Pittsburgh Steelers: Meet the pick, LB Devin Bush

The Pittsburgh Steelers did something they never do and that is trade up to draft their guy. They took linebacker Devin Bush in round one of the NFL Draft on Friday night.

The Pittsburgh Steelers draft got under way and boy did it start with a bang! News broke earlier Thursday that the Steelers were trying to trade into the top 10 picks to get their guy and it took until the 10th pick was on the clock to come to fruition.

The Steelers struck a deal with the Denver Broncos to swap the 20th overall selection and the 10th overall selection. The Steelers also sent this year’s second round pick, 52nd overall, and a 2020 third round selection to Denver to complete the deal.

It was no secret who the Steelers were targeting as Devin Bush was still on the board. Cincinnati was rumored to be keen on Bush so the Steelers exacted a little revenge from 2016 when the Bengals took William Jackson one pick ahead of the Steelers and they took Artie Burns next.

Pittsburgh jumped one spot ahead of the Bengals in the deal and selected inside linebacker Devin Bush from the University of Michigan. The move was exciting and rare for the Steelers in the draft. The last time they moved this far they took a guy you may have heard of by the name of Troy Polamalu.

The Steelers have been high on Devin Bush since the 2017 collegiate season. They have sent various scouts and personnel to study and evaluate him on multiple occasions the last two years.

Pittsburgh obviously has a glaring need for inside linebacker without Ryan Shazier healthy. Bush will fill this role immediately barring anything drastic or him struggling out of the gates.

I did a film room study on Bush ahead of the draft that you can check out here. You can also view his combine profile here.

Devin Bush is a smaller linebacker sitting at just 5’11” 234 pounds but he makes up for it with great athleticism. He tested very well in the speed and agility drills at the combine and his pro day shot him up my personal board, in particular due to him running a drill mainly for defensive backs and looking like he was a defensive back.

Bush’s sideline to sideline speed is something the Steelers have been lacking since Shazier went down. He possesses a speed/power combination that makes him a great asset in the middle of the defense.

He was not asked to do it a lot in college, but he has the ability to be asked to sit in zones in the middle of the field as well as cover tight ends when necessary. His bulk allows him to not be bullied by them while his speed allows him to stick with the tight ends of today.

Bush can also complement Vince Williams‘ keen ability to blitz from his inside backer spot. He has the speed to hit the gaps and cut through slower blockers and the bulk to face them straight up and get around them to disrupt the quarterback.

The addition of Bush could be the missing piece the Steelers defense needed to begin to be a more consistent unit. They had made great strides in 2017 until they lost Shazier and seemed to lose themselves as a unit.

Bush will be able to immediately step in and become the starter alongside Williams in the Steelers base 3-4 defense. Should he struggle or come out of the gate slow, the Steelers did a great job making sure they have an insurance policy in signing Mark Barron in the offseason.

The Steelers still have eight picks left, even after the trade up for Bush. Look for them to target corner, tight end, receiver and running back in the rest of the draft and possibly add safety depth after Morgan Burnett was released upon request.

Pittsburgh basically gave up their 2nd rounder this year to move up 10 spots and get their guy they needed. The third for next year is somewhat of a wash as it is expected Le’Veon Bell will net them a third round compensatory pick in 2020. This cements the deal as great in my book as the Steelers have both their thirds and all the rest of their picks left with one of the third rounders being the 66th overall pick which Colbert likely views as a late second rounder in terms of value.

Pittsburgh started off with a bang and I look for them to keep this momentum rolling. Stay tuned to Still Curtain as we follow the draft with you and keep you updated on everything you need to know about the Steelers new arrivals as they roll in.