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Why Steelers Bud Dupree should be top priority despite tight cap space

By Ryan Sakamoto

PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 02: Austin Ekeler #30 of the Los Angeles Chargers rushes the ball against Bud Dupree #48 of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second half during the game at Heinz Field on December 2, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 02: Austin Ekeler #30 of the Los Angeles Chargers rushes the ball against Bud Dupree #48 of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second half during the game at Heinz Field on December 2, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images) /
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PITTSBURGH, PA – DECEMBER 30: Bud Dupree #48 of the Pittsburgh Steelers attempts to pump up the crowd in the first quarter during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field on December 30, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA – DECEMBER 30: Bud Dupree #48 of the Pittsburgh Steelers attempts to pump up the crowd in the first quarter during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field on December 30, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) /

Bud Dupree should be a top priority

It wasn’t until Week 11 that Dupree would put the shoulder pads back on. A massive setback in terms of his growth as an NFL player.

“I did a couple of things to get back into the groove,” said Dupree, who admits having some discomfort during practice. “Each day, I’ll do more, but I’m excited to be back on the field.”

Making up for lost time, Dupree proved why Colbert and Tomlin were so high on him, as he finished his sophomore season with 4.5 sacks despite playing only seven games. His athletic ability and ability to convert speed-to-power was confirmed in limited action, and carried into their deep playoff AFC Championship run.

Now it was time to really dig in, as the NFL stands for “Not For Long.”

With his rookie season being a learning process, his sophomore campaign injury-plagued, it’s now year three, where everything should come to fruition, right?

Wrong. Dupree again began the year on the injured list with an injured shoulder. Rumors started to swirl that he was injury-prone, and the word “bust” crept into some fans’ minds, could this be another OLB Jarvis Jones situation?

But Dupree didn’t listen to the noise. He just continued to show his true character by being an astute film-junkie and letting his play do the talking.

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