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Well…..the Steelers made some interesting moves with their first dour picks. I wrote this article before the draft so I did not know what would happen with the players on this list.

Well….let’s begin!

Round One, Pick 18 Taylor Mays

Well he is an amazing player to me. He is exciting, in amazing shape and fully capable of making a game come together (or fall apart).

People have been dissing him all year because he did not play at the first round level but I personally think that it is understandable. You see when you lose all three of your linebackers in the first 35 picks you are left having to adjust to freshmen and second—string linebackers. That should easily have effected him enough to make a difference in statistics.

He can do so much. He plays hard, and he hits harder (sometimes a bad thing, but still).

While some believe he is just a bad player, I beg to differ. I think that he has a thirst for knowledge and a love of the game that could prove useful for the Steelers.

Now he is already very good, but he has his faults. He takes bad angles. He goes for the big hit at the wrong time and can turn a five yard gain into a 60 yard touchdown. He doesn’t get interceptions.

But I believe these are all things that can be easily handled.

Dick LeBeau, one of greatest ball—hawks and defensive coordinators of all time could teach him just about everything he would need to know.

Not to mention that having Troy Polamalu and Ryan Clark as mentors would make a huge difference. Having Polamalu to help with overall playmaking ability would be wonderful. Having Clark to help refine Mays so that he can still hit hard and wrap up a ball—carrier could make a huge difference as well.

Hey wait, what about moving Mays to ROLB to become James Harrison’s successor? He is big enough, fast enough, and straight up awesome enough for the job. He would just need to be taught proper technique for getting by blockers and he could be a top five OLB without a problem.

He just amazes me with his play. He never quits. He is ALWAYS trying.

Round two, Montario Hardesty

He is one of the more underrated players in this draft. He seems to have it all. He has the power to be able to run through most players on the defense, yet he has the quickness to juke just about anyone out of their shoes. He is a very useful back who, when utilized correctly, can become a standout player.

While he seems injury-prone so was Joe Montana. Take that!

But let’s not forget that he still had more than 500 rushes. I believe that is second all—time at Tennessee.

He has extremely impressive hands, especially for a running back. He runs with authority. I think he would be perfect to take a few carries off of Mendenhall and become a third-down back. Especially since the Steelers want to become more of a run—first team again.

Round Three, Jared Veldheer

While I know nothing about lineman at the college level I have heard many good things about this extremely tall offensive tackle.

Well, the Steelers need a lineman. That is that.

This kid is a two—time AP All—American and yet he is still projected, in some mocks, as a fourth—round pick. While he played with less—tough competition, he still manhandled just about everyone he faced.

The man dominated during Texas Versus The Nation week as well.

He is a MASSIVE player, at 6’8″ 315 pounds. That is more than a big enough body to stop most defensive ends in the league.

While he is still a huge player, he has the footwork and solid quickness to get the job done in today’s NFL. I firmly believe he would be a great addition.

While he would be a pass-blocker, he can still get the job done on the run as well. I am looking forward to seeing him in Black and Yellow.

Round Four, Freddie Barnes (at the time, was projected as a fourth rounder

Yes I am talking about Freddie “155 Damn Catches” Barnes. The Steelers gave away Santonio Holmes for basically a pack of gum. Everyone knows this by now, and I am well aware of it. That means that there is only one wide receiver of the future still remaining. Mike Wallace is his name, and while I am VERY high on him he is a speed player and not a possession receiver.

That is why I think that Freddie Barnes is perfect.

While he may not have the breakaway speed, he is in my opinion the best pure receiver coming out of this year’s draft. He won’t light up any defensive backs, but he is not afraid to be hit. He makes a large number of catches in traffic and looks like a running back at times breaking through tackles.

If you look at any of his video, you will see he makes amazing catch after amazing catch. He runs great routes, has unbelievable hands, and makes spectacular catches out of poorly thrown passes.

I personally think he could be worthy of round one, but hey, he is projected to be a fourth round player.

He had 22 catches in one game! How is it even possible to let him fall this far?

Thank you guys for reading. I did write this BEFORE the draft. I can not make that more clear!!! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it.

spencertucksen, writer/blogger/SJ Contributor

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