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Brian Batko's Steelers chat: 03.15.21
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Brian Batko
2:39
That's an interesting point when it comes to Villanueva. We kind of hashed out above why it makes sense for both sides to move on. But then the question is what's the alternative? Chuks Okorafor did OK his year as a starter, but that was on the right side, and I'm not sure he'd be a huge upgrade as a run-blocker. Perhaps that's why the team will be enticed to go find their guy in the first round. A left tackle who's a bit more well-rounded, and on the bright side, you have a guy in Okorafor who can bridge the gap if need be.
Polovtsian Dance No.2 by Borodin
2:40
The Big Ten 2020 Football season was anything but normal. Keeping that in mind... I think looking at his 2019 season, Michigan LB Cam McGrone 6' 1" - 230 lbs would be a ideal mid round pick for the Steelers. How deep do you think the Steelers go before they would use a pick on a ILB?
Brian Batko
2:42
Now that an obscure classical music reference has suggested him, I will add Cam McGrone to my draft radar. But to answer your question, it wouldn't shock me if they don't draft an ILB this year. They're fairly well stocked with Devin Bush, Rob Spillane, Vince Williams, Marcus Allen and Ulysees Gilbert all in the fold. With the possibility of Antoine Brooks making an Allen-like move to that role, too.
Jeff
2:43
Thanks for the chats B.  assume we restructure Hayden and Nelson, Dupree and Juju sign elsewhere do we have enough to get a top center?  Seems that is the biggest piece (and RB) if we bring back Banner, Feiler and Oks for our tackles
Brian Batko
2:45
They might have enough, but if that was their plan all along, why bother bringing back B.J. Finney, even at the vet minimum? Maybe I'm way off but that seems like a signal they're planning to use that money elsewhere. Also, no guarantee they restructure even one of Haden/Nelson. Both are going into the last years of their deals, so they'd need to agree to an extension. Although nowadays with void years, I guess you can do pretty much anything!
David Cos
2:45
Now that the Packers signed Aaron Jones to an extension I'm wondering if they would trade AJ Dillon and if you think that is worth the Steelers looking into? He looked really good in limited action last year.
Brian Batko
2:46
Intriguing idea. I really liked AJ Dillon last year coming out of Boston College. Talk about a guy who runs with some power, something the Steelers sorely lacked last year (maybe even the last couple years). Jamaal Williams is also an unrestricted FA after being Jones' running mate in Green Bay, so with him all but certainly out of the picture, the Packers might like what they have in Jones and Dillon as a one-two punch, and wouldn't be jumping at the chance to trade Dillon for peanuts.
Mamukelashvili
2:48
Thanks for all the thoughtful answers! Really appreciate the time you put in here! No one-word nonsense from our man BB!
Brian Batko
2:48
You're welcome. I do it for the fans. To paraphrase Joe Greene's HoF speech, if you're not at the Post-Gazette Steelers chat at 2 p.m. on a Monday, you're in the wrong place.
Buster
2:49
Are you aware that new Falcons head coach Arthur Smith is the son of Fred Smith, the founder and CEO of FedEx who is worth $5.8 billion? How do you think being a member of one of the wealthiest families in the world impacts his football job?
Brian Batko
2:49
I was vaguely aware of that, Buster. And frankly, I have never given it much thought. But I'm sure there's a Falcons chat out there somewhere with folks who can give you a more insightful reply.
WPASTEEL
2:50
Hi BB..... Why cant the steelers resign Juju & Dupree? Why cant they do a minimal base salary and signing bonuses to defer to future years? Steelers have over $160 Million in cap space next year
Brian Batko
2:51
The NFL salary cap is a bit of a farce, but not to that degree. They're going to want long-term security and guaranteed money. And you act as if the Steelers don't have other good players who won't be eating up some of that future cap space you speak of.
Kyle
2:52
Do you think they are bringing Finney back to be the starting center?  I think he is a fine back-up, but is he an upgrade over Hassenauer?
Brian Batko
2:53
My read on it is they're bringing him in as someone who could go either way. If they're able to draft a rookie who's ready to step in, then Finney can be the backup like he used to be. If plans don't work out, then perhaps they roll with him and Hassenauer as the guys at C. But keep in mind Finney also can play guard, which helps. I do think he's an upgrade over Hassenauer, but I'm not an exactly an expert on interior o-line play, so hard for me to say by how much.
Ron E
2:54
It looks to me like Joe Haden might be a little pricey for his contributions.  Any chance of something happening ?
Brian Batko
2:55
Well, Joe Haden himself took to Twitter last week to call out a John Clayton quote in which he predicted the Steelers would cut Haden and Vince Williams. Haden said "I predict they don't," which, well, that seems pretty definitive from the subject in question.
2:56
OK friends, a nice lively free agency chat during an early wave of free agency in which not much is happening. But I'm going to go back to monitoring that and let you all think of some new material for our man Ray Fittipaldo tomorrow. Happy trails!
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