View attachment 10851
@carminecsju: Jabaal Sheard's stat line: 3 tackles, two sacks, two tackles for loss, three QB hits.
Why bad teams stay bad:
1. They can't draft.
2. When they do draft good players, they have no idea how to use them.
Seriously, what were they doing with Sheard the last two seasons? Their inability to use him properly also lowered his price to a reasonable range, so thank you Cleveland!
Michael Bennett 2.0
Part of it has to do with the organization's instability. Sheard was drafted in 2011, and played his first two seasons for HC Pat Shurmer and DC **** Jauron as a DL in a 4-3 defense. Then in 2013, new owner, new HC in Rob Chudzinksi, new DC in Ray Horton, new position at ROLB in a new 3-4 defense. Then in 2014, new HC Mike Pettine, new DC in Jim O'Neil, still a 3-4 defense but much different approach than the previous year.
As coaches change, systems change, players who are drafted for one thing don't always fit so well in every system, and then it changes just as you get comfortable...it's tough.
Don't expect much at #64 and #96.. only so much can be done, I really the the FA approach lately..
I like the FA component as well. But I wouldn't give up on the draft picks. There's plenty of talent at #64 and #96. Heck, Randall Cobb was taken at #64 just a few years ago.
Not going through all the drafts, but here's a list of notable guys at WR and DB that popped out from the list who were drafted at #64 or later over 5 drafts from 2010 to 2014 (not including 2015, too early to tell):
Corners
Bashaud Breeland (102), Tyrann Mathieu (69), Trumaine Johnson (65), Josh Norman (143), Chris Culliver (80), Buster Skrine (137), Richard Sherman (154), Byron Maxwell (173), Alterraun Verner (104)
Wide Receivers
Donte Moncrief (90), John Brown (91), Terrance Williams (74), Keenan Allen (76), Kenny Stills (144), Devier Posey (68), Mohamed Sanu (83), T.Y. Hilton (92), Travis Benjamin (100), Keshawn Martin (121), Randall Cobb (64), Brandon LaFell (78), Emmanuel Sanders (82), Andre Roberts (88), Riley Cooper (159), Antonio Brown (195)
BTW, let me just say, holy ****, the Steelers have gotten some really good value out of late WR picks. Sanders in the 3rd with Brown in the 6th...in the same draft...? Not even including potential guys like Wheaton (79) or Martavis Bryant (118) but who knows? Whatever they're doing, that's what we should be looking at.
But there's a lot of potential value later on. Not even including the UDFAs like that Malcolm Butler guy who turned out to be an important player for us.
