3 Takeaways from the Pittsburgh Steelers' 2012 NFL Draft

The Pittsburgh Steelers had one of the more impressive draft hauls in the league, and while we're still months away from knowing how well those picks pan out on the field, we can glean some information out of the nine players they added. Here are the three biggest takeaways from the Steelers' draft.

The Steelers Clearly Know Offensive Line Improvements Are a Must

The Steelers were likely going for two offensive linemen within the first three rounds of the draft, and they lucked out by getting two top prospects on the first and second days. First, guard David DeCastro fell to them at 24th overall, and then they selected Ohio State tackle Mike Adams in the second.

Adams is the more risky pick. He knowingly lied to the team at his scouting combine interview, prompting Pittsburgh to remove him from their draft board entirely.

But Adams personally reached out to the Steelers (and no other team) to ask for a second chance. The Steelers gave Adams (currently unknown) stipulations to meet in order to make it back onto their board. Apparently he succeeded in doing so, and now he's their 2012 second-round pick.

With DeCastro and Adams, the Steelers should have an ostensibly more stable, healthier line this year. Last season, thanks to injuries and other issues, the team had 25 different configurations on the line, and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was sacked 40 times.

Keeping Roethlisberger upright and healthy is the key for the Steelers offense now that it's become so dependent on the passing game. Sure, with Todd Haley as offensive coordinator, the Steelers will try to run the ball more—and a more consistent offensive line will certainly help with those efforts—but that team runs through Roethlisberger.

DeCastro and Adams, if they play to their assumed abilities, should be starters at their positions for perhaps a decade. That's something the Steelers sorely needed.

The Steelers Brought in Two Question Marks on Offense, but That's Not a Bad Thing

In Round 5, the Steelers drafted offensive jack-of-all-trades Chris Rainey (who is best known as a running back), and in Round 7, they picked up Oregon tight end David Paulson.

More intriguing is Rainey, who is a super-fast running back, receiver and punt returner who seems destined to add a new dimension to the Steelers offense.

Rainey averaged five yards per carry as a Florida Gator last year (and has averaged 7.8, 6.5 and 7.2 in the three preceding years), with 171 rushes for 861 yards and two scores. He also caught 31 passes for 381 yards and two touchdowns, and he returned 17 punts for a total of 106 yards and a score.

The Steelers have a cadre of backs on the roster who should all step in for the injured Rashard Mendenhall depending on the situation, but none seem to add such an unpredictable dimension as Rainey. Look for him to be a training camp standout who quickly curries Haley's favor and, as such, becomes a major component of the Steelers' new-look ground game.

Paulson is a bit more of a developmental prospect, but he has a skill set that could be good for the Steelers' passing game. He had 31 receptions in his final year at Oregon for 438 yards and six scores.

At 6'4", he's a potential red-zone target, but he's extremely lanky and needs to bulk up in the offseason if he's going to get any love in his rookie year. Look for him to make an impact in preseason games, but he may not be a real weapon until his sophomore season if he doesn't gain some weight.

What's most interesting about the Paulson add is that he's primarily a receiving tight end rather than the blocking/receiving hybrid that's been a hallmark of the Steelers offense for quite a while (see Miller, Heath).

Nose Tackle Alameda Ta'Amu Likely to Start This Year

No one knows whether the longtime starter at nose tackle, Casey Hampton, will be able to play. He tore his left ACL in the team's loss to Denver in the playoffs and wasn't able to have surgery on it until late January after the swelling went down.

Members of the Steelers coaching staff have said a number of things about Hampton's return since then—that he'd be back in time, that he wouldn't be, that maybe he'll be able to play at some point—but no one seems to know.

In fact, it seemed possible that the Steelers were going to try to cut him during their round of veteran releases leading up to the start of the league year, but instead, he saw the final year of his contract undergo a restructure.

Pittsburgh would probably prefer that Hampton play in his final year while Alameda Ta'Amu learns the ropes of the position, but it's looking ever more likely that Ta'Amu will be the starter when the season begins.

Ta'Amu has a lot in common with Hampton—he's huge, hard to move, and a great run-stopper who can take on double-teams with seeming ease. The Steelers will likely work doubly hard to get Ta'Amu up to speed with how they approach the position because it looks like Hampton's time as a starter in Pittsburgh has come to a close.

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