

Hello everyone, this column is a little lengthy but I encourage you to read it. I am hoping to become a contributor for this site, or for another Steelers blog. I know it's not perfect, and feedback is appreciated. With that being said here it is:

As the NFL season comes to a close, many Steelers fans are already looking toward the draft for an improved defensive unit, as last year's defense struggled.

The Steelers defensive line was a question mark coming into the year, but it looks as though Steelers have composed a strong group of players. Along with Steve McLendon, two high end picks in Stephon Tuitt and Cameron Heyward were very productive throughout the season.

The middle linebacker position is another position that looks promising, as two relatively unknown names in Vince Williams and Sean Spence made a name for themselves in 2014. They stepped in to take Ryan Shazier's vacant position when he was hurt through his rookie year, and event got playing time after he returned.

With these two positions playing solid by the end of the year and the second best offense in the league, many wondered why the Steelers didn't have a deeper playoff push in 2014. Here's why: The secondary of the Steelers was a huge disappointment, and the underwhelming outside linebacking core was equally disappointing.

By the end of the year, every one of their starting corners had been cut at one point in their career. They struggled throughout most of the year, but started playing well at the end of the year. Antwon Blake came in and made special plays, including stripping A.J. Green, to secure the AFC North title. He could serve as the nickel corner for the Steelers next year, along with Brice Mccain. Mccain, who was once ranked the worst corner in the league by Pro Football Focus, was signed to the steelers over the offseason. While Mccain wasn't flawless this season, he was a serviceable corner who, like Blake, created plays when the Steelers needed them the most. Cortez Allen was without a doubt the most disappointing part of the Steelers season this year. He was atrocious, which left Steelers fans scratching their heads as to why the Steelers gave him a contract extension in the offseason. Cortez Allen's time is far from over in Pittsburgh, but it is far too early in his career to count him out. That leaves us with William Gay, who has been by far the Steelers best corner for the past two years. He wouldn't serve as the #1 corner on any other team, but made was a solid first corner on the Steelers. He had three pick-sixes this season, which was only one away from breaking the NFL all-time record. William Gay has a secure spot on the roster heading into 2015.

Unlike many previous years, the Steelers do have room in their cap space to possibly sign big names like the cornerbacks Byron Maxwell of the Seahawks and Kareem Jackson of the Texans, but that usually isn't their forte. Pittsburgh relies on internal development of their own drafted players, which has proven to be successful for them in the past.

Pittsburgh's outside linebackers position had little pass rush the entire season, although it did improve once James Harrison came out of retirement to play for the Steelers. There is a strong possibility he retires over the offseason, and if he doesn't, he is aging in a position that is very hard to succeed with the loss of quickness. Arthur Moats, who the Steelers signed in the offseason from Buffalo, was was a contributing member of the Steelers team this year, although he isn't necessarily of starting quality. Jarvis Jones, while still young, will not be the player who the Steelers drafted him to be, as he gets stuck behind tackles because of his sub-par strength. That leaves us with Jason Worilds, who was another signing by the Steelers that didn't work out. Although he tied the team for the lead in sacks, wasn't the pass rusher that the Steelers expected him to be when they resigned him. His sacks often came unblocked, or against tight ends and running backs. The Steelers could bring him back as an insurance policy, or for situational passing downs, but I don't think it's likely the Steelers will pay what he believes his market value is.

So the question remains: Do the Steelers draft a corner or an outside linebacker in the first round of the draft? Many fans immediately point to the corner position, which has always been a common scapegoat of fans. However, I believe that an edge rusher would have the greatest impact on the team for next season.The first reasonn is that a strong pass rush improves secondary play greatly, and we can go to the final game of the Steeler's 2014 season to prove just that. The Ravens secondary was the most tarnished and arguably the worst in the NFL. After a banged up Ladarius Webb, their corners were composed of practice squad players and players that they signed off the street. However, they managed to take control of the Steelers offense in that game. This was due to their dominant pass rush from Pernell Mcphee, Terrell Suggs, Elvis Dumervil, Courtney Upshaw, and Haloti Ngata- to only name a few. The Steelers, meanwhile, have one pass rusher in Cameron Heyward that can get to the QB. Lawerence Timmons occasionally shoots the gaps, but he has more components to his game than just rushing the passer. Because of the limited time that Ben had, he forced poor throws, including one that he threw while clearly concussed. Another reason to consider drafting an edge rusher over a corner in the first round is longevity of their careers. Per Pro Football Reference, only 19.6% of linebackers have played their last game before the age of thirty, but 25% of corners have. Although these percentages are somewhat close together, this statistic is based on a large sample size of NFL players, so the gap in the percentages is not purely a coincidence. Another factor in who the Steelers draft is the positional depth. The Steelers are known to draft whoever is the best player available, rather than position need, which is important to consider. After the truly elite corners in the draft such as Patrick Peterson was a couple of years ago, the position quickly drops off. It looks as though Trae Waynes is the best corner in this years draft, and will surely be off the board before the Steelers twenty-second overall selection. Outside linebacker is a different case. There are multiple players in this years draft valued as first round picks that the Steelers will be able to draft because of the depth at that position. Players such as Dante Fowler Jr., Vic Beasley, and Alvin Dupree could very well be available when the Steelers are on the clock.

Both positions must be addressed in the draft and free agency, and keep in mind that who the Steelers sign in free agency will affect who they draft. Considering where the Steelers are, the benefits of drafting an edge rusher outweigh those of drafting a corner.