BGN 2010 Mock Draft Pick #18 - The Pittsburgh Steelers

With the eighteenth pick in the 2010 BGN Draft, DSmith215 selects...

Kyle Wilson - CB, Boise State

Well, my fellow BGNers have made it hard for me. The obvious picks for the Steelers in this spot were Iupati (who I was expecting to fall to me) and Rolando McClain. Putting McClain in the lineup at the Buck could let Timmons play the Mack where he belongs and turn the Steelers front 7 into something truly terrifying.

But alas, alack, the easy options are gone.

After watching tape and getting some help from the fine fellows over at BTSC, I think the biggest areas where the Steelers need improvement is on their O-Line and in their secondary. But, Iupati is gone and while Pouncey is a good prospect, I'm not comfortable drafting a Center at 18 with Wilson and Earl Thomas still on the board.

I was tempted to be goofy and pick Dez Bryant, just because it would be relatively unexpected and Hines Ward won't be around forever, but I'm going what seems to me to be the most sensible route and picking
Wilson.

I'm very high on Wilson and I'm comfortable taking a CB of his obvious ability in the middle of the first round. The vaunted Steelers defense didn't really look like itself last year due to the absence of Troy Polalmalu(badoobadoo) who has even more talent than he has hair. Without his vision and presence, the Steelers secondary got badly exposed.

More after the jump...

Here's thing thing, though. In my eyes, having Troy back on the field means that the back end of the Steelers D should be secure again. Also, they just resigned Ryan Clark; a high pick at FS isn't likely to be a top priority for them *this year.*

However, the Steelers corners are nothing to be that thrilled about. If the Steelers want to win another Super Bowl, the first adjective that comes to my mind about their starting corners definitely shouldn't be "adequate." And frankly, I may be being too generous.

The Steelers' zone-blitzing 3-4 can put a lot of pressure on their corners; with things developing more competitively in their division (such as the Ravens grabbing Boldin and the Bengals maybe not violently sucking horsepucky anymore) Pittsburgh is in need of an upgrade. Drafting Wilson gives them a fundamentally solid corner with upside, and can help solidify the outside of their defense for many years to come.

Next on the clock will be TheSportsWatcher with the Atlanta Falcons.

Previous picks: #1 Ndamukong Suh, #2 Russell Okung, #3 Gerald McCoy, #4 Sam Bradford, #5 Eric Berry, #6 Trent Williams, #7 Jimmy Clausen, #8 Bruce Campbell, #9 Bryan Bulaga, #10 Derrick Morgan, #11 Rolando McClain, #12 Sergio Kindle, #13 Joe Haden, #14 C.J. Spiller, #15 Mike Iupati, #16 Jason Pierre-Paul, #17 Anthony Davis