Still Curtain
FanSided

Steelers Mock Draft: Pittsburgh adds youth to the trenches

By Edward Hunt

ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 07: Gerry Bohanon #11 of the Baylor Bears passes the ball over Neville Gallimore #90 of the Oklahoma Sooners in the second quarter of the Big 12 Football Championship at AT&T Stadium on December 7, 2019 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 07: Gerry Bohanon #11 of the Baylor Bears passes the ball over Neville Gallimore #90 of the Oklahoma Sooners in the second quarter of the Big 12 Football Championship at AT&T Stadium on December 7, 2019 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 8
Next
FORT WORTH, TEXAS – SEPTEMBER 21: James Proche #3 of the Southern Methodist Mustangs carries the ball against Trevon Moehrig #7 of the TCU Horned Frogs in the second quarter at Amon G. Carter Stadium on September 21, 2019 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
FORT WORTH, TEXAS – SEPTEMBER 21: James Proche #3 of the Southern Methodist Mustangs carries the ball against Trevon Moehrig #7 of the TCU Horned Frogs in the second quarter at Amon G. Carter Stadium on September 21, 2019 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

Round Four, Pick 29: James Proche, WR, SMU

I didn’t want to wait this long to take a wide receiver, but I think this draft has some depth at wide receiver. James Proche is another stud out of SMU, the school that produced Denver Bronco, Courtland Sutton.

What I like about Proche is his speed on tape. I think he is a better player than he is an athlete. He has had great production over the last two years because he hustles. He is more of a player than an athlete.

As far as what role in the offense he will play, I think you can move him around a lot. His size is more like a slot guy but his playing style is more like an outside receiver. I see him as the top backup to their top three in Smith-Schuster, Washington, and Johnson.

One thing that he can add is the ability to catch punt returns. He is not a guy who is going to fumble the punt and that is big for Coach Tomlin. He will provide depth there in case the Steelers have injuries to their return specialists like they did last year with Ryan Switzer.

The Steelers have had success with wide receivers in all shapes and sizes and so I think Proche is a guy that can work for them. He does struggle with cutting as a route runner. I think he has the raw speed and effort that Ike Hilliard can coach.

Home/Steelers News