Steelers worst-case Mock Draft: Pittsburgh makes desperation moves early

Steelers mock draft round 3: Edgerrin Cooper, LB, Texas A&M

We reach round three here and none of the quality cornerbacks nor offensive tackles are left available. That would be a tough pill to swallow for the Steelers as their plans to complete their young offensive line rebuild falls apart. They have to focus on other prospects and without any cornerbacks available worthy of their pick here, they go with the best player available.

Rumor has it that Pittsburgh likes Edgerrin Cooper a lot. The Texas A&M linebacker would be good value at this selection, but it might be too rich for the position. We will see what happens at the linebacker spot for the black and gold in the coming months. Both of their starters at inside linebacker are coming off of season-ending injuries.

Cole Holcomb is rumored to possibly return either at the start of the regular season or sometime a little after. Kwon Alexander is a pending free agent and his return from injury is currently unknown. Maybe inside linebacker will be more of a need around draft time than it is now. But based on what we know, going linebacker in round three with other pressing needs would be hard to watch.

Cooper is a quality prospect coming out of college, but he does have some faults that he will need to improve at the next level. He is a fast linebacker and has a lot of starting experience in one of the toughest conferences in college football. One of the biggest concerns with him could be his size. Cooper might need to add some weight to his big frame to become a well-rounded player.