Identifying Pittsburgh Steelers' Biggest Strengths, Weaknesses After Draft

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected eight players in the 2015 NFL draft, and if there were any doubts that defense was the team's biggest area of weakness this offseason, the draft certainly proved otherwise. Of their eight picks, the Steelers selected six players on defense and two on offense.

With the addition of these eight players, certain areas of the Steelers' game have gotten stronger, while other areas remain notably weak. Let's take a look at what those are now that the draft has wrapped.

Strength: Cornerback

There was little chance that the Steelers would get out of the 2015 NFL draft without at least one cornerback and indeed, they walked away with two—Mississippi's Senquez Golson in Round 2 and Ohio State's Doran Grant in Round 4.

Golson may seem undersized, but he's a powerhouse of a player, a physical and aggressive corner who should fit right in with the Steelers' defensive philosophy and even has the capacity to start immediately. Grant gives them additional flexibility at the position.

Cornerback, like wide receiver, has a steep learning curve for an NFL rookie. But it's not as much about the players' ability to reach their full potential immediately, but rather it's the Steelers' acknowledgement of a significant positional need and meeting it twice that gives the Steelers a much better group of cornerbacks than they would otherwise have.

Weakness: Safety

The Steelers did not completely ignore the safety position, but they did leave it until last, with the team taking Louisville's Gerod Holliman with their final pick in the draft. Holliman has significant upside, in the sense that he's the type of speedy, aggressive safety the Steelers have long boasted in Troy Polamalu, and his ball-hawking skills cannot be denied, given his 14 interceptions in 2014.

But Holliman is not a finished product. His tackling, in particular, will need significant work before he can be a fixture in Pittsburgh's secondary. That's something he can certainly hone in 2015 as a special teams player, but it does leave the Steelers thin at the safety position for the season, if he's simply relegated to punt and kick coverage.

Currently, the Steelers appear poised to start Mike Mitchell and one of either Shamarko Thomas or Will Allen at free and strong safety, respectively. That may not be ideal for the team this year, but it may just be the best options available to them. 

It's hard to knock the Steelers for waiting on safety for so long, though. This was a thin draft class at the position and Holliman in Round 7 is a considerable value. But the Steelers certainly did not do enough to immediately improve their lot at the safety position for this season.

Strength: Pass Rush

The Steelers defense totaled only 33 sacks in 2014. Their sack leaders were outside linebacker Jason Worilds and defensive end Cam Heyward, with 7.5 apiece. Heyward, however, is not a full-time pass-rusher, while Worilds has since retired from football altogether. To say the Steelers needed help at outside linebacker this year is an understatement.

Luckily for them, one of the draft's most heralded pass-rushers, Kentucky linebacker Alvin "Bud" Dupree, happened to fall all the way to the Steelers' No. 22 pick in Round 1, allowing the team to line up the best player still available with one of their most considerable needs.

Dupree has 23.5 collegiate sacks and no fewer than 6.5 per season since becoming a starter for Kentucky in 2012. Though Dupree alone may not do enough to turn the Steelers' linebacking corps into one of the NFL's most productive at getting to opposing quarterbacks, his presence on the field will at least help unit improve its sack total. 

Dupree joins James Harrison, Jarvis Jones and Arthur Moats in what may be a more rotational approach to the outside linebacker position than the Steelers typically employ. Additionally, sixth-round pick Anthony Chickillo could also make an appearance as a situational pass-rusher in his rookie year.

At the very least, the Steelers have additional bodies at the crucial outside linebacker position thanks to their choices in this year's draft, putting them in a better situation than they were in prior to Thursday night.

Weakness: Running Back

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The Pittsburgh Steelers have one of the NFL's best—if not the best—all-around running backs in Le'Veon Bell. So why is the position considered a weakness after the draft has wrapped? 

Because the Steelers will be without Bell's services for the first three weeks of the 2015 season as he serves a suspension for last year's DUI charge.

The Steelers made one crucial move this offseason to limit the sting of Bell's suspension by signing veteran free agent DeAngelo Williams. But Williams cannot carry the load himself for those three games. The Steelers had been expected by many to target a running back late in this year's draft, and they could have found a talented one, too, as the position was deeper than usual.

Instead, the Steelers addressed mostly defensive needs and spent just two of their eight picks on the offensive side of the ball, taking a receiver and a tight end. After Week 3, the running back position should not be an issue, given Bell's prowess as a runner, receiver and blocker. But for the sake of the Steelers' first three games this year, another running back might have been a smart use of one of their draft picks.

Strength: Tight End

Tight end Heath Miller was the Steelers' third-leading receiver in 2014, catching 66 passes for 761 yards and three touchdowns. He's long been a fixture of not just the team's passing offense as a receiver and pass protector but also its' run game, serving as both a willing and effective blocker. 

But Miller has two years left on his contract, and the Steelers have long needed to not only find his eventual replacement but also a second tight end to give the team more offensive options. They finally took care of business in this year's draft, taking Penn State's Jesse James in Round 5.

James is much like Miller, in that he's an old-school, do-it-all style of tight end. He caught 78 passes for 1,005 yards and 11 scores in his three collegiate seasons and could have done more had he been more involved in Penn State's passing game. But he's also an accomplished blocker, which makes him a perfect fit for the Steelers.

Expect James to get a good deal of playing time as a rookie, both in place of Miller and alongside him. In a year or two, he'll be more than ready to take over where Miller left off and provide the Steelers with a similar level of reliability. 

For the past few years, the Steelers have added tight ends, such as Rob Blanchflower last year and David Paulson in 2012. But none have really played many—or any—regular-season snaps and none seemed suited to eventually take on Miller's role. James, however, projects to be a fixture in Pittsburgh much as Miller has over the past 10 years.

Weakness: Coverage Interior Linebackers

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The Steelers' group of inside linebackers—Lawrence Timmons, Sean Spence, Ryan Shazier and Vince Williams—are a talented bunch. They certainly do a good job of providing interior pressure on quarterbacks and are some of the best in the league at their positions as run defenders.

In coverage, however, all four could serve to do better, especially with the prominence of large-bodied tight ends and shifty slot receivers catching passes over the middle.

According to Pro Football Focus, Timmons ranked tied for 58th out of 105 for inside linebackers working in coverage. Shazier, whose rookie season was marred by knee and ankle injuries, ranked 81st. Spence ranked tied for 48th, while Williams was the best of the interior linebackers in coverage, ranking 44th.

The Steelers have a tough schedule ahead, starting with the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots and their nearly unstoppable tight end Rob Gronkowski in Week 1. With the safety position also in question for the Steelers right now, they need their coverage linebackers to pick up some of the slack.

But the Steelers did not add any coverage help to the interior of their front seven in the 2015 draft. While the Steelers have a stacked deck, on paper, when it comes to inside linebackers, they could have easily picked up another who can work situationally in coverage in order to aid their safeties over the middle of the field.