Here are a few pro day tidbits that I have dug up from around the internet that concern the Pittsburgh Steelers.
At the Northern Illinois pro day on Friday the Steelers had people present to observe outside linebacker prospect Sean Progar, who measured in at 6014, 255 pounds. Progar did 26 reps on the bench, ran a 4.79 40 yard dash and had a broad jump of 9\’03” and a vertical jump of 32″. In his four years at Northern Illinois, Progar registered 24 sacks, forced 5 fumbles and 169 total tackles. He figures to be a late round prospect that could possibly even go undrafted.
Linebackers coach Keith Butler and scout Joe Greene were both at the TCU pro day Thursday to observe outside linebacker prospect Stansly Maponga, who measures in at 6020, 251 pounds. Maponga ran 40 times of 4.84 and 4.85. He also did 30 reps on the bench and had a vertical jump of 29.5″1/2 inches to go along with a 9\’06” broad jump, 4.37 in the short shuttle and a 7.38 in the three-cone drill. He might need surgery to repair a broken left little toe.
“We needed to see him run, and we needed to see him do the linebacker drills to see how he would work out doing those drills,” Greene said. “At Pittsburgh, he’ll be too small to play defensive end. We need him as a linebacker. For a defensive end who’s trying to play linebacker, I thought he did pretty good.”
Maponga registered 15.5 sacks in 3 seasons at TCU as a defensive end. He also forced 8 fumbles and 23 tackles for loss.
Defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau was present Friday for the Ohio State pro day like always. He was more than likely there to see nose tackle Johnathan Hankins and linebacker John Simon specifically, but several other defensive players that weren\’t invited to the combine also participated. Hankins stood on his combine numbers, but did on-field drills. Simon, an outside linebacker prospect, was still unable to work out Friday as he is still recovering from shoulder surgery. He will hold his own Pro Day on March 25, and said he expects to be “100 percent” healthy by then.
Texas A&M defensive end Damontre Moore, who figures to be an outside linebacker prospect, held his pro day on Friday and the Steelers were reportedly well represented there. Moore said he tweaked his hamstring during the day, and he didn’t run the 40 as a result. Moore, who added 10 pounds during the combine, did 19 reps on the bench. The general consensus is that he is no longer a first-round prospect and has been overrated by many.
Defensive backs coach Carnell Lake was spotted at the Syracuse pro day on Thursday where strong safety Shamarko Thomas is thought to be the focus of his visit. The 5087 safety is compared to Bob Sanders by many and has generated a lot of buzz as of late thanks to his strong combine performance.
Steelers personnel were also spotted at the ASU pro day on Friday.
