Tuesday, April 11, 2023

2023 Pittsburgh Steelers Draft Preview: Part 3

 


These summaries come from NFL.com. Players mentioned have either been connected via mock drafts, or combine/pro-day visits.




S - JL Skinner, Boise St  6'4" 209















'22: 1st All-Mountain West, 65tckls, 4PUs

strengths: Great job of dipping pad level to leverage his tackles. Anticipation & reaction quickness on route breaks. Arm length aids his range over the top as a center fielder. Ball skills & hands to put numbers in the interception column.

weaknesses: Needs to run his feet through contact. Lacks proactive punch to keep receiver blocks at bay. Trouble opening hips quickly to match vertical routes. Takes poor angles getting to throws.

grade: 6.33 (Will eventually be a plus starter) Next Gen: 79 (Good)

comp: Ronnie Harrison





DT - Keondre Coburn, Texas  6'2" 332









'22: 2nd All-BIG 12, 28tckls/3TFLs, 1.5scks

combine: 5.22 40, 27.5"vert, 8'5"broad jump, 24reps

strengths: Diagnoses & mirrors initial lateral movement by blocker. Quick reaction to attack down blocks and separate. Disrupts blocking scheme with short-area agility inside. Moves forward looking for workable rush counters.

weaknesses: Needs more efficient hands to control blocks. Inconsistent technique battling double teams. Allows backs to slip through his grasp. Rarely creates early rough advantage with snap quickness.

grade: 6.19 (Good backup with potential to develop as a starter) Next Gen: 67 (Average)

comp: Dan Williams




CB - Clark Phillips III, Utah  5'9" 184









'22: P12 DPOY, Unan. All-American, 1st All-PAC12, 24tot tckls, 1sck, 6INTs/2TDs, 6PUs

combine: 4.51 40, 33"vert, 18reps

strengths: Reads QB & route simultaneously. Attacks throws with play-making angles & determined demeanor. Twitchy plant and drive when responding to throws. Physical in tight quarters. 

weaknesses: Allows early separation against shallow crossing routes. Will look to do too much from zone at times. Downfield physicality could lead to flags at the next level. Short limbs could limit jump-ball challenges & tackling in space.

grade: 6.26 (Will eventually be an average starter) Next Gen: 75 (Good)

comp: Mike Hilton




WR - Tre Tucker, Cincinatti  5'9" 182










'22: 52rec/672yds/3TDs

combine: 4.40 40, 37.5"vert, 10'4"broad jump

strengths: Sudden feet elude press off the release. Sets up stop routes & comebacks with hard early drive. Short-area shake helps loosen the coverage. Talented option for receiver screens & quick games. 

weaknesses: Frame & catch radius are small. Knocked out of rhythm by route redirection. Has trouble finishing catches.

grade: 6.10 (Good backup with potential to develop as a starter) Next Gen: 73 (Good)




WR - Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Ohio St  6'1" 196









'22: 3 games: 5rec/43yds

combine: 35"vert, 10'5"broad jump

strengths: Elevates his catch focus when contested. Leverages his intermediate break points. Tracks deep throws with poise & accuracy. Athletic and smooth catching on the move. Plays to his top speed throughout the route.

weaknesses: Rolls into his breaks with top-heavy momentum. Lacks suddenness for separation in & out of breaks. Below average top-end speed to win vertically. Likely to be viewed as a slot-only option. Lacks burst to elude after the catch.

grade: 6.41 (Will become a good starter within 2 years) Next Gen: 84 (Good)

comp: Jarvis Landry




OT - Carter Warren, Pittsburgh  6'5 1/2" 311


  







strengths: Attempts to center his inside hand when getting into blocks. Ability to generate movement when he sustains the block. Can mirror & collect inside moves. Uses independent hands with well-timed strikes.

weaknesses: Below average sustaining his blocks. Pad level rises high when pulling or moving in space. Feet move slower than hands, leading to lunging & holding. Fails to maintain slide tempo, losing rushers at the top of the arc.

grade: 6.16 (Good backup with potential to develop as a starter) Next Gen: 67 (Average)




C - Juice Scruggs, Penn St  6'3" 301









combine: 5.22 40, 32"vert, 8'6" broad jump, 29reps

strengths: Latches in with strong hands & a wide base. Inside hands to promote a strong core. Hands are patient in pass sets. Keeps head on a swivel looking for danger. 

weaknesses: Below average snap-to-step quickness. Very average lateral quickness to seal the nose tackle. Unable to flip his hips for recovery blocks. Needs to find quicker hand resets in pass protection.

grade: 6.00 (Traits/Talent to be an above-average backup) Next Gen: 61 (Average)




C - Joe Tippmann, Wisconsin  6'6" 313














'22: Honorable All-BIG 10

strengths: Unlocks his hips and rolls them into blocks. Fluid with reactive athleticism to adjust to targets in space. Flexible lower body allows him to cast solid protection anchor. Keeps head on a swivel to spy to protect both A-gaps. Dumps blitzers on the ground with upper body power.

weaknesses: Off-balance when playing too far forward off the snap. Average balance & body control through sustain phase. Lacks leverage to generate drive movement at the point. Leaning slows lateral transitions to mirror incoming twists.

grade: 6.35 (Will eventually be a plus starter) Next Gen: 87 (Good)

comp: Josh Myers




CB - Brian Branch, Alabama  6' 190










'22: 2nd All-American, 90tckls/14TFLs, 3scks, 2INTs, 7PUs

combine: 4.58 40, 34.5"vert, 10'5"broad jump

strengths: Has range & instincts to play single-high safety. Pedals and transitions with smooth, agile feet. Able to mirror & match patterns from off-man. Uses ball-hawking angles and explosive burst to undercut the pass. Attacks blockers of all sizes with consistent tenacity. Diagnoses run & pursues runner with proper leverage and angles.

weaknesses: Could use tighter route squeeze relative to down & distance. Becomes a drag-down tackler when coming in too high. Occasionally outflanked as a run defender from the start.

grade: 6.49 (Will become a good starter within 2 years) Next Gen: 87 (Good)

comp: Minkah Fitzpatrick




CB - Deonte Banks, Maryland  6' 197


 












'22: 38tckls, 1INT, 8PUs

combine: 4.35 40, 42"vert, 11'4"broad jump

strengths: Lateral slide to mirror & slow the release. Uses independent hands to reroute receivers. Lower body is fluid & smooth to swivel from his pedal. Passes off receivers with clear communication in zone. Play strength at attack & play through perimeter blocks.

weaknesses: Gets crossed up by hard route stems. Gives ground when making lateral transitions. Panics when scrambling to get back into a play after falling behind. Gives up contain positioning against the run. 

grade: 6.37 (Will eventually be a plus starter) Next Gen: 87 (Good)




RB - Israel Abanikanda, Pittsburgh  5'10" 216










'22: 3rd All-American, 1st All-ACC, 239car/1,431yds/20TDs, 12rec/146yds/1TD

strengths: Lateral jump cuts to elude backfield pressure. Locates lane opportunities on the back side. Impressive escapability in tight quarters. Access to instant acceleration when he needs it. Uses spin move for contact balance and to wiggle away from tacklers. Former sprinter with breakaway speed in the open field. 

weaknesses: Runs with hurried tempo, bypassing timing of block development. Urgent but not overly creative early in the run. Has trouble keeping rusher in front of him in pass protection. 

grade: 6.24 (Will eventually be an average starter) Next Gen: 77 (Good)

comp: Isiah Pacheco




DT - Gervon Dexter Sr. ,  Florida 6'6" 310









'22: 55tckls/4TFLs, 2scks, 1INT

combine: 4.88 40, 31"vert, 9'2" broad jump, 22reps

strengths: Able to stay square to the line & mind his gap. Upper-body twitch for sudden block sheds. Slides through gaps with upper-body turn. Easy transition form bull rush to swim as a rusher.

weaknesses: Slow getting off the ball. Lacks explosive 1st contact as a bull rusher. Allows run blockers to take the action to him. Struggles getting to his punch separation in a timely manner. Content to play under stretch blocks rather than fighting for positioning. 

grade: 6.00 (Traits/talent to be an above-average backup) Next Gen: 70 (Good)




C - John Michael Schmitz, Minnesota  6'3 1/2" 301









'22: 1st All-American, 1st All-BIG 10

combine: 5.35 40, 29.5"vert, 8'8" broad jump, 26reps

strengths: Lateral quickness for reach blocks in outside zone. Captures defender's edge with firm outside hand. Consistent as a block finisher. Maintains proper balance to pass & receive twists. Able to unlock hips & ankles to drop a sudden anchor.

weaknesses: Below average adjustments to moving targets. Arm length is below average. Gets overextended with aggressive pass-setting slides. Allows his edges to become too leaky when his edge is attacked.

grade: 6.41 (Will become a good starter within 2 years) Next Gen: 84 (Good)

comp: Ben Jones




DT - Mazi Smith, Michigan 6'3" 323













'22: 1st All-BIG 10, 48tckls/2.5TFLs

combine: 34reps

strengths: Power to punch & lift the blocker under his pads. Plays with lively feet & short-area quickness. Able to slide, swim and seize the gap. Foot quickness to be part of a twisting rush unit. 

weaknesses: Motor runs out of gas when tempo heats up. Slow reaction to movement gets him sealed. Surprising lack of anchor consistency against double teams. 

grade: 6.34 (Will eventually be a plus starter) Next Gen: 77 (Good)

comp: Dontari Poe



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