Pittsburgh ‘Stealers’ Score Best Value Pick of First Round

It seems to happen in the first round every single year: the Pittsburgh Steelers, a franchise known for their patience and utter refusal to ripple the waters on draft day, always seem to land a great value pick destined to be moulded into the next great Steeler.

The 2015 draft was no exception, with the Black and Gold scoring Kentucky pass rusher Bud Dupree in round one. A freakishly talented prospect who might just have the highest ceiling of any defensive player in the draft pool, Dupree looks the quintessential 3-4 outside linebacker at 6 foot 4 and 270 pounds. He enjoyed an immensely productive final two years in college, racking up a total of 135 tackles and 15.5 sacks.

As he prepares to don Pittsburgh’s legendary colors for the first time, Dupree enters his debut season with the kind of pressure rarely seen on a Steelers rookie, especially a defensive player at that.

The reality is that Pittsburgh can’t afford to groom young talent anymore. Baptism by fire is the way to go on a defense severely lacking that explosive playmaking ability that won two Super Bowl titles in the late 2000s.

With the departure of long time defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau this past offseason, Steeler Nation expects the incumbent Keith Butler to dispel the narrative that the defense is too complex for rookies. Dupree doesn’t need to be great this season, but he does need to form some rapport with fellow first-round talents Lawrence Timmons, Cameron Heyward, Jarvis Jones and Ryan Shazier.

While those first two names are stalwarts of Pittsburgh’s new era, the jury is still very much out on Jones and Shazier, both of whom struggled with injury in their rookie seasons. Jones in particular could be permanently labelled a bust if he can’t make some significant improvements this year. Pittsburgh will desperately be hoping Dupree isn’t quite so unlucky with setbacks, because a full first season on the field is exactly what the raw specimen needs.

And speaking of setbacks, if there is one knock on the Steelers’ newest defensive weapon, it’s his ‘Clark Kent syndrome.’ Several times in Superman lore, the Man of Steel’s comfort with being able to physically impose his will on any foe allowed some of his sharper enemies – and, occasionally, his allies – to outsmart him and beat him with finesse.

Similarly, Dupree often became so content with bull rushing blockers that a clash with a higher-tier offensive lineman who could contain his strength left the linebacker stuck in the mud. Unfortunately for Bud, just about any starting o-lineman in the NFL is better than the best college talent he’s ever faced. If he wants to be a force from week one, Dupree must add more tools to his arsenal as soon as possible.