Right on the Nose

[tburhans]

The last thing I want is to see burfict next to suggs and see them laying the wood to ben twice a year

[SteelBlaze1]

ESPN Blog page:

By Jamison Hensley

Memphis defensive tackle Dontari Poe is the perfect fit for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who need to find the heir apparent to nose tackle Casey Hampton. Most mock drafts agreed, linking Poe to the Steelers' 24th overall pick in the first round.

But Poe won't be there when the Steelers are picking at that point. Not after his "epic" showing at the NFL combine.

Poe's numbers produced at the combine compare favorably to the ones recorded by Ravens defensive tackle Haloti Ngata. Even though Ngata was a more polished player coming out of college, Poe is projected to go in the middle of the first round (Ngata was taken 12th overall).

Everyone knew Poe was strong. He backed that up when he had 44 repetitions on the 225-pound bench press -- which was 16 above the average for defensive tackles over the past four combines. What really stood out was Poe's speed. He ran a jaw-dropping official time of 4.98 seconds in the 40-yard dash.

You got the feeling that Poe would enjoy getting drafted by the Steelers. He has definitely followed Hampton's career.

"He's aggressive. He's one of the more aggressive defensive tackles this league has seen," Poe said at the combine. "His hand strength. Once he gets his hands on you, he kind of controls you. That's probably what I admire most about him."

Luckily for the Steelers, this is a deep draft for nose tackles. BYU's Hebron Fangupo, Washington's Alameda Ta'amu (who had the third-slowest 40 time among defensive tackles) and Alabama's Josh Chapman are expected to be taken from the second to fourth rounds.

[Fire Arians]

poe will definitely be gone before 24. i know workouts aren't everything, but this guy has almost everything you're looking for in a 3-4NT. Add in the fact he's shown enough speed to not only be limited to NT, and that more teams than in previous years are adopting the 3-4, it'd be better to look elsewhere because some team will take him.

on the bright side, if he's selected by a team that would have taken cordy glenn or hightower instead, they may drop to us. If the rumors are true and we can get jared gaither on our team, we could consider other options like mark barron also.

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

Hemsley is a clown. Depending on moves in free agency, Denver, Chargers, Colts will also need NT prospect. I dont know if waiting till the 4th round is going to be an optionl.

[kan_t]

Originally Posted by tburhans

The last thing I want is to see burfict next to suggs and see them laying the wood to ben twice a year

Solution: upgrade the OL

[fujirama24]

Now that the combine is over. I believe Poe vaulted himself into the mid first round and as of now is out of the steelers reach. He could go as high as 16 to the jets and I don't think he makes it past 19 chargers pick.

[pete74]

in all honesty i think Ta'amu is the better fit for us. yes Poe had a very, very strong combine but his tape dosnt show that. i just watched alot of tape on him and was surprised how he played. i expected him to be dominant but he really wasnt. maybe his heart isnt in it or something because with his size, speed and strength he should dominate any offensive lineman

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

Yeah Pete, and I dont know if Ta'amu moved himself up or down in the combine. Lets hope the Steelers can do some magic and get Hightower and Ta'amu.

[pete74]

Originally Posted by El-Gonzo Jackson

Yeah Pete, and I dont know if Ta'amu moved himself up or down in the combine. Lets hope the Steelers can do some magic and get Hightower and Ta'amu.

i would love that

[MasterOfPuppets]

Originally Posted by pete74

in all honesty i think Ta'amu is the better fit for us. yes Poe had a very, very strong combine but his tape dosnt show that. i just watched alot of tape on him and was surprised how he played. i expected him to be dominant but he really wasnt. maybe his heart isnt in it or something because with his size, speed and strength he should dominate any offensive lineman

and what do you see from Ta'amu's tape ? last year everyone had him pegged as the top nose tackle prospect for this year. expected bigger things out of him but he never delivered. poe passed him even before the combine. to me that suggest that Ta'amu's tape is less than impressive. "inconsistent" is the label i've seen put on him after the senior bowl. he was a non factor in the bowl game verse the powerhouse known as ... baylor ... who gashed washingtons Dline for over 300 rushing yards.
both apparently need to be coached up and their technique refined . poe obviously is the more athletic of the two, so i'd put my money on poe. i think he offers more to work with. they could even line his big ass up at DE like the rats do with ngnata.