The Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t import much talent to the roster in the 2011 NFL Draft.  It can be argued that they didn’t need their rookies to play much last year, but that’s a weak way to look at things as none of the players they picked have a huge upside.  No future Pro Bowlers in this class.  Here is a look at how the Steelers’ rookies did in 2011:

22-year old DE Cameron Heyward was picked in the first round by the Steelers.  He played in all 16 games for the Steelers last year and he had 11 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble and 1 pass defensed.  The Steelers are old at DE, so Heyward might be starting in the near future.

23-year old OT Marcus Gilbert was picked in the 2nd round last April.  He played in 14 games (13 starts) for the Steelers last year.  Gilbert will probably be in the Steelers’ starting lineup for a long time as they need the help.

23-year old CB Curtis Brown was a 3rd round pick.  Brown played in 12 games for the Steelers last year and he had 14 tackles and 2 forced fumble.  His season ended on I.R. due to a knee injury.

23-year old CB Cortez Allen was a 4th round pick.  He played in 15 games for the Steelers last year as he finished up with 15 tackles.  Allen will have to improve if he wants to get more P.T. defensively.

22-year old OLB Chris Carter was picked in the 5th round.  He played in 8 games for the Steelers last year in which he had 3 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss.

23-year old OG Keith Williams was picked in the 6th round.  He was cut before the year started and he was picked up by the Buffalo Bills.  He didn’t get into any games for the Bills last year.

24-year old RB Baron Batch was a 7th round pick.  He missed his rookie season due to knee surgery.

GRADE FOR 2011:  D

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  D+

The Steelers have placed 23-year old cornerback Curtis Brown on the Injured Reserve List due to a knee injury.  Brown was a 3rd round pick out of Texans last April for the Steelers.  He played in 12 games for the Steelers as a rookie and he had 14 tackles and 2 forced fumbles.  The Steelers are going to miss Brown on special teams.

The Steelers were looking to fill needs in last April’s Draft and I think they did a decent job of that.  DE Cameron Heyward came to the Steelers in the first round and he will push Aaron Smith or Brett Keisel for a starting job in training camp (if there is one).  OT Marcus Gilbert also fills a need as the Steelers’ tackles were pretty awful last year.  CBs Cortez Allen and Curtis Brown give the Steelers a couple developmental prospects at a need position.  I don’t think either of them will be starters this year but maybe down the road. OG Keith Williams might turn out to be a steal in the 6th round as he is a great run blocker.

PROJECTED GRADE:  B

The Steelers picked RB Baron Batch out of Texas Tech with the 232nd overall pick (7th round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Batch is 5’10″, 203 pounds and he runs a 4.55 40.  Batch is a solid perimeter runner and he’s good at catching the ball out of the backfield.  Batch played in 13 games for Texas Tech last year in which he carried the ball 177 times for 816 yards (4.6 ypc) with 5 TD runs and he also caught 32 passes for 226 yards (7.1 avg).  In his four years with the Red Raiders, Batch played in 45 games in which he carried the ball 467 times for 2,501 yards (5.4 ypc) with 27 TD carries.  He also caught 140 passes for 1,111 yards (7.9 avg) with 2 TD grabs at Texas Tech.  The Steelers probably view Batch as a third down back because of his skill set.  The Steelers have a need for that role in the offense, so Batch will have a good shot of making the team.

UPDATE:  (8/11/2011) – Baron Batch has torn his ACL in training camp and he will miss his entire rookie season.

The Steelers took 23-year old OG Keith Williams out of Nebraska with the 196th overall pick (6th round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Williams is 6’4″, 312 pounds and he runs a 5.25 40.  Williams has all of the tools to be a good NFL guard.  But, the coaching staff is going to have to get Williams mean as he tends to dance with defensive players rather than knock them backwards.  Williams played in 14 games (all starts) for Nebraska last year and he played in 50 games (34 starts) in his four years with the Cornhuskers.  The Steelers need help on the O-Line, so if Williams responds to coaching, he could get into the starting lineup in the near future.  This was a nice pick for the Steelers.

The Steelers have picked 22-year old OLB Chris Carter out of Frenso State with the 162nd overall pick (5th round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Carter is 6’1″, 245 pounds and he runs a 4.7 40.  Carter was a defensive end in college but he’s too small to play there in the NFL.  He is a good enough athlete to convert to OLB for the Steelers.  The Steelers will need to get him to play better run defense and to adjust to playing in space.  Carter played in 13 games (all starts) for Fresno State last year and he had 55 tackles, 16.5 tackles for a loss and 11 sacks.  Carter played in 49 games (36 starts) in his four years at Fresno State and he had 205 tackles, 38 tackles for a loss, 19.5 sacks and he broke up 1 pass.  This was one of the classic Steelers’ picks as Carter was a college DE who will convert to OLB in the pros.

The Steelers took CB Cortez Allen out of The Citadel with the 128th overall pick (4th round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  He is 6’1″, 197 pounds and he runs a 4.51 40.  Allen will have to really step up to be a factor with the Steelers any time soon because he wasn’t that great of a player at The Citadel.  He played in 11 games for the Citadel last year and he had 22 tackles, he broke up 5 passes and he had 2 interceptions (one returned for a TD).  Allen played in 38 games in his four years at the Citadal and he had 120 tackles, he broke up 15 passes, had interceptions (2 returned for TDs) and he had 2 tackles for a loss.  This was a need pick for the Steelers and I think they really reached by picking Allen in the 4th round.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have picked 22-year old cornerback Curtis Brown out of Texas with the 95th overall pick (3rd round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  The Steelers took Brown because he was likely the top CB left on their board and it’s an area where they need help.  Brown is on the small side at 5’11″, 180 pounds and he’s not especially fast as he runs a 4.5 40.  He is a pretty good cover corner but his hands look like a couple of bricks when the ball comes his way.  Brown played in 12 games (10 starts) for Texas last season and he had 26 tackles, broke up 7 passes and 1 interception.  He played in 52 games (28 starts) in his four years with the Longhorns and he had 120 tackles, broke up 32 passes, had 2 interceptions (151 return yards) and 1 forced fumble.  Brown also returned 13 punts for 194 yards (14.9 avg) last year and he might be able to help the Steelers there.  He is a good special teams player so look for him to play a lot on the coverage teams.  Overall, this is a solid pick for the Steelers as Brown fills a couple of big needs.

The Steelers took 23-year old OT Marcus Gilbert out of Florida with the 63rd overall pick (2nd round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Gilbert is a massive man at 6’6″, 329 pounds and he plays with power.  He is a very solid run blocker who also is a pretty good pass blocker.  Gilbert played in 13 games (all starts) for Florida last season and he played in 53 games (30 starts) in his four years there.  This is a perfect fit for the Steelers as I see him starting at one of the tackle spots whenever the 2011 season begins.  This was an outstanding pick for the Steelers as Gibson should fit right in.

The Steelers took DE Cameron Heyward in the first round (#31 overall) out of Ohio State last night.  The 22-year old Heyward is 6’5″, 280 pounds but he’s not the type of playmaker the Steelers usually like to have.  Heyward played in 13 games (all starts) for Ohio State last season and he had 48 tackles, 13 tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks, he batted down 1 pass and he recovered 1 fumble.  Heyward played in 52 games (43 starts) in his four years with the Buckeyes and he had 163 tackles, 37.5 tackles for a loss, 15.5 sacks, 5 batted down balls, 2 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery.  The Steelers hope that Heyward develops into a good pass rusher but it’s going to take a lot of hard work for him as he wasn’t too good at getting after the QB in college.