The Pittsburgh Steelers are currently looking to add some playmakers to their defense in the upcoming 2016 NFL draft, and that is exactly why they have brought in Alabama's starting defensive tackle A'Shawn Robinson. Robinson has a great physique for his position, as most defensive tackles are not as athletic as he is.
He has great pursuit at the point of attack and can chase down running backs to keep them from breaking out into the secondary. He has the natural power to shed one-on-one blocks and can free up linebackers to give them a better chance at making a play. He is a high character player and a locker room leader.
Some knocks on Robinson's game are that he plays too upright and may give up on a rush too early. He is very basic with his pass rushing moves and is primarily a bull rusher who doesn't look to spin away when he gets blocked. He does not seem to have the potential to become an edge rusher, as he has a tough time breaking through the line.
The Steelers could use Robinson to help anchor this defense, as well as help solidify their defense against the run. His play style could also help free up several of Pittsburgh's talented linebackers to help blitz the quarterback more often. Pittsburgh has lost some depth players in free agency that have helped conceal this roster's weaknesses for the last couple of seasons, and with such a large departure of talent, it will be interesting to see how exactly the Steelers respond.
Pittsburgh lost left tackle Kelvin Beachum to the Jacksonville Jaguars, running back Jordan Todman to the Indianapolis Colts and full back Will Johnson to the New York Giants, and those were just the losses on the offensive side of the ball. On the defensive side, they have lost inside linebacker Sean Spence to the Tennessee Titans, defensive tackle Steve McLendon to the New York Jets, cornerback Antwon Blake also to the Titans, cornerback Brandon Boykin to the Carolina Panthers and inside linebacker Terence Garvin to the Washington Redskins.
The Steelers may have lost a large amount of players, but they acquired several key playmakers, the most important of all is probably tight end Ladarius Green, who should come in and replace the retired Heath Miller. Pittsburgh also signed inside left tackle Ryan Harris, inside linebacker Steven Johnson and defensive tackle Ricardo Mathews to help give some depth to this defensive unit.
With only $2 million in cap space left, Pittsburgh must wait until the draft to add any more quality players to this roste, unless they free up some cap space by releasing more players. Adding Robinson would be a huge boost to this defensive unit as the Steelers look to make another playoff run.
