Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert held his annual 15 minute press conference Thursday morning at the 2014 NFL Scouting Combine and reiterated once again how deep of class this one is as opposed to previous ones. However, with a record amount of underclassmen declaring this year, Colbert also said it might be the most immature one as well.
“I’ve been doing this 30 years,” Colbert said, according to Yahoo sports, “this is the deepest draft I’ve ever seen.”
“The juniors added into it make it a very talented group. With the juniors and redshirt sophomores, we are very cautiously optimistic about their emotional and physical readiness for this huge jump. Even though it’s the most talented group I’ve seen, it’s probably the most immature group.
“We have to be prepared for more player development-type programs to get the development out of these players.”
Colbert elaborated even more on the young draft class.
“Experience has told us that a lot of these younger players aren’t ready for this,” Colbert said. “It’s a huge leap. I don’t think a lot of them understand that until they actually get on a playing field and see the increase in the quality of play.”
The Steelers have a ton of needs this year on the defensive side of the football and several positions are very deep and rich in talent.
“I can’t see a position where there isn’t more depth than there ever has been,” he said. “You talk about interior offensive linemen, it’s a solid group. Not as solid as maybe the tackles or receivers, but it’s more solid than it has been in the past.”
