Steelers 7-round mock draft: Trade helps the OL and defense

Boston col offensive lineman Zion Johnson. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Boston col offensive lineman Zion Johnson. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 8
Next
Steelers
National linebacker Troy Andersen of Montana State (45) and National linebacker Chad Muma of Wyoming (48) and National linebacker Sterling Weatherford of Miami (OH) . Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports /

Steelers round three

Another Senior Bowl prospect and a smaller school guy, Chad Muma had one of the more impressive weeks in Mobile and did a lot to boost his stock. Playing at Wyoming won’t get you a lot of acclaim, but Muma did well as a complete linebacker. Assuming he tests well athletically, he likely cemented himself as a day-two pick in this upcoming draft.

He has the natural size to be a good run defender while he has the athleticism to cover running backs and tight ends in space. While he will need to sharpen his skills in coverage in order to reach his maximum potential, he can easily start off in some sub-package situations and make plays. Long-term, he should be a three-down starter in the NFL.

Where he needs to improve is his aggressiveness. He can sometimes be too timid off the snap and be forced to react instead of predicting what happens. While he could recover from that easily in college, it will make him an ineffective linebacker at the next level. That said, working with Flores could do him some wonders. He won’t be an instant starter, but Muma has all the makings of a talented linebacker in this league.