Teams Pittsburgh Steelers - The Steel Curtain
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The Pittsburgh Steelers were awarded a fourth-round compensatory pick (No. 140) for the loss of tackle Javon Hargrave. The Philadelphia Eagles signed Hargrave in free agency last season.
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Steelers GM Kevin Colbert signed a one-year extension.
The 64-year-old has been the general manager since 2000 and added Vice President to his title in 2016. The Steelers are 217-117-2 (.649) with 15 playoff wins since Colbert was hired. There's speculation that Colbert will retire when Ben Roethlisberger does, so the 2021 campaign very well could be his last. He's been signing one-year extensions for some time now.
SOURCE: Steelers on Twitter
Mar 15, 2021, 2:03 PM ET
The 64-year-old has been the general manager since 2000 and added Vice President to his title in 2016. The Steelers are 217-117-2 (.649) with 15 playoff wins since Colbert was hired. There's speculation that Colbert will retire when Ben Roethlisberger does, so the 2021 campaign very well could be his last. He's been signing one-year extensions for some time now.
SOURCE: Steelers on Twitter
Mar 15, 2021, 2:03 PM ET
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The Athletic's Mark Kaboly said it's "hard to imagine" the Steelers going into the 2021 season with Benny Snell atop the team's running back depth chart.
Kaboly said there remains an "outside shot" the Steelers -- who chose not to re-sign James Conner -- can add a running back in free agency, with options like Leonard Fournette and Duke Johnson still unsigned. However the Pittsburgh backfield evolves in the coming weeks, Kaboly said there's not much chance of Snell starting the season as the team's RB1, despite head coach Mike Tomlin's praise of Snell late in the 2020 season. Snell in two December starts totaled 150 rushing yards and a touchdown on 34 carries, adding six receptions. Pittsburgh has the 24th pick in this spring's NFL Draft.
SOURCE: The Athletic
Mar 22, 2021, 8:45 AM ET
Kaboly said there remains an "outside shot" the Steelers -- who chose not to re-sign James Conner -- can add a running back in free agency, with options like Leonard Fournette and Duke Johnson still unsigned. However the Pittsburgh backfield evolves in the coming weeks, Kaboly said there's not much chance of Snell starting the season as the team's RB1, despite head coach Mike Tomlin's praise of Snell late in the 2020 season. Snell in two December starts totaled 150 rushing yards and a touchdown on 34 carries, adding six receptions. Pittsburgh has the 24th pick in this spring's NFL Draft.
SOURCE: The Athletic
Mar 22, 2021, 8:45 AM ET
The Pittsburgh Steelers signed offensive lineman Rashaad Coward and running back Kalen Ballage to one-year contracts. Ballage, 25, spent time with the Jets and Chargers in 2020. Defensive lineman Tyson Alualu, who made headlines last week after changing his mind about signing a deal with the Jaguars, is receiving a two-year, $5.5 million contract with $1.925 million guaranteed to stay in Pittsburgh
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Avery Williamson was a tackling machine after his mid season trade from the New York Jets. He was thrown into the deep end acquiring a starting role without much practice time. Williamson would also play much better in the Vince Williams role beside Devin Bush opposed to replacing Bush himself. If the Steelers don’t draft a linebacker early this should be a no-brainer.
Ruling: Bring back - unless they draft one in the first couple rounds
Ruling: Bring back - unless they draft one in the first couple rounds
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The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette believes the Steelers are "most likely" to use their first-round pick on a running back.
Longtime Steelers reporter Gerry Dulac believes the team will address the backfield "no later" than the second round. Dulac points to the team's complete revamp of its offensive coaching personnel before letting James Conner walk in free agency. The Steelers have the No. 24 overall pick on Day 1. Clemson's Travis Etienne is probably the draft's best back over Alabama's Najee Harris and North Carolina's Javonte Williams, offering elite edge and open-field ability to go with a three-down skill-set. Dulac believes the Steelers want to go back to an alpha approach after employing middling committees the past few seasons. That would make whoever arrives on Day 1 or 2 an instant RB2.
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SOURCE: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Apr 17, 2021, 5:54 PM ET
Longtime Steelers reporter Gerry Dulac believes the team will address the backfield "no later" than the second round. Dulac points to the team's complete revamp of its offensive coaching personnel before letting James Conner walk in free agency. The Steelers have the No. 24 overall pick on Day 1. Clemson's Travis Etienne is probably the draft's best back over Alabama's Najee Harris and North Carolina's Javonte Williams, offering elite edge and open-field ability to go with a three-down skill-set. Dulac believes the Steelers want to go back to an alpha approach after employing middling committees the past few seasons. That would make whoever arrives on Day 1 or 2 an instant RB2.
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SOURCE: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Apr 17, 2021, 5:54 PM ET
Harris and Etienne likely to go first but Williams a more complete player who could slide to the second round pick.
Not sure RBs are worth a first round pick unless a Heisman award winner
Not sure RBs are worth a first round pick unless a Heisman award winner
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n a previous mock draft, Jeremiah thought North Carolina’s Williams would be the perfect fit for the Steelers. The 5-10, 220-pound Williams was a two-year starter, and he rushed for 1,140 yards with 19 touchdowns and averaged 7.3 yards per carry as a junior. He also caught 25 passes for 305 yards and three scores.
“He’s a complete back,” Jeremiah said. “When you look at the combination of Etienne, who’s maybe a little bit undersized but has big-time juice, big-time speed, then you have Najee Harris, who’s 230 pounds. He has balance and can bang inside but can also get involved in the pass game. This kid (Williams) kind of gives you a little bit of everything.”
“He’s a complete back,” Jeremiah said. “When you look at the combination of Etienne, who’s maybe a little bit undersized but has big-time juice, big-time speed, then you have Najee Harris, who’s 230 pounds. He has balance and can bang inside but can also get involved in the pass game. This kid (Williams) kind of gives you a little bit of everything.”
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Steelers signed head coach Mike Tomlin to a three-year contract extension.
Tomlin, 49, is now signed through the 2024 season, which means the Steelers will have had three head coaches over 55 years. That's 14 presidential administrations, folks. Pittsburgh has been a perennial contender for much of Tomlin's 14 years at the helm, though the 2020 season marked a low point in Tomlin's head coaching career, as the Steelers collapsed down the stretch and suffered a humiliating Wild Card loss to the Browns. Tomlin heads into the 2021 season tied with Pete Carroll for the 21st most head coaching wins in league history. He needs five more wins to pass Bill Cowher, his predecessor. Forty-eight more wins would make Tomlin the winningest coach in Steelers history. Tomlin in 2021 will have one more go with a deteriorating Ben Roethlisberger as his quarterback.
SOURCE: Brooke Pryor on Twitter
Apr 20, 2021, 9:02 AM ET
Tomlin, 49, is now signed through the 2024 season, which means the Steelers will have had three head coaches over 55 years. That's 14 presidential administrations, folks. Pittsburgh has been a perennial contender for much of Tomlin's 14 years at the helm, though the 2020 season marked a low point in Tomlin's head coaching career, as the Steelers collapsed down the stretch and suffered a humiliating Wild Card loss to the Browns. Tomlin heads into the 2021 season tied with Pete Carroll for the 21st most head coaching wins in league history. He needs five more wins to pass Bill Cowher, his predecessor. Forty-eight more wins would make Tomlin the winningest coach in Steelers history. Tomlin in 2021 will have one more go with a deteriorating Ben Roethlisberger as his quarterback.
SOURCE: Brooke Pryor on Twitter
Apr 20, 2021, 9:02 AM ET
The Steelers have $10,471,586 in cap space, now that Vince Williams is officially on the books for $1.075 million in 2021, according to the league’s public salary cap report. They’ll need $2,754,553 to sign their rookies, provided they keep these eight draft picks, according to overthecap.com.
That gives them $7,717,033 to set aside for all other maneuvers. They can still free up some room with contract restructures, such as Stephon Tuitt and Chris Boswell, or extensions — but keep in mind they’ve already pushed money onto next season’s cap thanks to voidable years for Ben Roethlisberger, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Eric Ebron.
That gives them $7,717,033 to set aside for all other maneuvers. They can still free up some room with contract restructures, such as Stephon Tuitt and Chris Boswell, or extensions — but keep in mind they’ve already pushed money onto next season’s cap thanks to voidable years for Ben Roethlisberger, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Eric Ebron.
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Steelers declined S Terrell Edmunds' fifth-year team option for 2022.
Edmunds had his best statistical season in 2020, as well as his highest PFF grade, but the Steelers did not see enough improvement after his underwhelming 2018-19. With fifth-year options now fully guaranteed, teams are not going to exercise them just because. Edmunds does still have youth and durability on his side. He has missed only one game in three years and just turned 24 in January. It is still possible he plays himself into a second deal in Pittsburgh.
May 3, 2021, 10:58 AM ET
Edmunds had his best statistical season in 2020, as well as his highest PFF grade, but the Steelers did not see enough improvement after his underwhelming 2018-19. With fifth-year options now fully guaranteed, teams are not going to exercise them just because. Edmunds does still have youth and durability on his side. He has missed only one game in three years and just turned 24 in January. It is still possible he plays himself into a second deal in Pittsburgh.
May 3, 2021, 10:58 AM ET
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Theres a safety waiting to take over
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Sorry i mean, yeah continuity is great
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The recently released Heath is a player the Steelers have had interest in the past. He would be the perfect No. 3 safety in the Steelers scheme and play a decent amount of snaps. Considering they had interest in Karl Joseph just a couple weeks ago I think this makes a ton of sense.
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The Steelers worked on implementing pre-snap motion and formations at their rookie mini-camp with kicked off Friday at the UPMC-Rooney Sports Complex.
"There’s a decent amount, just from the first install that we did, there’s a decent amount," said rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth, a second-round draft pick out of Penn State.
"I didn’t do a lot of pre-snap motion at Penn State. Sometimes we would motion in depending on a look or something like that. At Penn State, we kind of got set and rolled with the play we had. It’s going to take some adjusting to, but I felt good doing it today."
Canada also is expected to incorporate some inside and outside zone blocking schemes. The Steelers selected center Kendrick Green and offensive tackle Dan Moore in the third and fourth rounds of the draft, and both are well versed in running zone blocking, which requires linemen to get on the move while allowing the running back to pick his own hole via cutbacks.
That could fit first-round pick Najee Harris' running style. He ran behind both zone and gap blocking in college at Alabama, but it's apparent he can put his foot in the ground and go. His new teammates noticed that Friday.
"Najee is impressive. He’s a hell of a running back," Freiermuth said. "Watching him today, he makes very good cuts. He’s smart with the football.
What more zone blocking might not allow for as much of is something Steelers fans have been clamoring for the past few years -- the quarterback under center.
With Ben Roethlisberger not the most mobile of quarterbacks at this point in his career, one way to get the ball where it needs to go quickly is to have him hand the ball off in the shotgun. That is the basis of many zone blocking schemes.
"Under center, unless we were running a quarterback sneak, we were never under center," Green said of his experience with straight center-quarterback exchanges/ "As for as college, we were a big inside zone, outside zone team, so that’s something that I’m really used to."
Judging from the early returns with the Steelers, it might be something all of the offensive players might want to get accustomed to doing.
"It’s complex but it’s simple in the same way," Freiermuth said. "Coach Canada puts people in positions on the field where they can create mismatches. I think he does a good job of understanding what the defense’s weaknesses are. I can see that from the looks we gave the look team today and what he’s put together in camp so far."
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"There’s a decent amount, just from the first install that we did, there’s a decent amount," said rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth, a second-round draft pick out of Penn State.
"I didn’t do a lot of pre-snap motion at Penn State. Sometimes we would motion in depending on a look or something like that. At Penn State, we kind of got set and rolled with the play we had. It’s going to take some adjusting to, but I felt good doing it today."
Canada also is expected to incorporate some inside and outside zone blocking schemes. The Steelers selected center Kendrick Green and offensive tackle Dan Moore in the third and fourth rounds of the draft, and both are well versed in running zone blocking, which requires linemen to get on the move while allowing the running back to pick his own hole via cutbacks.
That could fit first-round pick Najee Harris' running style. He ran behind both zone and gap blocking in college at Alabama, but it's apparent he can put his foot in the ground and go. His new teammates noticed that Friday.
"Najee is impressive. He’s a hell of a running back," Freiermuth said. "Watching him today, he makes very good cuts. He’s smart with the football.
What more zone blocking might not allow for as much of is something Steelers fans have been clamoring for the past few years -- the quarterback under center.
With Ben Roethlisberger not the most mobile of quarterbacks at this point in his career, one way to get the ball where it needs to go quickly is to have him hand the ball off in the shotgun. That is the basis of many zone blocking schemes.
"Under center, unless we were running a quarterback sneak, we were never under center," Green said of his experience with straight center-quarterback exchanges/ "As for as college, we were a big inside zone, outside zone team, so that’s something that I’m really used to."
Judging from the early returns with the Steelers, it might be something all of the offensive players might want to get accustomed to doing.
"It’s complex but it’s simple in the same way," Freiermuth said. "Coach Canada puts people in positions on the field where they can create mismatches. I think he does a good job of understanding what the defense’s weaknesses are. I can see that from the looks we gave the look team today and what he’s put together in camp so far."
Pittsburgh Steelers, Penguins, Pirates News, Live Coverage | DK Pittsburgh Sports
Pittsburgh Steelers, Penguins, Pirates News, Live Coverage | DK Pittsburgh Sports
www.dkpittsburghsports.com
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RB Najee Harris said Steelers offensive coordinator Matt Canada's run game concept are similar to ones used at Alabama.
“The inside zones, the outside zones, the power plays, the one-back power, the duo plays, so a lot of what they are doing in their offense resembles a lot of what we did [at Alabama]," said Harris, the team's first round pick. Canada is expected to bring much more pre-snap motion to Pittsburgh's offense -- a much needed development after a season in which the team's offense often appeared stale and predictable. Canada's mix of gap and zone run plays and the addition of Harris should rejuvenate what was the worst rushing attack in the NFL last year. With no competition in the Steelers backfield, Harris could lead all running backs in touches this season.
SOURCE: Steelersnow.com
May 17, 2021, 12:00 PM ET
“The inside zones, the outside zones, the power plays, the one-back power, the duo plays, so a lot of what they are doing in their offense resembles a lot of what we did [at Alabama]," said Harris, the team's first round pick. Canada is expected to bring much more pre-snap motion to Pittsburgh's offense -- a much needed development after a season in which the team's offense often appeared stale and predictable. Canada's mix of gap and zone run plays and the addition of Harris should rejuvenate what was the worst rushing attack in the NFL last year. With no competition in the Steelers backfield, Harris could lead all running backs in touches this season.
SOURCE: Steelersnow.com
May 17, 2021, 12:00 PM ET
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undrafted corner Shakur Brown played 100% of the snaps at slot corner during the Steelers’ rookie mini camp last weekend. There’s a lot of excitement surrounding the Michigan State Spartan who was projected as a fifth-rounder in 2021. But before you pencil No. 29 in Pittsburgh’s lineup, please remember that only rookies were in this camp.
