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Did the Squeelers do the Bengals a favor by trading up?


Did the Squeelers do the Bengals a favor by trading up?   

34 members have voted

  1. 1. If both players were there at #11, who would you have personally preferred? (be honest)

    • Jonah Williams
      22
    • Devin Bush
      12
  2. 2. If Devin Bush was there at #11, do you think the Bengals still would have taken Jonah?

    • Yes
      17
    • No
      17
  3. 3. Who will be a better player in your mind?

    • Jonah Williams
      29
    • Devin Bush
      5
  4. 4. Did the Squeelers do the Bengals a favor by trading up for Bush, meaning Jonah was the focus?

    • Yes, probably
      17
    • No, they stole a player we would have taken
      6
    • I'm not sure, but fuck that midget LB now anyway
      11


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I have no doubt that the Squeelers traded one pick ahead of the Bengals as they thought the Bengals were taking Devin Bush. But the question becomes why did they think this? Did they have actual information or just going by the 'conventional draft wisdom' of team needs. From What Zac Taylor has said, it isn't clear to me that Devin Bush was even the target to begin with and that Jonah may have been the pick regardless. 

 

From the draft picks that Taylor made, it looks like he places more emphasis on physical size (height / weight) than maybe some others do, and that he likes high bench press #s' Pratt had 24 reps compared to Bush's 21, so not much of a big gap, though Pratt is 3 inches taller and much more muscular. It's also clear from the Sample pick that maybe Taylor thought the offensive running game was the biggest need that needed fixing, and not the defense as many fans believed. 

 

Ultimately, I was not a huge fan of Devin Bush, as I saw him closer to a glorified SS, rather than LB. I think he will make a range of 'splash highlight plays' but also that he will get engulfed by OL a lot and that won't be noticed by the fans. As for being a solid pro, I think Jonah has a better chance to be a solid 10 year starter, though I admit it is close. 

 

When you consider that the Squeelers gave up a 2nd round this year and a 3rd round next year -- 2 potential starters, to move up those 10 spots, I think they likely overpaid for a player the Bengals may not have even wanted, or would not have been better than Jonah anyway. 

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I admit, I was pulling for bush for quite a while. I heard some pundits saying he might be the best player in the draft. When the effin Stealers moved up, I was pissed. I was so pissed, I didn't really give Williams a lot of thought that night. Of course like most, I never even considered Williams would be anywhere near pick #11.

Well, as usually happens, the next day I looked at all of this through fresh eyes and wasn't so bummed. After I while, it began to dawn on me just how good Williams could be. After a few days, I realized that we were the beneficiaries of the stealers impatience. The more I read about Williams (and continue to read), the happier I am that it worked out this way.

Maybe it's some of the homer in me but, Williams will benefit this team more than Bush. Williams + Pratt make it a no brainer  (I think Pratt may be something special as well).

After hearing all the post draft interviews and insights, I think the Bengals had Williams over Bush all day. Considering he was pretty much a consensus higher valued pick - they should have.

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I think the Bengals were taking Williams regardless.  OT is a more important position than LB and both were major needs.  I liked Bush as a prospect and would have been happy if he had been picked instead of Williams.  I didn't like that deal for Pittsburgh and thought they gave up too much.  Overall the Stealers had a good draft but dealing a 2nd round pick is tough to swallow.  

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If it had come down to us having our choice over the best OT and second best LB, and an undersized one with short arms at that, logic

says Jonah.  Best at his position, slid in the draft into our laps and probably the best available athlete.

Not as flashy as a high profile linebacker but a far better pick.

PLUS icing on the cake that the Squeels gave up to much for Pubes Bush.

I think he's the next Shazier.  Out of football with a self inflicted cheap shot attempt

aka Good Ol' Stiller Foottbaawwwwwl.

Whatever, Collinsworth wants to have Bush's baby.

Fuck 'em both.

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It may have been lip service, but I thought one of the coaches recently went on record saying Jonah was their pick regardless of Devin.

 

I voted Jonah all the way, but sadly I also think Devin will be really, really good for the Stealers which sucks the big one.  :steelerssuck:

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They did the bengals a favor by taking Bush off of the board and saving analysts and fans from bashing the bengals for taking Williams when Bush was there. They at least saved me from having to avoid hearing/reading all of the arguments over whether they made the right move.

 

As I said before the draft, Zac wanted to go offense on the first pick and OT was the only serious need on offense. Jonah was their guy. It would've taken a D player a lot better than Bush dropping to not take Jonah. IMHO.

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I was on the Bush hype train. I was pretty pissed when Pittsburgh traded up. I had no idea who Jonah was when his name was called. I think the Bengals would've taken William's regardless. There was a stat at some point later last season that the Bengals defense had played enough snaps to equal a full game more than the offense. Jonah should help in keeping the offense on the field which can only help the defense. I've fallen in love with the Jonah pick since watching him interview and some of his tape. 

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I think the situation will work out well for both teams.  I'm happy with Jonah but would have also been happy with Bush.  In today's NFL, you have to have LBs that can cover and Bush brings this dynamic more so than any other LB that was draft eligible, including D. White.   He's pretty phenomenal in the way he can flip his hips and change direction without losing speed.  He seems to be a pretty solid tackler as well.  If he stays healthy, he should be a pretty damn good player for Pittsburgh...unfortunately.  

 

Having said that, completely happy with the Jonah W. pick (he was probably the 'safer' pick of the two) and what he can bring to the OLine.  Hopefully Turner/Taylor/Brown put the best 5 guys out there; their salaries be damned.  Bobby Hart would be odd man out and first backup at either T spot -- But will the Bengals actually sit a guy who is among the highest paid on the OLine?  If history is any indicator....Hart is probably going to be starting....which would be a disservice to this team unless he takes some major steps forward and realizes the potential the Bengals have been broadcasting as rationale for his re-signing.  

 

 

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32 minutes ago, OU_Stripes said:

Yes it was a favor, if only by way of doing themselves a disservice.  They wasted picks in trade to get a guy that we weren't taking anyway.

 

Of course the team would say that now, but we'll never know for sure.  At the very least it prevented the fans from second-guessing the pick so they did us a favor in that sense at least.  It's ridiculous but there were clearly a lot of people who would've been very upset if we passed up the sloppy undersized BMOC future concussion-protocol LB for this franchise OT that we've been missing for the past several years.  Linebackers are exciting, unlike winning games I guess..

 

From everything I've seen & heard, I wouldn't trade our pick for theirs even with the 2nd rounder they gave up for him as a bonus.  So a nice job of panicking by them, as I see it. 

 

As always, Fuck the Stealers.  If we putz around and let the Browns take over the AFCN we deserve whatever scorn the media heaps on us.

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I think Bush was high on the Bengals' board, but they said themselves they didn't expect Jonah to be there.  So my personal guess is that it was known around the league that the Bengals at least *thought* they'd be taking Bush, but only because Jonah was considered pre-unavailable.  For that reason I think it was the Stealers playing it safe, but the Bengals would have taken Jonah between the two - especially since OL was as major a need as LB, and anyone who actually knows the game knows the OL and DL should always get first priority if the players in question are comparable value.

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Ultimately, I was not a huge fan of Devin Bush, as I saw him closer to a glorified SS, rather than LB. I think he will make a range of 'splash highlight plays' but also that he will get engulfed by OL a lot and that won't be noticed by the fans. As for being a solid pro, I think Jonah has a better chance to be a solid 10 year starter, though I admit it is close. ...

I don’t think it’s close at all. It’s unlikely (though not impossible) that Jonah Williams will be an All Pro caliber left tackle. Because of his pedigree and versatility, though, I think highly unlikely that he will wash out without becoming a good starting offensive lineman. If he stays healthy, it’s far more likely than not that Williams has a long productive career.

Devin Bush is one of those guys that sounds better in theory than they are in practice. For every Thomas Davis-type safety/linebacker hybrid that makes it, there are dozens who can’t get off blocks and end up - at best - playing situationally.

Bush may prove to be an exception. He might be one of the few 5’11 guys that figures out how to bulk up enough to take on 300lb linemen but can still cover 6’6 tight ends. The odds are against him, though.


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The best OT or the 2nd Best LB.

 

Tough choice.

 

I'm honestly not that big a fan of Bush, I think he's too small and wont be as effective at the NFL level.

 

Now had it been between Williams or White, I would have gone White, not because I am not very happy with Williams but because finding a LB that can cover in the passing game is extremely difficult to do.

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