Steelers' 1970s-era draft notes a treasure worth revisiting
By Tom Danyluk
April 15, 2005
The basement of the Pro Football Hall of Fame is, in many ways, a shelter, a place where the old days look for solace when they’ve been forgotten and left behind.
Treasures abound. Rare AFL media guides and old wool warm-ups. Cleats worn on famous days. Rows and rows of worn, beaten helmets sit on shelves with stories to tell. Legendary eyes peered from behind the facemasks.
Here is O.J. Simpson’s Bills headgear, the paint still very white and clean. That’s because you couldn’t catch him. An ancient Raiders helmet sits without a number like an unmarked grave. The scuffs on the facemask say it was probably a lineman’s. Maybe Art Shell's or Jim Otto's. An angry, black mark remains after a likely attack from a Pittsburgh Steeler.
And nearby, off in a lonely corner, sits a large collection of books. Stacks of files in brown bindings, all piled hurriedly on top of each other. Some are water damaged. All of them are old and neglected.
Those books also have stories to tell. They speak of scouts’ days in hot, sweaty practice fields and nights in front of clicking projectors. They were written by tired, frozen hands or in a dimmed motel room on a lonely wayside. Within those pages, friends, one can find the magic formula that produced one of pro football’s most tyrannical reigns — the college scouting reports of the 1970s Pittsburgh Steelers.
I spent some time in that Canton basement one summer, sifting through pages and pages of profiles. Oh, the names! Joe Greene. Terry Bradshaw. Lynn Swann. Jack Lambert. Could those scouts have fully conceived the greatness they were watching?
“All that work, all those hours traveling to places we’d never heard of,” former Steelers scouting director Art Rooney Jr. says. “And now those reports are sitting in some basement. … Well, I guess it paid off, didn’t it?”
As a historical parallel to the upcoming NFL draft, a nod to history, I’d like to share a bit of what I found in those forgotten old files:
Mel Blount, cornerback, Southern University (6-3, 201)
Perfect size and speed. … Very tall and rangy, but still moves feet well. … Comes up to hit good in drills. …Covered man-to-man well and they have some fast kids here. … Quick, but seems to lose something when receiver makes a break. I don’t know if it’s a lack of acceleration or a coaching point. … I would like to get more of a line on his hitting ability. … His coaches say he hits and I saw him crack a kid in practice. … I think he could help us at free safety. …I ’d like to say for sure he could be a cornerback but I don’t know how he would do with a guy like [Roy] Jefferson all the way deep. … Maybe I am too cautious about this.
Projection: Potential starter; second-round pick
Jack Ham, linebacker, Penn State (6-2, 220)
Pittsburgh-area boy who is a top player. … I think he would be playing regular for us by the middle of his first year. … A middle ’backer at school but would be an OLB for us. However, he improved so much each game at MLB that I feel he’d play there for us with a little more weight and strength. … He has the frame to get bigger and stronger. … Does a good job of pursuing and getting to the wide plays. … Plays off blockers well and fills holes good. … Shows toughness in use of arms. … Pass coverage is impressive. … Good hands on interceptions. … I think he is the type of kid we need.Projection: Potential starter first year; first-, second-round pick
Lynn Swann, flanker, USC (5-10½, 173)
Fine, quick athlete who reminds me of [Steelers WR] Jon Staggers. … Good body control and quickness. … Makes use of the talent he has, which is not great but good. … Good field vision as a punt return man. Has a burst and a smooth gait. … Hands are good. … Can adjust or catch in noise. … Can make the over-the-shoulder catch of the bomb. … Routes are disciplined but not mechanical. … A fair blocker but on the semi-tough side. … I don’t feel he is a starter but he can make it and contribute.
Projection: Potential starter; fourth-, fifth-round pick
Jack Lambert, linebacker, Kent State (6-4½, 206)
Narrowly built guy but has gotten stronger since last spring. … Looks like a smart and great effort player. … Seems to play with reckless abandon at times. … Flexibility and quickness in his pass drop. … With his height he is a big obstacle to the passer. … At times gets his legs tied up but his balance is good and clears his feet good for the most part. … Must get a bit more buck and develop some strength. … I feel he will make it and develop into an NFL starter.
Projection: Potential starter; second-, third-round pick
Dwight White, defensive end, East Texas State (6-3, 234)
Good athlete who plays very inconsistently. … Looked good against every type of play and then looked just as bad. … Effort was OK. … In fact, he worked hard in practice and didn’t seem to be a “hot dog” but he blew a lot of plays and the coach yelled at him a bit. … They told me he wasn’t a dumb kid and took coaching well, but I wonder what kind of smarts he has. … Not a coward. … Gets off with the ball very well, but did not show a burst of speed in pursuit. However, his lateral moves are good and he did chase a runner down once. … His balance is good in as much as he is never on his rear end. … Has the talent to make a club and develop into a good starter.
Projection: Make roster and improve; fourth-, fifth-round pick.
Mike Wagner, safety, Western Illinois (6-1½, 196)
Has size, effort and pretty good movement. However, backpedal is a little labored. … Seems to keep good position on the receivers. … More of a chest catcher than a hand catcher. … I was impressed with the way he comes up to hit. However, he had some of his tackles broken. It seemed to be due to lack of strength and technique rather than guts. … Has frame to get a bit stronger. … I think he has the tools to merit a good look.
Projection: Good prospect; 13th-, 14th-round pick
Franco Harris, fullback, Penn State (6-2, 225)
Top physical prospect. … The type of kid we’re looking for. … Breaks down like a 5-11, 190 guy only he’s bigger. … Fine body control and quickness. … Does a good job of running pass patterns. … Only a fair blocker but shows the tools to develop into a good blocker as a pro. … Has strength and speed to be a big threat outside or in open field. However, I feel he doesn’t use his strength to break tackles as much as he should. … Not a straight-line runner. … Lots of movement and wiggle. … Would give us a big gun in the backfield. … I question his competitiveness. … Has the talent to be a star, but I don’t know if he will be. … Worth the gamble.
Projection: Potential starter first year; first-round pick
And here’s a sample of reports on players the Steelers passed over in their drafts:
Dave Casper, offensive tackle/tight end, Notre Dame (6-3, 248)
Has the talent to do a lot of things as a blocker but doesn’t, at least not consistently. … Has strength, blocking quickness and balance, but if he is not directly involved in the play he is just a stand-around. … They say he sort of walks like a farmer plugging through a plowed field but he sure runs with fluidness. … As a TE, he got open short and caught the ball. … I don’t think he can contribute as a pro TE. … Can be good but will tax the best of coaches.
Projection: Make roster and improve; fourth-, fifth-round pick
Brian Sipe, quarterback, San Diego State (6-1, 195)
An exciting player at times but plagued with a scatter-arm. … Short on passing talent. … Moves well in pocket and can scramble but has trouble finding second receiver. … Can get it close enough to make you think it is the receiver’s fault on an incompletion. … Can get the ball deep. … Had some big games in college, but not any better than a camp player.
Projection: Questionable prospect; 17th-round pick, free agent
Duane Thomas, fullback, West Texas State (6-2, 213)Has all the equipment to be a great one. … Intangibles are questionable. … [West Texas] Coach Harris says he’s a fine kid who has some small character flaws like running up credit-card bills, not showing up for practice, poor schoolwork, walking off the field, and not playing with pain. … He also has a black militant for a brother, but the brother isn’t supposed to get to him. … He isn’t a fine practice player but didn’t “dog it.” In fact, he showed flashes of brilliance in practice. … Big, strong and fast, can explode through a hole. … Hard for one tackler to bring him down. … Durable, even if the coach said he didn’t like pain. … Does a good job of picking his way through traffic and running over people in the open field. … If his character would hold up, I think he would be a terrific offensive weapon as a pro. … Let someone else motivate him.
Projection: Potential starter; first-round pick
Cliff Branch, flanker, Colorado (5-10½, 169)
[Scouted during ’72 Hula Bowl] Still feel the same way about Branch, although he did catch the ball in practice a little better than I thought he could but not much. … He’s a little bigger than I thought he was. … Don’t believe this boy is very tough. … The footing wasn’t the best but he fell down too many times. … A couple of times I got the impression he was hunting for a place to lay down. Could be wrong on this. … I still feel this is a very dangerous football player but it’s going to take a far better passer than these QBs to hit him cause I don’t think he is going to catch the off-thrown ball well. … There is also no doubt that with his great speed he can kill a club.
Projection: Make roster and improve; fourth-, fifth-round pick
Dan Dierdorf, offensive tackle, Michigan (6-3, 255)
A squatty-built guy. … Looks like if he got any heavier he would be a fatso. … Strong kid with a good pop but inconsistent sustain and follow-through. … Did not pull for sweeps or traps but from his pregame workout and the way he covered punts I’d say he’d have difficulty in those techniques. Effort is OK. … I wasn’t impressed with his foot movement or his potential to be a good pass protector as a pro. … Did show good one-on-one strength and pop on a goal-line drive. … Perhaps he would have some defensive possibilities.
Projection: Good prospect; 12th-, 13th-round pick
Jack Youngblood, defensive tackle, Florida (6-4, 242)
[From junior year] I feel Jack is a sure thing to make our club. However, I don’t feel he’s a sure thing to help us. … Doesn’t dominate his teammates in scrimmages. … Showed good lateral pursuit, not stiff at all. … I felt his pass rush was ordinary. … Low blocks tie him up but he won’t have that problem with us. … The best I saw him was a little OT he played in a drill. … Very raw and would have to be taught an awful lot to help us. … I was starting to question his meanness until he handled a fellow pretty well in a fight during a scrimmage.
Projection: Make roster and contribute; fifth-, sixth-round pick
http://profootballweekly.com/PFW/Features/NFL+Features/2005/danyluk041505.htm
Tom Danyluk is a free-lance sportswriter based in Chicago. He has written a book about pro football called The Super 70s, which will be released this fall. He can be contacted at danyluk1@yahoo.com.
By Tom Danyluk
April 15, 2005
The basement of the Pro Football Hall of Fame is, in many ways, a shelter, a place where the old days look for solace when they’ve been forgotten and left behind.
Treasures abound. Rare AFL media guides and old wool warm-ups. Cleats worn on famous days. Rows and rows of worn, beaten helmets sit on shelves with stories to tell. Legendary eyes peered from behind the facemasks.
Here is O.J. Simpson’s Bills headgear, the paint still very white and clean. That’s because you couldn’t catch him. An ancient Raiders helmet sits without a number like an unmarked grave. The scuffs on the facemask say it was probably a lineman’s. Maybe Art Shell's or Jim Otto's. An angry, black mark remains after a likely attack from a Pittsburgh Steeler.
And nearby, off in a lonely corner, sits a large collection of books. Stacks of files in brown bindings, all piled hurriedly on top of each other. Some are water damaged. All of them are old and neglected.
Those books also have stories to tell. They speak of scouts’ days in hot, sweaty practice fields and nights in front of clicking projectors. They were written by tired, frozen hands or in a dimmed motel room on a lonely wayside. Within those pages, friends, one can find the magic formula that produced one of pro football’s most tyrannical reigns — the college scouting reports of the 1970s Pittsburgh Steelers.
I spent some time in that Canton basement one summer, sifting through pages and pages of profiles. Oh, the names! Joe Greene. Terry Bradshaw. Lynn Swann. Jack Lambert. Could those scouts have fully conceived the greatness they were watching?
“All that work, all those hours traveling to places we’d never heard of,” former Steelers scouting director Art Rooney Jr. says. “And now those reports are sitting in some basement. … Well, I guess it paid off, didn’t it?”
As a historical parallel to the upcoming NFL draft, a nod to history, I’d like to share a bit of what I found in those forgotten old files:
Mel Blount, cornerback, Southern University (6-3, 201)
Perfect size and speed. … Very tall and rangy, but still moves feet well. … Comes up to hit good in drills. …Covered man-to-man well and they have some fast kids here. … Quick, but seems to lose something when receiver makes a break. I don’t know if it’s a lack of acceleration or a coaching point. … I would like to get more of a line on his hitting ability. … His coaches say he hits and I saw him crack a kid in practice. … I think he could help us at free safety. …I ’d like to say for sure he could be a cornerback but I don’t know how he would do with a guy like [Roy] Jefferson all the way deep. … Maybe I am too cautious about this.
Projection: Potential starter; second-round pick
Jack Ham, linebacker, Penn State (6-2, 220)
Pittsburgh-area boy who is a top player. … I think he would be playing regular for us by the middle of his first year. … A middle ’backer at school but would be an OLB for us. However, he improved so much each game at MLB that I feel he’d play there for us with a little more weight and strength. … He has the frame to get bigger and stronger. … Does a good job of pursuing and getting to the wide plays. … Plays off blockers well and fills holes good. … Shows toughness in use of arms. … Pass coverage is impressive. … Good hands on interceptions. … I think he is the type of kid we need.Projection: Potential starter first year; first-, second-round pick
Lynn Swann, flanker, USC (5-10½, 173)
Fine, quick athlete who reminds me of [Steelers WR] Jon Staggers. … Good body control and quickness. … Makes use of the talent he has, which is not great but good. … Good field vision as a punt return man. Has a burst and a smooth gait. … Hands are good. … Can adjust or catch in noise. … Can make the over-the-shoulder catch of the bomb. … Routes are disciplined but not mechanical. … A fair blocker but on the semi-tough side. … I don’t feel he is a starter but he can make it and contribute.
Projection: Potential starter; fourth-, fifth-round pick
Jack Lambert, linebacker, Kent State (6-4½, 206)
Narrowly built guy but has gotten stronger since last spring. … Looks like a smart and great effort player. … Seems to play with reckless abandon at times. … Flexibility and quickness in his pass drop. … With his height he is a big obstacle to the passer. … At times gets his legs tied up but his balance is good and clears his feet good for the most part. … Must get a bit more buck and develop some strength. … I feel he will make it and develop into an NFL starter.
Projection: Potential starter; second-, third-round pick
Dwight White, defensive end, East Texas State (6-3, 234)
Good athlete who plays very inconsistently. … Looked good against every type of play and then looked just as bad. … Effort was OK. … In fact, he worked hard in practice and didn’t seem to be a “hot dog” but he blew a lot of plays and the coach yelled at him a bit. … They told me he wasn’t a dumb kid and took coaching well, but I wonder what kind of smarts he has. … Not a coward. … Gets off with the ball very well, but did not show a burst of speed in pursuit. However, his lateral moves are good and he did chase a runner down once. … His balance is good in as much as he is never on his rear end. … Has the talent to make a club and develop into a good starter.
Projection: Make roster and improve; fourth-, fifth-round pick.
Mike Wagner, safety, Western Illinois (6-1½, 196)
Has size, effort and pretty good movement. However, backpedal is a little labored. … Seems to keep good position on the receivers. … More of a chest catcher than a hand catcher. … I was impressed with the way he comes up to hit. However, he had some of his tackles broken. It seemed to be due to lack of strength and technique rather than guts. … Has frame to get a bit stronger. … I think he has the tools to merit a good look.
Projection: Good prospect; 13th-, 14th-round pick
Franco Harris, fullback, Penn State (6-2, 225)
Top physical prospect. … The type of kid we’re looking for. … Breaks down like a 5-11, 190 guy only he’s bigger. … Fine body control and quickness. … Does a good job of running pass patterns. … Only a fair blocker but shows the tools to develop into a good blocker as a pro. … Has strength and speed to be a big threat outside or in open field. However, I feel he doesn’t use his strength to break tackles as much as he should. … Not a straight-line runner. … Lots of movement and wiggle. … Would give us a big gun in the backfield. … I question his competitiveness. … Has the talent to be a star, but I don’t know if he will be. … Worth the gamble.
Projection: Potential starter first year; first-round pick
And here’s a sample of reports on players the Steelers passed over in their drafts:
Dave Casper, offensive tackle/tight end, Notre Dame (6-3, 248)
Has the talent to do a lot of things as a blocker but doesn’t, at least not consistently. … Has strength, blocking quickness and balance, but if he is not directly involved in the play he is just a stand-around. … They say he sort of walks like a farmer plugging through a plowed field but he sure runs with fluidness. … As a TE, he got open short and caught the ball. … I don’t think he can contribute as a pro TE. … Can be good but will tax the best of coaches.
Projection: Make roster and improve; fourth-, fifth-round pick
Brian Sipe, quarterback, San Diego State (6-1, 195)
An exciting player at times but plagued with a scatter-arm. … Short on passing talent. … Moves well in pocket and can scramble but has trouble finding second receiver. … Can get it close enough to make you think it is the receiver’s fault on an incompletion. … Can get the ball deep. … Had some big games in college, but not any better than a camp player.
Projection: Questionable prospect; 17th-round pick, free agent
Duane Thomas, fullback, West Texas State (6-2, 213)Has all the equipment to be a great one. … Intangibles are questionable. … [West Texas] Coach Harris says he’s a fine kid who has some small character flaws like running up credit-card bills, not showing up for practice, poor schoolwork, walking off the field, and not playing with pain. … He also has a black militant for a brother, but the brother isn’t supposed to get to him. … He isn’t a fine practice player but didn’t “dog it.” In fact, he showed flashes of brilliance in practice. … Big, strong and fast, can explode through a hole. … Hard for one tackler to bring him down. … Durable, even if the coach said he didn’t like pain. … Does a good job of picking his way through traffic and running over people in the open field. … If his character would hold up, I think he would be a terrific offensive weapon as a pro. … Let someone else motivate him.
Projection: Potential starter; first-round pick
Cliff Branch, flanker, Colorado (5-10½, 169)
[Scouted during ’72 Hula Bowl] Still feel the same way about Branch, although he did catch the ball in practice a little better than I thought he could but not much. … He’s a little bigger than I thought he was. … Don’t believe this boy is very tough. … The footing wasn’t the best but he fell down too many times. … A couple of times I got the impression he was hunting for a place to lay down. Could be wrong on this. … I still feel this is a very dangerous football player but it’s going to take a far better passer than these QBs to hit him cause I don’t think he is going to catch the off-thrown ball well. … There is also no doubt that with his great speed he can kill a club.
Projection: Make roster and improve; fourth-, fifth-round pick
Dan Dierdorf, offensive tackle, Michigan (6-3, 255)
A squatty-built guy. … Looks like if he got any heavier he would be a fatso. … Strong kid with a good pop but inconsistent sustain and follow-through. … Did not pull for sweeps or traps but from his pregame workout and the way he covered punts I’d say he’d have difficulty in those techniques. Effort is OK. … I wasn’t impressed with his foot movement or his potential to be a good pass protector as a pro. … Did show good one-on-one strength and pop on a goal-line drive. … Perhaps he would have some defensive possibilities.
Projection: Good prospect; 12th-, 13th-round pick
Jack Youngblood, defensive tackle, Florida (6-4, 242)
[From junior year] I feel Jack is a sure thing to make our club. However, I don’t feel he’s a sure thing to help us. … Doesn’t dominate his teammates in scrimmages. … Showed good lateral pursuit, not stiff at all. … I felt his pass rush was ordinary. … Low blocks tie him up but he won’t have that problem with us. … The best I saw him was a little OT he played in a drill. … Very raw and would have to be taught an awful lot to help us. … I was starting to question his meanness until he handled a fellow pretty well in a fight during a scrimmage.
Projection: Make roster and contribute; fifth-, sixth-round pick
http://profootballweekly.com/PFW/Features/NFL+Features/2005/danyluk041505.htm
Tom Danyluk is a free-lance sportswriter based in Chicago. He has written a book about pro football called The Super 70s, which will be released this fall. He can be contacted at danyluk1@yahoo.com.
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