PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said he's talked with more players (in-person, on Zooms, on the phone) than in any time in his career leading up to the 2023 NFL Draft. He believes that's just providing a broader net for the team.
Here are a few other notes from the Steelers pre-draft news conference with GM Omar Khan and Tomlin on Monday, including how they use draft information in the future.
Recruiting schedule
A reason many professional coaches would never coach in college is recruiting. Although, essentially what these coaches do, from the head coach to every assistant, from the end of any season is recruit. Sometimes continuing that process up until training camp when you include wooing players as undrafted free agents.
For the general manager, that process is year-round. The GM and staff are constantly attending college games and practices, but at this point it's more intense. Khan shared a little of his recent schedule with us.
· Started at the Hula Bowl where he interviewed 'several players'
· He and Tomlin interviewed 40 to 50 players (low guestimate) formally at the Senior Bowl and another 20-30 informally
· NFL Combine, 45 formal visits and a handful or so informal visits
· Went on what he called the college Pro Day circuit for a couple of weeks where they looked at hundreds of players
· Took their league allotted 30 in-person, in-Pittsburgh visits
· Interviewed several local players in town, they don't count against their 30 in-person visits
· Then a number of Zoom calls that will continue until Thursday
"We took every opportunity that was at our disposal to beat the bushes and engage with these guys," Tomlin said. "I think that's why we feel comfortable about where we are. Still some more work ahead of us, continual discussions that need to be had. That will be ongoing. But just the work that we've done, the position that we're in right now in terms of the information that we have."
Defensive position changes
Asked about how drafting players has changed in terms of looking for more specific skills now especially with defensive players, Tomlin offered.
"I think there's more specialization," Tomlin said Monday. "Positions that we didn't necessarily identify as positions years ago have very specific roles. I think the nickel, the interior corner is a position in today's game. The dime linebacker or the passing-situations linebacker, for example, is a really specific position in today's game. There are interior rushers. Those guys oftentimes play on the edge on run downs."
"It's a highly specialized game today."
Draft info used years later
You think about the time that goes into an NFL Draft. Think of all the resources, financial and otherwise, to try and select only seven players in a normal year. Then think about how many of those stick after one year, then after five years and how many of them become difference-makers.
For example, of last year's seven-man draft class-two were consistent starters, two more were role players, another didn't play until the very end of the season, one missed the whole year with injury and another was released. Total from the Steelers 2018 and 2019 drafts combined-three players remain on the current roster (Diontae Johnson, Zach Gentry and Chukwuma Okorafor).
Tomlin said that effort and information isn't wasted on all the other players they looked at but didn't, or couldn't, select. He said Monday when getting Allen Robinson in a trade with the Rams, he remembered back to spending a great deal of time with Robinson and his family before the draft a decade ago.
"We held him in high regard," Tomlin said. "We liked his football character, we liked his talents, we liked his upside. We followed him throughout his NFL journey. The interest still remains. Those are generally the stories, that's the framing of the people that we generally do free agent business with."
"The same thing could be said for Elandon Roberts. I remember being down at Houston when we were at his Pro Day. Kevin and I stood in the parking lot and talked to him and his parents for maybe 45 minutes after his Pro Day was over."
"That's how we play free agency. We build our team primarily through the Draft because we do a great deal of research and work regarding these guys in draft prep. So, our professional interest is usually a continuation of that."
Pretty obvious
Khan wasn't going to deny the opportunity right now with a starting quarterback on a rookie contract. The team has been able to sign 15 players in free agency and traded for a three-time, one-thousand-yard receiver.
"You don't have to be a mathematician to figure it out," Khan said. "When you have a rookie quarterback that's starting for you, it gives you options. That's what I always say, you have options to do different things, maybe get creative on some other things."
