Pittsburgh Steelers NFL News - Steelers Football Blog

The Pittsburgh Steelers sign WR Marquis Maze

admin — Fri, 04 May 2012 01:51:39 +0000

The Steelers have signed undrafted rookie WR Marquis Maze out of Alabama. Maze is on the small side at 5’8″, 192 pounds and he runs a 4.5 40. Maze is very quick on the field and he has a wide array of moves to help him get open and get extra yards after the catch. But, he’s not much of a help when asked to block on a running play. Maze played in 13 games (12 starts) for Alabama last year and he caught 56 passes for 627 yards (11.2 avg) with 1 TD grab. He played in 54 games (35 starts) in his four years with the Crimson Tide and he caught 136 passes for 1,844 yards (13.6 avg) with 8 TD grabs. Maze could also help out the Steelers as a return man. He returned 41 punts for 625 yards (15.2 avg) with 1 TD return and he also returned 33 kickoffs for 609 yards (18.5 avg) in college. I like this signing for the Steelers as Maze should have been picked by some team in the NFL Draft.

The Pittsburgh Steelers picked OG Kelvin Beachum in the 7th round

admin — Fri, 04 May 2012 01:44:08 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected OG Kelvin Beachum out of SMU with the 248th overall pick (7th round) of the 2012 NFL Draft. Beachum is a big guy at 6’2″, 303 pounds. He flashes as nasty streak in the running game but he has had issues with pass blocking, especially against speed rushers. That is why Beachum projects more at a guard than a tackle at the Pro level. He played in 11 games (all starts) for SMU last year. He played in 52 games (all starts) for SMU and he played left tackle for all of those contests. I like this pick for the Steelers as they need help at guard.

The Pittsburgh Steelers picked CB Terrence Frederick in the 7th round

admin — Fri, 04 May 2012 01:38:30 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected CB Terrence Frederick out of Texas A&M with the 246th overall pick (7th round) of the 2012 NFL Draft. Frederick is thin at 5’10″, 180 pounds and he only runs a 4.55 40. Due to his lack of speed, he’s likely going to need safety help over the top when the Steelers are not in a zone defense. He played in 13 games (all starts) at Texas A&M last year and he had 57 tackles, 13 passes broken up, 1 interception, 9 tackles for a loss and 4 sacks. Frederick played in 50 games (45 starts) in his four years with the Aggies and he had 208 tackles, 30 passes broken up, 4 interceptions, 22 tackles for a loss, 6 sacks and 2 forced fumbles. Frederick is going to have to make the roster on special teams before he gets a whiff of playing D for the Steelers. This was a reach pick for the Steelers.

The Pittsburgh Steelers picked TE David Paulson in the 7th round

admin — Fri, 04 May 2012 01:28:45 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected TE David Paulson out of Oregon with the 240th overall pick (7th round) of the 2012 NFL Draft. Paulson is solid at working the middle of the field and he has a nice set of hands. But, he’s not fast enough (4.85 40) to make any real big runs after the catch. Paulson played in 14 games (13 starts) for Oregon last year and he caught 31 passes for 438 yards (14.1 avg) with 6 TD grabs. He played in 41 games (31 starts) in his four years at Oregon and he caught 67 passes for 1,041 yards (15.5 avg) with 10 TD grabs. This was a solid pick so late in the draft for the Steelers.

The Pittsburgh Steelers picked WR Toney Clemons in the 7th round

admin — Fri, 04 May 2012 01:24:56 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected WR Toney Clemons out of Colorado with the 231st overall pick (7th round) of the 2012 NFL Draft. Clemons was a true late bloomer in college as he saved his best for his senior year. Clemons caught 43 passes for 680 yards (15.8 avg) with 8 TD grabs for Colorado last year. He also returned 4 kickoffs for 95 yards (23.8 avg) last year for the Buffaloes. Clemons played four seasons Michigan & Colorado in which he caught 98 passes for 1,268 yards (12.9 avg) with 11 TD grabs. He also returned 14 kickoffs for 350 yards (25.0 avg) in college. Clemons is going to have an uphill battle in trying to win a spot on the Steelers’ roster as they are loaded at WR.

The Pittsburgh Steelers picked RB Chris Rainey in the 5th round

admin — Fri, 04 May 2012 01:07:34 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected RB Chris Rainey out of Florida with the 159th overall pick (5th round) of the 2012 NFL Draft. Rainey is small at 5’8″, 180 pounds but he’s lightning quick as he runs a flat 4.4 40. Rainey isn’t going to ever pound the ball between the tackles for the Steelers, but he can sure get the corner on a sweep. He is also an outstanding receiver out of the backfield and he excels on special teams. Rainey played in 12 games (10 starts) at Florida last year and he carried the ball 171 times for 861 yards (5.0 ypc) with 2 TD runs. He also caught 31 passes for 381 yards (12.3 avg) with 2 TD grabs. Rainey played in 52 games (19 starts) in his five years at Florida and he carried the ball 396 times for 2,464 yards (6.2 ypc) with 13 TD runs. Rainey also caught 69 passes for 795 yards (11.5 avg) with 6 TD grabs in his college career. Rainey could also help the Steelers as a return man if the need arises. He has returned 17 kickoffs for 415 yards (24.4 avg) and 25 punts for 213 yards (8.5 avg) with 2 TD runs. I like this pick for the Steelers as Rainey will give them another home run threat when he’s on the field.

The Pittsburgh Steelers picked NT Alameda Ta’amu in the 4th round

admin — Fri, 04 May 2012 00:56:43 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected NT Alameda Ta’amu out of Washington with the 109th overall pick (4th round) of the 2012 NFL Draft. Ta’amu is a huge man at 6’3″, 348 pounds. He is an excellent run defender and he demands a double team when he’s focused and motivated. He will likely allow LBs to flow to the ball and make plays when he’s on the field. Ta’amu played in 13 games (all starts) at Washington and he had 30 tackles, 7 tackles for a loss and 3.5 sacks last year. He played in 50 games (42 starts) in his four years with the Huskies and he had 109 tackles, 16.5 tackles for a loss, 7.5 sacks and 1 fumble recovery. The Steelers hope that Ta’amu will be ready to take over when they move on from veteran Casey Hampton.

The Pittsburgh Steelers picked OLB/ILB Sean Spence in the 3rd round

admin — Wed, 02 May 2012 04:34:32 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected OLB/ILB Sean Spence out of Miami (FL) with the 86th overall pick (3rd round) of the 2012 NFL Draft. Spence is pretty small at 5’11″, 219 pounds but he runs a 4.62 40. The Steelers are planning on using Spence at inside linebacker, but he can handle the outside and he’s a good special teams player. Spence will need protection from the D-Line in order to fastly flow to the football. He played in 11 games (all starts) for the Hurricanes last year and he had 106 tackles, 14 tackles for a loss, 3 sacks and 1 pass broken up. Spence played in 47 games (40 starts) in his four years with the Hurricanes and he had 318 tackles, 47 tackles for a loss, 10.5 sacks, 12 passes broken up and 1 interception. It wouldn’t be an NFL Draft unless the Steelers took at least one linebacker in it. Spence will help bring some youth to the interior of the Steelers’ D when he’s on the field.

The Pittsburgh Steelers pick OT Mike Adams in the 2nd round

admin — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:23:02 +0000

The Steelers have selected OT Mike Adams out of Ohio State with the 56th overall pick (2nd round) of the 2012 NFL Draft. Adams is a big guy at 6’7″, 323 pounds. Adams is a power blocker in the running game and he handles bigger pass rushers pretty well. But, he has issues in dealing with speedy pass rushers, which likely means that he will play RT in the Pros. Adams tested positive for marijuana at the Draft Combine, which caused him to slip into the second round. He takes plays off once in a while, so the coaches are going to have to stay on him to get the most out of them. Adams played in 8 games (all starts) for Ohio State last year. He played in 30 games (25 starts) in his four years with the Buckeyes. I love this pick for the Steelers as Adams filled a big team need at OT.

The Pittsburgh Steelers select OG David DeCastro in the 1st round

admin — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 19:56:45 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers have selected OG David DeCastro out of Stanford with the 24th overall pick of the 2012 NFL Draft. DeCastro is a perfect fit for the Steelers. He is a power based run blocker, who is good at leading on traps and sweeps….which have been a specialty of the Steelers. He fills a huge hole on the O-Line and he should start at right guard from Day #1. DeCastro played in 13 games (all starts) at Stanford last year. He played in 39 games (all starts) in his three years for the Cardinal. No way did the Steelers think that DeCastro would be there when their pick came up in the first round.