The 2014 NFL Draft finally got under way last night, and after months of speculation on where certain players would land, as usual the draft did not lack for drama.
The Pittsburgh Steelers had been expected to use their first-round pick to fill a spot of obvious need – cornerback or wide receiver being the most often suspected slots – but General Manager Kevin Colbert and Head Coach Mike Tomlin bucked expectations and chose Ohio State ILB Ryan Shazier with the 15th overall pick. Shazier will be expected to compete for a starting spot next to veteran Lawrence Timmons. Pittsburgh utilized rookie Vince Williams in that slot during the 2013 season after an injury sidelined former starter Larry Foote. Foote was released by the team in March and subsequently signed a free agent deal with the Arizona Cardinals. The Steelers will start Shazier out at the “mack” linebacker spot, where Timmons has mostly played. Timmons will slide over to the “buck” linebacker position, perhaps the most important spot on the 3-4 defense. The “buck” spot was formerly manned by Foote and James Farrior and is considered the quarterback of the defense, moving players around pre-snap and calling out changes on the move.
Shazier joins a Steelers team that finished 14th overall in team defense last season and 21st in rushing defense, a unit that was greatly impacted by the loss of Foote, who had led the team with 75 tackles in 2012. The 6-foot, 1-inch 237-pound Shazier played both inside and outside linebacker for the Buckeyes and impressed the Steelers with his speed after the team clocked him at 4.4-seconds in the 40-yard dash during workouts. Shazier was a 2013 finalist for the Butkus Award after leading the Big Ten in tackles and tackles for loss. The 21-year old is a native of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and played for Plantation High School, the alma mater of former Pitt All-American linebacker H.B. Blades.
Pitt DT Aaron Donald chosen 13th Overall by St. Louis Rams
Aaron Donald’s whirlwind NFL Draft story came to an end Thursday night when the 285-pound defensive lineman was selected by the St. Louis Rams with the 13th overall pick. A record-setting senior season propelled the Penn Hills native from a pre-season third round grade to one of the top players on the board. The 2013 ACC Defensive Player of the Year and unanimous first-team All-American will join a St. Louis team that has slowly built a talented young defense under grizzled veteran head coach Jeff Fisher. The Rams boast NFC sacks leader RDE Robert Quinn, LDE Chris Long, and 2012 1st round pick DT Michael Brockers. The addition of Donald now gives St. Louis a starting defensive line consisting of four players all drafted within the top 15 picks of the draft. The Rams are looking to compete in a brutal NFC West division that contains agile quarterbacks such as the Seahawks Russell Wilson and the 49ers Colin Kaepernick, and with that pedigree in their front four, the Rams seem to be on the right track.
“Johnny Football” becomes “Johnny Cleveland”
The Cleveland Browns tradition of selecting new franchise quarterbacks with the 22nd overall pick in the NFL Draft continues, although Cleveland is now hoping they don’t have to draft another signal caller for quite some time. The most polarizing player available in this draft, Texas A&M QB Johnny Manziel will be the next quarterback to try breaking the perceiving Browns quarterback curse. Cleveland returns veteran QB Brian Hoyer this fall, giving Manziel an opportunity to sit and learn for a season if he does not win the job out of training camp. The Browns begin their 2014 season on September 7th against the Steelers at Heinz Field. Cleveland made two first-round picks on Thursday night, also selecting Oklahoma State CB Justin Gilbert with the eighth-overall pick.
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