Steelers draft update: Biggest winners at East-West Shrine Bowl

B.J. Thompson had a great showing all week at the Shrine Bowl

Edge rushers at the Shrine Bowl might have had one of the best weeks overall when you compare the different positions. B.J. Thompson out of Stephen F. Austin was one of the standouts overall in Las Vegas as he continued to impress. One of the biggest concerns about Thompson was if he could put on weight and compete with some of these higher-echelon prospects.

Concerns about his weight at the next level still exist, but they have been watered down after he showed up to the East-West game at 238 pounds. That is a significant boost from his very slim 210-pound frame that he is listed on ESPN’s website. Continuing to grow out of his frame at the next level is going to be necessary for Thompson to become a solid edge rusher in the NFL.

Stats do not lie, but in this case, they could lead to bending the truth a little. He only produced five sacks last season, but he also compiled one of the best pass rush grades across college football. He is from a small school and that could also lead to teams passing on him until the later rounds of the draft.

Thompson would be good value in the later portions of the draft event for the Steelers. They need depth on the edge and taking a small school product could be on the table with Omar Khan in the General manager’s chair. Taking this player would be a developmental guy with a high ceiling.