's Pit Bulls have a good feeling about new signee Arthur Moats ("DaBody52" on Twitter). He should be a welcome addition at linebacker. Maybe part of the reason the Steelers signed him is for help on special teams, where he was a mainstay for the Bills. Surely, however, the Steelers want to see what he can do at linebacker, where the team needs major help, whether they want to admit it or not.
Moats is not likely to provide major help immediately, but he should help. Reading the tea leaves, it appears he will play inside linebacker, mostly, at the position formerly occupied by Larry Foote, where Moats will compete with Vince Williams for playing time. The Steelers had considerable trouble stopping the run last year. Not all of that difficulty can be ascribed to the front three; the absence of Foote hurt the run defense. Maybe Moats can help. Somebody needs to help.
Interestingly, Moats has a body type (listed at 6'0", but call it 5'10", and 250) similar to James Harrison, so maybe he plays with leverage. He had success in college as a pass rusher (the Buck Buchanon Award winner) at Division II James Madison University, which is ancient history for the 26-year-old, but still: It is not inconceivable the Steelers might try him at Jarvis Jones's spot, as a backup to Jones.
Then again, it's entirely possible Dick LeBeau will continue to expand the scheme of three safeties on the field at one time, along with two corners and three linebackers (Jones, Timmons and Worilds). The four safeties to get playing time will be Troy Polamalu, Mike Mitchell, Will Allen and Shamarko Thomas.
We expect to see more three-safety sets this year, with Shamarko playing closer to the line of scrimmage and disrupting crossing patterns.
One thing, though: There's not much height back there, or in the linebacking corps. Listed at 6'0", Mitchell's the tallest of the safeties. Who covers the tall tight ends and receivers so prevalent in the league these days?
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