Steelers take Wilkinson County’s Bud Dupree with 22nd pick

April 30, 2015

Tucker Sargent,

PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers beefed up their pass rush on Thursday night, taking Kentucky linebacker Bud Dupree with the 22nd pick in the NFL draft.

Dupree ran up 23 1/2 sacks in his career with the Wildcats. The Steelers are badly in need of help along the edge after finishing 26th in the league in sacks in 2014. Pittsburgh has now taken an outside linebacker in the first round each of the last three seasons.

Pittsburgh grabbed Jarvis Jones with their top pick in 2013 but Jones has struggled to stay healthy, collecting just three sacks in two seasons. The Steelers picked Ryan Shazier last spring but he was limited to seven games during his rookie year due to injuries.

At 6-foot-4 and 270 pounds, Dupree is big and fast and should be a natural fit in Pittsburgh’s 3-4 defense.