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1. In 2015, there were quite a lot of Ravens fans asserting that their 5th round selection of Bud Dupree’s UK teammate Za’Darius Smith would yield the better player, especially after Smith had a great rookie season. Did Newsome school Colbert in the evaluation of Kentucky LB’s?
Dupree – 5 games (2 starts), 13 tackles, 2.5 sacks
Smith – 11 games (4 starts), 17 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass deflection, 1 forced fumble
Verdict: Smith is a limited athlete with lots of intangibles, more pro ready with a higher floor but also a lower ceiling. He had a better rookie year than Dupree but was never going to become anything more, while Dupree with only a year under his belt has been almost as productive as Smith this year in only half the time. No, Ravens fans, Newsome did not school Colbert. Congratulate him on a 5th round pick well spent, but Smith is not better than Dupree.

2. A Ravens team desperately in need of a WR’s picked small school super-athlete Breshad Perriman in the first round in 2015, while the Steelers waited to the 3rd to grab their deep threat in Sammie Coates. Did Colbert school Newsome here?
Coates – 14 games (5 starts), 21 receptions, 435 yards, 2 tds
Perriman – 14 games (1 start), 26 receptions, 405 yards, 3 tds
Verdict: Due to injury, Coates has seen 25% fewer offensive snaps than Perriman despite playing in more games, but has been just as productive. Perriman, like Dupree, still has room to grow after missing his whole rookie season due to injury, but unlike Dupree hasn’t shown much growth along that curve yet. Here and now, the Steelers got just as good a WR 2 rounds later. Unfortunately, Coates was added to injury list this week with a hamstring and may once again be forced to sit out.

3. One of the draft pick rivalries that really got me started on this was the obnoxious Ravens boasting about “stealing” Maxx Williams from the Steelers by trading up in the 2nd round and forcing them to “reach” for Senquez Golson. I still maintain that the Steelers were never going to waste a pick on a TE no matter how good he was with their need at CB, and that draft history shows that a tiny CB with elite talent in the late 2nd is not a reach. I also maintained that Jesse James, who the Steelers drafted in the 5th round, had a chance to be just as good as Williams. Did Newsome school Colbert in draft manipulation or did Colbert school Newsome (a former TE himself) in TE evaluation?
James – 14 games, 33 receptions, 273 yards, 3 tds
Williams – had 32 catches for 268 yards last year, but was placed on IR in October with zero catches this year due to extremely vague “cartilage issues” in his knee.
Verdict: Hard to tell because of injury, but James looks like a decent player and Williams’ future is in doubt. Senquez Golson has yet to play a single snap because of injury, so I can’t judge Williams too harshly, but the gloating about “stealing” Maxx Williams from us seems to have died down dramatically. I think Colbert did just fine in waiting til the 5th round for his TE.

4. In 2014, the Steelers were delighted to grab Stephon Tuitt in the 2nd round. Two picks later, the Ravens picked another defensive lineman in Timmy Jernigan. The longer DE, Tuitt, was a much better fit than the sparkplug DT Jernigan in LeBeau’s defense so it was never a question of drafting Jernigan even if he were a slightly better player, but it’s still an interesting rivalry. Jernigan started out hot compared to Tuitt in their rookie years, but regressed as a sophomore while Tuitt surged ahead. Which 2014 second rounder will eventually be the bigger boon to his defensive line?
Tuitt – 14 games, 37 tackles, 4 sacks, 3 pass deflections, 2 forced fumbles
Jernigan – 14 games, 30 tackles, 5 sacks, 3 pass deflections, 1 int
Verdict: Both players are really good; this could become a key part of the rivalry for years to come, like Harrison vs. Suggs or Reed vs. Polamalu. Unfortunately, it looks like Tuitt will miss the game this week, and that will be a serious blow to the Steelers.

5. Last but not least, 2014 was the year of back to back picks at the same position. The Steelers drafted Ryan Shazier in the first round with the Ravens counteracting by drafting C.J. Mosley immediately thereafter (imitation is the sincerest form of flattery). This was in turn immediately followed by Raven fans claiming to have gotten the better player. Did Colbert pick the wrong ILB? Shazier has been oft injured until this season, but last year matched up almost identically to Mosley on a per game basis, let’s see how he’s done with equivalent playing time.
Shazier – 11 games, 69 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 7 pass deflections, 1 int, 3 forced fumbles
Mosley – 12 games, 72 tackles, 0 sacks, 7 pass deflections, 3 int, 1 forced fumble
Verdict: Mosley doesn’t seem to have been used as a pass rusher as much this year as previously, which caught some teams by surprise as he tallied all 3 of his interceptions in the first 5 games of the season. This looks about like a draw, and once again seems likely to provide a key factor in the perpetuation of the on the field rivalry.

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