2013 DBN Mock Draft: Pittsburgh Steelers Select Sheldon Richardson at No. 17

With the 17th pick in the 2013 Dawgs By Nature NFL Community Mock Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers select...

Sheldon Richardson, DT, Missouri

This selection and write-up was made by HenryDawg:

The Steelers defense is old, expensive, and at some positions, non-existent. Currently they have not re-signed NT Casey Hampton, they cut OLB James Harrison, and Troy Palamalu is old and usually injured. Last year, they drafted NT Alameda Ta'amu and then cut him for off-the-field reasons, then re-signed him out of need. I think they would rather go a different direction here and give strong consideration to Jonathan Hankins, who has 2 gap NT experience at Ohio State.

I also thought Jamie Collins and his explosive athleticism would be a good replacement for Harrison. In the end, I couldn't pass on the value of Richardson being on the board. He's a high-motor player with exceptional size and athleticism. Brett Keisel is in his 12th year and probably has a little more gas in the tank. The Steelers don't like to start rookies if they don't have to so Richardson can slowly but eventually take over for the bearded one, becoming a dominant force on their defensive line.

If the Steelers take Richardson, we have to hope that he busts, right? Pittsburgh seems to be in disarray every other year, only to "find a way" to get back into contention. Could someone like Richardson guide them to the path of success again?

The Dallas Cowboys are up next, led by jimkanicki.

2013 DBN Community Mock Draft Results (so far)