An Under-the-Radar Opposing Player to Keep an Eye On

Margus Hunt

As a rookie last season, defensive end Margus Hunt did little for the Cincinnati Bengals. The 2013 second-round draft choice out of SMU was always pegged as a bit of "project" because he was a native of Estonia who played little football until going to SMU.

At 6'8", however, and 277 pounds at the NFL Combine, Hunt possessed what some called freakish athleticism first as a member of Estonia's national track and field team and then as a novice defensive end at SMU, where he blocked an NCAA-record 17 kicks (PATs and field goal attempts). His rookie season in the NFL was basically a red-shirt campaign spent learning some of the intricacies of playing defensive end in the NFL.

Reports out of Cincinnati indicate that Hunt spent the off-season working out. He's up to 291 pounds, which sounds a lot like Aaron Smith territory, although Hunt would have a long, long way to go before he earns the right to be compared in any way (other than size) to Aaron Smith.

Back in February 2013, Joey Porter's Pit Bulls suggested a scenario whereby the Steelers might draft Hunt and convert him to inside linebacker, which of course never happened.  He's with the Bengals now, and we just think he might be an interesting player to watch. 

Back to Work -- Training Camp

Enough of the summer hiatus. Time to get back to work.

Before we talk about the Steelers, how about Baltimore tight end Dennis Pitta's season-ending knee injury on the second day of camp? Pitta was probably Joe Flacco's go-to receiver as much as anybody, along with Anquan Boldin, and now both are gone -- along with a whole lot of other players from last year's Super Bowl winning team.

Before Pitta's injury, we were convinced Baltimore would be every bit as formidable as they were during last year's late-season run.  Now, we're not so sure, although they will be helped by the addition of defensive end Elvis Dumervil, safety Michael Huff and cornerback Lardarius Webb, who returns from injured reserve. Still, the loss of Pitta could really hurt them.

Joey Porter's Pit Bulls have always liked Pitta. He's fast, smooth in his routes and has excellent hands. When he came out of Brigham Young, we thought he'd look good in a Steeler uniform and were disappointed that Baltimore drafted him, and not the Steelers.  Last off-season, we made the argument the Steelers should sign Pitta as a restricted free agent -- as much to hurt Baltimore as to help the Black 'n Gold at tight end, a position with quantity but some question of quality in the wake of Heath Miller's devastating knee injuries (ACL, MCL, PCL).

Now, with Pitta's season-ending hip injury suffered during drills on Saturday, the Ravens will be without their No. 1 tight end. They have another good one in Ed Dickson, but Pitta was better all-around, more reliable and more clutch.

As for the Steelers at tight end, well, questions remain.  Which brings us to the draft.

Heath Miller's knee injuries raise the question of when and whether he will return to full effectiveness. In the first round, the Steelers passed on Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eiffert and instead selected pass-rushing linebacker Jarvis Jones out of Georgia, despite medical questions (spinal stenosis) and a 4.92 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine.  That 4.92 40 time, by the way, is the same run by fourth-round QB Landry Jones, a pocket statue who had all of 15 yards rushing last year at Oklahoma.

Having said that, our feeling is that Jones and most of the other Steelers' 2013 draft picks bring a tough edge to the team that was sorely missing toughness and leadership last year.  Jarvis Jones, Le'Veon Bell, Marcus Wheaton, Shamarko Thomas, Vince Williams -- all have reputations for toughness, and at this point, the Steelers need all the toughness they can get.  Maybe some of those guys will turn into team leaders, too.

Zach Ertz

At the very least, let's hope Jarvis Jones can cover Tyler Eiffert, who was snapped up by division rival Cincinnati in the first round.  In our book, Jones and Eiffert will be linked for years to come. Who will be the better player?

Joey Porter's Pit Bulls will also be following with interest the NFL career of Stanford tight end Zach Ertz, whom we suspect may be every bit as good as Eiffert, if not better.  As stated before the draft, we could have seen the Steelers trading down in the first round and selecting Ertz, who went to Philadelphia with the third pick of the second round (No. 35 overall).

Such a move, of course, would have left the Steelers without Jones and with a major lack of depth at the critical outside-linebacker position formerly manned by James Harrison, also now with the Bengals. Another option we thought might make sense for the Steelers in the first round was Florida State cornerback Xavier Rhodes, who went to the Vikings with the 25th overall pick. Rhodes has reportedly been a standout so far in Vikings camp.

Naturally, we hope Jarvis Jones succeeds in a major way. We hope he will be every bit as successful as he was at Georgia during his final season, when he led the college nation in sacks, forced fumbles and tackles behind the line of scrimmage. The Steelers need him to succeed in a big way.

We love, absolutely love, running back Le'Veon Bell -- loved him before the draft and hoped the Steelers would take him. When they announced his name in the second round, we did a big Yeah!, and then immediately wondered if they might have been able to get him later -- he'd been projected as a third or fourth rounder. Maybe, just maybe, he was overdrafted?  Possibly. Still, we're glad they landed him.

One of the many very good things about this guy: Le'Veon Bell doesn't fumble.  Bell had zero fumbles in three years at Michigan State. Not one. Nyet. Nada. None. Ze-Ro.

He starts Game One and solidifies a running game that was awful last year. We have no idea why the Steelers retained Jonathan Dwyer in the off-season.  Dwyer recently said he's lost 25-30 pounds in the past month or so -- which would have put him at 260-265 lbs. at about the time of OTAs.  Really.

To draft Bell, however, the Steelers passed on two other players we would have loved to see in Black 'n Gold -- SMU's 6'8" defensive end Margus Hunt (went to the Bengals, Round 2, pick number 53 overall) and Kansas State linebacker Arthur Brown (to the Ravens, number 54 overall, at 6'0", 241).

Margus Hunt's the guy we really hated to see get away -- he would have been perfect for the Steelers -- and Brown looks like he'll be a perfect fit in Baltimore. It is a bit worrisome that both Hunt and Brown went to our top two rivals in the division.  Hunt, especially, seems like he could be a special force for years to come, and if he blocks field goals or extra points that keep the Steelers out of the playoffs ... we won't be happy. We're keeping our fingers crossed Hunt and/or Brown won't be Steelers nemeses for years to come.

On the other hand, we have high hopes for the Steelers' sixth-round pick, linebacker Vince Williams (Florida St., No. 206 overall, 6'0", 247). Maybe Williams will have every bit as good a career as Arthur Brown. Or not. We shall see. Our feeling is that Williams is going to be a good one, and possibly very good.

As for the Steelers' third-round pick -- wide receiver Marcus Wheaton -- absolutely loved him before the draft and were elated the Steelers got him. He's a perfect fit here, and they got him in the perfect spot. He'll be terrific.

Speaking of wide receivers, our feeling before the draft was the Steelers made a mistake in April by retaining wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders instead of letting him go to New England in return for a third-round draft choice (91st overall).

We were hoping WVU wide receiver Stedman Bailey would be available and sure enough, he was. Bailey went to St. Louis with the 92nd pick overall (the very next pick after the pick the Steelers would have gotten from New England, which, interestingly passed on Bailey).  Intuition says Bailey would have made a perfect Steeler. We would have had both Wheaton and Bailey, and both would be under contract for four years. As it stands now, Sanders can become an unrestricted free agent after this season.

As for the fourth-round picks, we love the toughness safety Shamarko Thomas brings, but we're concerned about his height (5'9"?).  Might he have trouble covering the likes of Eiffert, Dickson, A.J. Green, Torrey Smith, etc.?

The other fourth-round pick, QB Landry Jones out of Oklahoma, eh, we have concerns about him.  The Steelers are long past due drafting a good young quarterback. But we're not sure Jones is the guy. Certainly we hope Jones leads the Steelers to the Super Bowl many times and cements his place in the Hall of Fame. We have doubts, however, and we also have concerns that Big Ben will last a full season -- ever.

Before the draft, we made the case for drafting Duke QB Sean Renfree, who went to Atlanta in Round 7, 249th overall.  Too bad.

Another college player we had our eye on as a potential draft pick was Stanford running back Stepfan Taylor, who went in the fifth round to Bruce Arians's Arizona Cardinals.  Taylor had a lousy Combine but compiled 4,300 yards and 40 touchdowns during his career at Stanford.

Well, you can't get everybody you want, and we'll trust the Steelers know more about what they're doing than we do..  

That's it, Fort Pitt.

The Steelers Should Trade Down

This is the year the Steelers should trade down.

We say that, of course, almost every year. But this year, yeah, this year ...

The Steelers should trade down. They have so many holes to fill that they would do well to add as many draft picks as they can.

On the other hand, the last time they had the 17th overall pick in the draft, Emmitt Smith was on the board. It was 1990. They traded down.

You know how that turned out. In exchange for the rights to Smith, a Hall of Famer and the NFL's all-time leading rusher, the Steelers secured the rights to Eric Green TE, Liberty, with the 21st pick overall, and Craig Veasey, DE, Houston, with the 81st overall pick, the last of the third round. Oops.

Fast-forward to April 2013. Should the Steelers stay put at No. 17?  Well, maybe. If, by some miracle, Lane Johnson, T, Oklahoma, is still available at No. 17, the Steelers should take him. Same with Jonathan Cooper, G, North Carolina. Both will probably be off the board.

If those two are gone, trade down.

Trade partner? The San Francisco 49ers have 14 draft picks (fourteen!) and want Tavon Austin, WR, West Virginia, who just might make it to No. 17.  Probably not. In any case, the Niners are going to trade some of those 14 picks, which include two seconds, two thirds, two fourths and seven picks from rounds five through seven.

See if they'll bite: Our first-rounder (No. 17 overall) for their own first-round pick (31st overall), the higher of  their two seconds, and a third-rounder in 2014. They may go for it.

A trade with the 49ers would drop the Steelers 14 picks. They'd miss the opportunity to draft 14 players.  Not to say the Steelers will draft a tight end with their first pick, but is there that much difference between tight ends Tyler Eiffert and Zach Ertz?  We'd rather have Ertz anyway, although Eiffert will get drafted before him -- maybe by the Bears at No. 20.

That's just an example. We're just suggesting the Steelers should be able to find good players later in the draft.  They might not get Tavon Austin or Keenan Allen (WR, Cal), but with more picks later in the draft, they might be able to get a receiver like DeAndre Hopkins (Clemson), Stedman Bailey (WVU), Markus Wheaton (Oregon State) and, later, Zach Rogers (Tenn.). Any of them would help, presumably.

We're not going to like seeing Hopkins, Bailey, Wheaton or Rogers go to other teams. Those four are among our favorite players in this draft. Well, you can't get 'em all.

Another favorite, a bit later in the draft, would be running back Le'Veon Bell (Michigan State).  He'd also look good in Black 'n Gold.

As would defensive end Margus Hunt (SMU), yet another favorite, and a guy who some people project to go late-first round, possibly to the 49ers or ... the Ravens. Joey Porter's Pit Bulls have been pushing for the Steelers to draft Hunt and convert him to inside linebacker, and wouldn't it be sweet to snatch him with the pick immediately before Baltimore's? He will be off the board when the Steelers's second-round selection comes around.

Speaking of linebackers, none of the highly rated 3-4 linebackers available this year look like a sure thing. We wouldn't take any of them at No. 17.  Not Jarvis Jones (spinal stenosis, a 4.92 40).  Not Barkevious Mingo (great athlete, but maddeningly erratic production at LSU). Not DaMontre Moore (a lousy Combine and a lousy Pro Day). Not Ezekial Ansah (very raw and inexperienced).

Kansas State's Arthur Brown plays inside linebacker. Joey Porter's Pit Bulls like The Crazy World of Arthur Brown much better than any of those aforementioned linebackers, and we also like Brown much better than the higher-rated inside linebackers, Alec Ogletree (off-field issues, including a DUI the week before the Combine); Manti Te'o (small and slow; imaginary girlfriend) and Kevin Minter (a bit stiff, slow).

Other Potential Trade Parters
Besides the 49ers, another team with a lot of picks is the Minnesota Vikings, but they need to stockpile talent, too, just like the Steelers.

Guess who else has a lot of draft picks? The Baltimore Ravens. We can rule them out as a potential trade partner.