Steelers War Room: S/LB Su’a Cravens

There’s no question that our beloved Steelers need help on defense. This help could come from the safety/linebacker hybrid in USC’s Su’a Cravens.

Hey guys! Welcome to the first edition of Steelers War Room. Every week I will be looking at a potential draft pick for our beloved Steelers. This is my first year in pre-draft analysis, so if I make a mistake in anything, please be patient. This is all new for me.

Okay, let’s get started!

When I first heard about Su’a Cravens I instantly thought of safety/linebacker Deone Bucannon of the Arizona Cardinals. Bucannon was a first-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft. He was drafted as a SS, but played a lot of snaps at LB this season. Although listed as an OLB on USC’s website, Cravens can also play SS.

Here’s a breakdown on Su’a Cravens:

Cravens is 6’1″ and weighs 225 lbs. He is 20 years old, hails from Los Angeles, CA and is a Junior from USC.

Stats

In 2015, Cravens had 78 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, 2 INT, 6 PBU and 2 FF.

Strengths

-Su’a Cravens is a fast defender that closes in quickly and finishes the play. He’s a guy that can crash through blockers and take down the ballcarrier.

-Has a very high football IQ.

-Solid athlete.

-Has great speed. He’s able to line up against a slot receiver and stick with them in man or zone coverage.

-Very hard hitter.

-The benefit of Su’a Cravens is his versatility. USC was able to put him nearly anywhere on the field and give him nearly any assignment. A lot like Troy Polamalu the Steelers would be able to move Cravens along the defensive front. He’s able to play more of a straight forward linebacker role, he has good timing on the blitz and he can play in nickel situations. I could see Keith Butler’s defense benefiting greatly from this type of versatility.

Weaknesses

-Could add some more weight.

Su’a Cravens is projected to be a late round first-round pick to an early second round pick. If the Steelers don’t have a guy at 25th overall, they could trade down and get Cravens in the second.

I love this kid, and I hope he’s dawning black & gold come next season.

Here we go, Steelers! Here we go!