Draft Prep: the “dregs” of the defensive line class
It’s unlikely that the Steelers will be in play for a defensive lineman in the first few rounds of the NFL Draft. If they decide to draft one at all, it could be in the bottom half of the draft, but there has to be value there.
I previously broke down the Cream and the Crop of the D-line. Today we’ll look at the bottom third of this draft class, the “Dregs” and see who might be a fit for the Steelers. (In case you missed it, parts one and two were published a few days ago, detailing the first two-thirds of this draft class.)
The Dregs
- Jarron Jones – 6’ 6” 316 lbs. (DT)
- Tanoh Kpassagnon – 6’ 7” 289 lbs. (DE)
- Carlos Watkins – 6’ 3” 309 lbs. (DT)
- Charles Walker – 6’ 2” 310 lbs. (DT)
- Noble Nwachukwu – 6’ 1” 268 (DE)
- Stevie Tu’ikolovatu – 6’ 1” 331 (NT)
Jarron Jones
Jarron Jones is a complete “Boom or Bust” prospect. He has the size and skills to play at the next level, but some scout have placed a red flag on his passion to play football. On his NFL.com profile page, one NFC director of scouting was quoted as saying:
“He’s a character flag for us. He’s talented but I just don’t think he loves the game enough for me to back him in our room. Who doesn’t love those long arms? The Steelers all do, but I think he’s lazy and will head south as soon as he has more time and money on his hands.”
He’s not a player I feel the Steelers will target at all. Jones will be a project for whomever takes him, despite having the attributes to be a top-60 player.
Tanoh Kpassagnon
Tanoh was expected to be a combine darling, but he wasn’t. If he had killed the combine, I would have said he reminds me of Jason Pierre-Paul.
Tanoh was below average on pretty much everything except the broad jump, and that feels like a contradiction to the player he appears to be, so maybe he just had an off day.
An NFC regional scout had this to say on his NFL.com profile:
“He’s raw but he’s got a chance. He’s quiet and I don’t think football is going to define him, do you know what I mean? I just want to make sure that he loves football.”
Unlike Jarron Jones, Tanoh isn’t a character concern, but he’s still a project that I think the Steelers will pass on. (That was almost a pun!)
Carlos Watkins
Watkins is a very athletic big man who needs to further develop his body to suit the rigors of pro football. We don’t know much more, because he skipped every drill except the bench press at the NFL Scouting Combine. He’s not going to be a starter, but on day three he can be a player who might provide some quality depth if the Steelers decide they need it.
Conclusion
I don’t think the Steelers are going to be in the defensive line market in rounds one, two or maybe not even three. That is unless the value is so ridiculously weighted that they start feeling silly for not taking a player.
The players project in the middle of the draft could make for solid backups, and even a few names listed above may fit that role in the latter rounds of day three. However, the bottom picks will have an uphill battle to unseat some of the Steelers current depth chart. More than likely, if any of these players even get drafted, they will be fighting for a spot on the practice squad. Still, practice squad players can be valuable too (see: Johnny Maxey last season).
Therefore, while this position is not one of great need, Pittsburgh could still surprise us with a pick somewhere in the middle-to-late rounds.
https://www.steelcityunderground.com/guides/steelers-war-room-inside-pittsburgh-steelers-plans-2017-nfl-draft/
Inside The Pittsburgh Steelers plans for the 2017 NFL Draft
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