The Steelers have signed undrafted QB Mike Reilly.  Reilly will compete with Dennis Dixon for the #3 QB job on the Steelers in 2009.  Reilly has nice size at 6’2″, 215 pounds but he’s more of a dropback passer.  He has a very quick release which makes up somewhat for his lack of arm strength.  In his 4-year career at Central Washington, Reilly played in 46 games (all starts) in which he completed 995 of 1,553 passes (64.1%) for 12,448 yards with 118 TD passes and 40 interceptions.  He is a longshot to make the Steelers out of training camp.

The Steelers have released 28-year old inside linebacker Larry Foote.  Foote played in all 16 games for the Steelers last season and he made 63 tackles, defensed 3 passes, had 1.5 sacks and he forced 1 fumble.  In his 7 years with the Steelers, Foote played in 110 games making 423 tackles, he defensed 18 passes, had 14.5 sacks, forced 7 fumbles and he picked off three passes.  Foote was a salary cap casualty who will be replaced in the starting lineup by Lawrence Timmons.  Foote quickly was signed by the Detroit Lions after his release.

The Steelers have signed 27-year old WR Shaun McDonald.  He is on the small side at 5’10″, 183 pounds but he’s not scared to go over the middle to make a catch.  McDonald played in 12 games for the Lions last season and he caught 35 passes for 332 yards (9.5 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He also returned 11 punts for 104 yards (9.5 avg) last season.  McDonald has now played in 84 games in his 6-year NFL career catching 220 passes for 2,490 yards (11.3 avg) with 11 TD grabs.  He has also returned 72 punts for 452 yards (6.3 avg) in his career.  This was a good signing for the Steelers as McDonald will have a good chance of being their #3 WR in 2009.

The Steelers like Johnson as more of a H-Back.  He is 6’2″, 260 pounds and he runs a 4.7 40.  He caught 45 passes for 760 yards (16.9 avg) with 9 TDs in his 4-year career at Arkansas State.  Look for Johnson to have a hard time getting a lot of playing time as a rookie.

A.Q. Shipley won the Rimington Award in 2008 at Penn State which is given to the nation’s top center.  Shipley gets by on effort and smarts because he isn’t the strongest center around.  He is only 5’11″, 290 pounds.  In four seasons at Penn State, Shipley played in 51 games (39 starts).  This was a good pick for the Steelers as Shipley will likely be the backup center in 2009 and maybe more than that down the road.

The Steelers are taking a chance here on Harris who only started 1 season at Oregon.  He is 6’4″, 298 pounds and he has a decent upside but has a lot to learn.  In three seasons at Oregon he compiled 50 tackles, 9 tackles for a loss and he had 3 sacks.  This was a reach by the Steelers as most draft experts didn’t think Harris would get picked.

The Steelers have had problems in short yardage situations the last couple of seasons but that might change with the addition of Frank “The Tank” Summers.  He’s built like Jerome Bettis and has a similar running style.  Summers is 5’9″, 241 pounds and he’s thick bodied.  Summers carried the ball 385 times for 1,668 yards (4.3 ypc) with 14 TD runs in his two years with UNLV.  He also caught 36 passes for 402 yards (11.2 avg) with 6 TD grabs in college.  This was a good pick for the Steelers as Summers fits their style of play.

Joe Burnett is one of those football players who is much better than he measures out.  He is 5’10″, 192 pounds and he runs a 4.57 40 which are not eye popping numbers.  But he was a 4-year starter at Central Florida and he intercepted 16 passes there and broke up 35 more.  He also is a standout on special teams as he returned 3 punts and 2 kickoffs for TDs at Central Florida.  He will likely battle the faster Mike Wallace (3rd rounder) for the right to return kickoffs.  Because of his versatility this was a good pick for the Steelers.

This was a surprising pick for the Steelers as Lewis is softer than a roll or Charmin.  He does not play the pass well because he’s slow (4.6 40) and he doesn’t play very physical.  Pro Football Weekly projected Lewis to get drafted in the 5th or 6th round.  This was obviously a need pick for the Steelers but Lewis’ upside is that of a #4 or #5 CB in the NFL.  Lewis played in 50 games (48 starts) in his 4 years at Oregon State and he made 117 tackles, broke up 30 passes, had 7 interceptions (72 yards) and he forced 1 fumble.

Mike Wallace is a speed burner at WR as he runs a 4.3 40.  He will compete right away for the right to replace the departed Nate Washington as the Steelers’ #3 WR.  Wallace played three seasons at Mississippi and he caught 101 passes for 1,910 yards (18.9 avg) with 15 TD grabs.  Wallace could also win the starting job as the kickoff returner for the Steelers in 2009.  He returned 21 kickoffs for 483 yards (23.0 avg) with 1 TD at Mississippi.  This could wind up being a steal for Pittsburgh.