1998 Steelers Draft Picks

Steelers go with linemen in draft

(4/19) The Steelers made some unexpected but decent moves in this year's draft. First off, they used their first round pick to take Alan Faneca, a big guard from LSU who is supposed to be a great run-blocker. This was a good pick, because Will Wolford is going to retire after this year and our other starting guard, Brendan Stai, is going to be a free agent after this year, not to mention the fact that Stai gets hurt all the time. In the second round the Steelers traded up to get DT Jeremy Staat, a guy that they almost took in the first round. This guy is another good player, but the Steelers weren't expected to draft defensive linemen so early. They were supposed to draft linebackers, and they never took any in the entire draft. The thinking is that Mike Vrable will move to LB and for that reason we need more depth at DL. In the third round, the Steelers almost drafted a LB (see below), but went with another OL instead. They also took Hines Ward in the third round. Ward is described as "Slash II", because in college he played QB, RB, WR, and blocked and returned kicks! You know Cowher is going to use this guy as more than just a receiver.

In the second day of the draft the Steelers picked up a couple of cornerbacks, increasing depth at that position. They also got some big running backs. Tim Lester is having shoulder surgery and George Jones sucked as a backup, so these two guys may get jobs. I saw Utah's Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala play last year and trust me, he is the typical Pittsburgh Steeler power-runner. They wrapped up the draft with two more defensive lineman. They also signed nine undrafted free agents, including Pitt QB Pete Gonzalez. All Pitt fans love this guy and the Steelers did a good deed by giving him a shot at going to a training camp. It is highly unlikely he'll make the team, but maybe he'll do well enough to get noticed and picked up by another team. So the Steelers seemed to make out ok, even though they never got a LB (even though one of the DL is projected as a potential LB), a safety, and only one WR, but Tom Donahoe knows more about personnel than I do, so I'm sure they got the best talent available.

Revenge of the Rams: In the third round the Steelers had an early pick and DE/LB Leonard Little, a guy who was predicted by many to be the Steelers first round pick, was still on the board. It looked like the Steelers were going to pull off a steal by getting all three players (Faneca, Staat, and Little) whom they wanted in the first round. But then the St. Louis Rams suddenly traded up to two picks above the Steelers and drafted Little, who was described as a perfect fit for the Steelers style of defense. Did the Rams really need a linebacker? Not really, but remember 1996 when the Rams gave us Jerome Bettis in a draft trade? The Rams took a beating from everyone for making that trade and drafting Lawrence Phillips, who was a complete bust. Well, many people (including Donahoe) were speculating yesterday that the Rams stole Little on purpose as revenge for the Bettis deal. If drafting a player out of revenge is a practice that the St. Louis Rams organization participates in, then it's no wonder that they suck year after year.