Colon has great size at 6′3″, 315 pounds.  Colon is the kind of player the Steelers like when they start digging for linemen in every draft, looking for mean, nasty guys to fit into their style.  And here the Steelers dug real deep as Colon played at Hofstra.  It could take him a little time to adjust to the NFL, but that’s something the Steelers can afford to give him.

Willie Reid and Santonio Holmes were drafted to replace Randle El.  Holmes on the offense and Reid as the punt returner.  Reid returned three punts for touchdowns last season at Florida State.  Reid is on the small side (5′10″, 189) and isn’t that great of a receiver.  He only got to start as a senior and caught 50 passes for 634 yards and 1 TD.

The Steelers would be happy if he were their #4 receiver.  The Steelers probably could have waited awhile on Reid as most publications had him going around the 7th round.

The Steelers made a good choice here as the consensus was that Smith was the third best safety in this draft.  With Chris Hope bolting out of town in the off-season, Smith might push for a starting job.  Smith is a playmaker and a hard hitter, the question is…will his body frame (5′11″, 194) allow him to play that way in the NFL.  Smith started all 35 games the last three seasons at Syracuse  and made 262 tackles, broke up 16 passes, intercepted 14 passes, forced 4 fumbles and recovered 4 fumbles.

Smith may be the enforcer the Steelers are looking for in the middle of the field.  Some receivers might get “alligator arms” going over the middle now.

The Steelers traded up to get Holmes in the first round.  Holmes is a tough, physical player that has good speed (4.45 40) but his production numbers weren’t that great in college.  Part of the reason for that was Ted Ginn being a better receiver than Santonio.  Holmes played in 36 games at Ohio State (29 starts) and caught 140 passes for 2,295 yards with 25 TD.  Holmes tends to sulk when the ball isn’t going his way enough, and with Hines Ward on the roster Holmes might be in the same boat this season.

Holmes needs to act his age if he’s going to be a ballplayer in the NFL.  Ben Roethlisberger tried to call him many times in the off-season but Holmes returned none of the calls.  He was to busy drinking in Miami and smacking around his girlfriend in Columbus.  No question in my mind that if he stays focused and works hard that no one will miss Randle El.

Everyone must admit that “Big Ben” is not the sharpest knife in the drawer. After repeatedly being warned by everyone to be careful and wear a helmet when he rode his motorcycle….he ignored advice from people older and wiser than he. Terry Bradshaw even went so far as to tell him to not be like the “Moron in Cleveland” (Kellen “The Soldier” Winslow), but he did anyway and almost killed himself. The Steelers season hinges on Ben staying healthy, without him they are a sub .500 team. Roethlisberger has played in 26 games (25 starts) and has completed 64.7% of his passes for 5,006 yards. Ben threw 34 TD passes and 20 interceptions with a 98.3 rating in his first two years. Even though he played lousy in the Super Bowl…he proved to be much more than a game manager against the Broncos and Colts. His tackle against the Colts saved the game.

If Charlie Batch had to play the Steelers would be in trouble. When Batch was in Detroit all he had to do was handoff to Barry Sanders and watch him work his magic….the Steelers have no such back on the roster. Batch played in 48 games (46 starts) in Detroit and threw for 9,016 with 49 TD and 40 INT. In four years with the Steelers, he’s been gathering rust as mostly the third QB. He has appeared in only 7 games (2 starts) and threw for 293 yards with a TD and an interception.

Omar Jacobs (another rookie from the MAC Conference, Bowling Green) was an outstanding QB in college. In his 21 starts at Bowling Green he threw for 6,592 yards with 67 TD and only 11 pickoffs. The thought on Jacobs is that he is a product of the Bowling Green offense and has a lot to learn to compete in the NFL.