2020 Draft & FA

[ATL96Steeler]

Kevin Colbert signed a 1 year contract extension through the 2021 season

Colbert signs contract extension

I'm really interested to see who remains for 2022?

Ben, MT, Pouncey, Colbert...all expire 2021...I'm pretty sure Ben and Pouncey will be done...my guest is if there's no ring by then, MT won't be renewed...Colbert will probably have the option.

 

[Superbelt]

I'm really interested to see who remains for 2022?

Ben, MT, Pouncey, Colbert...all expire 2021...I'm pretty sure Ben and Pouncey will be done...my guest is if there's no ring by then, MT won't be renewed...Colbert will probably have the option.

I think Colbert can stay as long as he wants to do the job.

Lots of guys leaving after 2021 though.

I don't think Colbert wants to leave without the team being set for the future.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

haven't dug into the RB prospects but whom should I look at? Who is being projected to fall that is starter talent?

Swift from UGA is projected to be the 1st RB off the board...I think he'll go in the 1st rd, but some mocks are starting to push him...Dobbins, OH St would be a guy that is projected to be a 3 down starter RB. The Wisc RB, Taylor....after those 3 there's not a RB I would take at 49.

If Swift somehow was there at 49, maybe they would make RB the pick, but 99% sure they're not going to release Connor, so the Connor/Snell/Whyte trio is likely what they will go into the season and look to replace Connor in '21 draft.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I think Colbert can stay as long as he wants to do the job.

Lots of guys leaving after 2021 though.

I don't think Colbert wants to leave without the team being set for the future.

Yep...Curious what they do with Heyward after this yr.

 

[Superbelt]

Yep...Curious what they do with Heyward after this yr.

DL is a ticking time bomb, I think.

Javon leaving? That leaves us with 30 year old Cam and Tuitt with an injury history.

I would honestly rather get rid of either Tuitt (preferably) or Cam to keep Javon, if that's the only way to keep Javon.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

DL is a ticking time bomb, I think.

Javon leaving? That leaves us with 30 year old Cam and Tuitt with an injury history.

I would honestly rather get rid of either Tuitt (preferably) or Cam to keep Javon, if that's the only way to keep Javon.

I'm a big Hargrave fan...but they would have to find a way to keep him on the field all 3 downs to pay him what he will likely get on the open market. Tough spot...Tuitt's contract has at least one restructure, likely a lot of dead money, they can't move him. Coming off a 9 sack yr, they will allow Heyward to play out his deal and if he repeats that production, I can even see him getting a Troy like 1 or 2 yr extension to pad his retirement.

Time for Buggs to step up....I think they will be happy with a 2 down run stuffing NT if they retain Dupree, but not McCullers.

 

[Superbelt]

I'm a big Hargrave fan...but they would have to find a way to keep him on the field all 3 downs to pay him what he will likely get on the open market. Tough spot...Tuitt's contract has at least one restructure, likely a lot of dead money, they can't move him. Coming off a 9 sack yr, they will allow Heyward to play out his deal and if he repeats that production, I can even see him getting a Troy like 1 or 2 yr extension to pad his retirement.

Time for Buggs to step up....I think they will be happy with a 2 down run stuffing NT if they retain Dupree, but not McCullers.

I agree. I think they'd need to trade away Cam or (very much preferably) Tuitt to justify it. But they SHOULD do it.

That, or go to a 4-3 base front, letting Dupree walk instead.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I agree. I think they'd need to trade away Cam or (very much preferably) Tuitt to justify it. But they SHOULD do it.

That, or go to a 4-3 base front, letting Dupree walk instead.

The shocker move would be to retain Hargrave and let Dupree walk....I'd like to see them go 43 up front.

 

[Superbelt]

The shocker move would be to retain Hargrave and let Dupree walk....I'd like to see them go 43 up front.

I'm resigned to it not happening though.

I just forsee disaster on the DL not long after Hargrave walks.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I'm resigned to it not happening though.

I just forsee disaster on the DL not long after Hargrave walks.

If I had to predict what the 2020 front 7 lineup will look like...the team is very much in win now mode we know that much. If Dupree wants top of the market money, I don't think they will sign him long term, but they will tag him.

Can they afford Alualu with a 3.6mil cap hit? (that's why I think Buggs time is now to step up)…my guess is they do stick with McCullers (he's only a $1.5 mil cap hit) and they draft a NT with the comp pick or one of the 4th rounders.

TJ Watt...LOLB
Tuitt...LDE
McCullers...NT
Heyward...RDE
Dupree...ROLB (tag)
V. Williams...Buck ILB
Bush...Mack ILB

 

[Superbelt]

I think they have to keep Alualu if Javon leaves.

McCullers is gone, if they can find a half decent replacement for him (And I do think they will try). He barely can handle his limited duties as it is.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I think they have to keep Alualu if Javon leaves.

McCullers is gone, if they can find a half decent replacement for him (And I do think they will try). He barely can handle his limited duties as it is.

If they let Hargrave go, that tells me they're okay resorting back to a run stuffer on 1st and 2nd down. Will they trust that spot to a rookie?

McCullers...I was stunned that he made the '19 squad. Because of his low cap hit, I wouldn't count him out.

 

[Superbelt]

If they let Hargrave go, that tells me they're okay resorting back to a run stuffer on 1st and 2nd down. Will they trust that spot to a rookie?

McCullers...I was stunned that he made the '19 squad. Because of his low cap hit, I wouldn't count him out.

My problem is if/when Tuitt goes down again, or Cam starts breaking down. Which will happen soon on both counts.

Then we'll really wish we kept Javon. Looking to the future, he'd be the best thing to maintain DL dominance long term. Even if it means sacrificing one of our long-time starters there.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

My problem is if/when Tuitt goes down again, or Cam starts breaking down. Which will happen soon on both counts.

Then we'll really wish we kept Javon. Looking to the future, he'd be the best thing to maintain DL dominance long term. Even if it means sacrificing one of our long-time starters there.

Yeah...they are really stuck with Tuitt for 2020 imo because of the dead money, and I don't think they really see Hargrave as being a better option at DE over Heyward.

To even entertain Hargrave, they have to move on from Dupree...it's an either, or situation.

 

[Superbelt]

I forsee Miami heads exploding.

Minkah Fitzpatrick now says he wants to be more versatile with Steelers

Though he got his wish with a more simplified role on the field when he left Miami, Fitzpatrick said he now wants to utilize his versatility.

After getting five picks and 34 tackles in the first seven games with the Steelers, Fitzpatrick’s numbers dropped off in the second half of the season. He had 23 tackles in the last seven games and no interceptions. Part of that, he said, was quarterbacks throwing away from him. He doesn’t want to give them that option next season.

“I don’t want to see that drop-off,” he said. “You know what I’m saying? I wanted to continue to have that impact on my team and have that impact on games. Because it’s no fun when you’re in a critical moment and you can’t do nothing about it.

“When you move around and you’re a moving piece on the chessboard, it’s hard to defend and you can’t just say, 'All right, the quarterback is going to look at me and say he’s going to be in this spot every snap,' like I was last year. It’s going to be harder and it’s going to be more difficult to take me out of the game.”
​

I still think he was used way too much at SS in Miami for his liking. He wants the freedom to roam like Pola.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I forsee Miami heads exploding.

Minkah Fitzpatrick now says he wants to be more versatile with Steelers

Though he got his wish with a more simplified role on the field when he left Miami, Fitzpatrick said he now wants to utilize his versatility.

After getting five picks and 34 tackles in the first seven games with the Steelers, Fitzpatrick’s numbers dropped off in the second half of the season. He had 23 tackles in the last seven games and no interceptions. Part of that, he said, was quarterbacks throwing away from him. He doesn’t want to give them that option next season.

“I don’t want to see that drop-off,” he said. “You know what I’m saying? I wanted to continue to have that impact on my team and have that impact on games. Because it’s no fun when you’re in a critical moment and you can’t do nothing about it.

“When you move around and you’re a moving piece on the chessboard, it’s hard to defend and you can’t just say, 'All right, the quarterback is going to look at me and say he’s going to be in this spot every snap,' like I was last year. It’s going to be harder and it’s going to be more difficult to take me out of the game.”
​

I still think he was used way too much at SS in Miami for his liking. He wants the freedom to roam like Pola.

Just needed to get his feet wet with the DEF...I can see him blitzing more, but not a ton in the box.

 

[Superbelt]

Just needed to get his feet wet with the DEF...I can see him blitzing more, but not a ton in the box.

As long as him doing it doesn't cause holes in the D, I'm good with it.

He needs Edmunds to be his Ryan Clark, maintaining discipline and covering where Minkah vacates.

Still, what Minkah did was amazing, even if it did end up boiling down to removing a third of the field from consideration.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

As long as him doing it doesn't cause holes in the D, I'm good with it.

He needs Edmunds to be his Ryan Clark, maintaining discipline and covering where Minkah vacates.

Still, what Minkah did was amazing, even if it did end up boiling down to removing a third of the field from consideration.

This is what I was first thinking... Sounds good in theory, but that puts a lot of faith into Edmunds to be cerebral enough to know where to position himself or to diagnose quickly enough. Ryan Clark was so good at what he did. Not tipping the hat to his plans to cover for Troy & diagnosing on the fly. Troy was capable of showing blitz at the LOS and then retreating 20yds down the field to sit in a zone before the QB finished his dropback. That was the most difficult thing for a QB to figure out because Troy was so rangy, but also had to be difficult for Clark to figure out. Troy ad-libbed so much that I don't know how they would have been able to discuss the plan before the snap. Clark had to not only play the QB as a true safety, but he also had to play Polamalu and know where the holes were.

Not sold on Edmunds as a player yet, let alone believing he could handle a role like what Ryan Clark did.

 

[Superbelt]

This is what I was first thinking... Sounds good in theory, but that puts a lot of faith into Edmunds to be cerebral enough to know where to position himself or to diagnose quickly enough. Ryan Clark was so good at what he did. Not tipping the hat to his plans to cover for Troy & diagnosing on the fly. Troy was capable of showing blitz at the LOS and then retreating 20yds down the field to sit in a zone before the QB finished his dropback. That was the most difficult thing for a QB to figure out because Troy was so rangy, but also had to be difficult for Clark to figure out. Troy ad-libbed so much that I don't know how they would have been able to discuss the plan before the snap. Clark had to not only play the QB as a true safety, but he also had to play Polamalu and know where the holes were.

Not sold on Edmunds as a player yet, let alone believing he could handle a role like what Ryan Clark did.

If Minkah wants to be a freelancer, he's gonna have to take responsibility for letting Edmund's know ahead of time where he needs to be. Otherwise, he can't do it if Edmund's isn't ready for that role.

They need to be spending a lot of time together in the film room to get that mind meld going.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Going to be interesting to see how Colbert goes about creating space this offseason in an attempt to sign/tag Dupree.

Just throwing this out there... Cutting Chickillo & Foster would save the team $8mil in cap space. That'll get them halfway there.

@ATL96Steeler