Steelers Get Compensatory Pick, Tomlin on D, Safety Rules

The NFL free agency period is in full swing and you can bet that we won’t miss a beat of Steelers coverage. While the Steelers are releasing players, signing free agents, restructure and extending contracts and re-signing their own free agents we’ll be busy looking around for mentions of your Black & Gold. Here’s your Steelers Morning Huddle for Wednesday, March 25^th.

You get an extra pick!

The Steelers will have eight picks in the 2015 NFL draft. Per ESPN’s Scott Brown the team was awarded a compensatory pick on Monday evening by the NFL. They received a seventh-round pick for losing more players than they signed in free agency last year.

The Steelers have a pick in each round and now two picks in the seventh round. Last year the Steelers had three compensatory picks in which they selected Dri Archer in the third round, Wesley Johnson in the fifth round and Daniel McCullers in the sixth round. Johnson was put on waivers to make room for a roster spot and then claimed by the Jets.

Obviously, the defense could be better

Mike Prisuta caught up with Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin during a break from the NFL Competition Committee meetings during the 2015 NFL Owners Meetings to discuss the future of the now LeBeau-less Steelers defense. Tomlin expressed excitement on what Keith Butler can bring to the team now that he’s at the helm of the defense for the first time after Dick LeBeau resigned and Butler was promoted in his place.

"“He’s (LeBeau) moved on and, I feel like we have a very capable man in Keith Butler, a guy who has been in our program for some time even prior to me being here. Keith and I have a rich coaching history together. We worked together since 1996 in three different cities. Got a great deal of comfort and continuity from that standpoint but also looking forward to the impact we could have in terms of putting his spin on what we’ve been doing and what we’ll continue to do. I’m excited about the opportunity that he’ll be given. I’m excited about maybe how that can make us different and more competitive.” – Mike Tomlin"

Tomlin and Butler worked together on the coaching staffs at the University of Memphis and again at Arkansas State. It certainly will be interesting to see how different, if at all, Butler will have the Steelers defense than under LeBeau, who had been the defensive coordinator since before Tomlin was hired.

Player safety rules pass

The NFL’s Competition Committee has passed five new rules that you’ll probably not notice when watching the games, according to PFT’s Michael David Smith. The five new rules passed were:

"Bans defensive players from pushing teammates at the line of scrimmage when the offense is in punt formation.Prohibits all offensive players from engaging in peel back blocks.Gives receivers defenseless player protection when a pass is intercepted.Makes it illegal for a running back to chop a defensive player engaged above the waist by another offensive player outside the tackle box.Allows an injury spotter to stop the game if a player appears to have suffered a brain injury."

Do you think these will make a major difference in player safety going forward?

Next: Steelers Offseason: Tomlin Tuesday

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