Tag Archives: pittsburgh steelers

NFL

Malleck, Ryan

Card: Panini Contenders 2016
Acquired: 2016, Box Breaker

Ryan Malleck played for Virginia Tech from 2012-2015. He saw action in 33 games, recording 62 receptions for 658 yards and 4 touchdowns. Scouts felt he had the size to work the field as a tight end at the pro level but felt his blocking needed some polish. He went unselected in the 2016 NFL Draft. Since that time Malleck has stayed busy, logging time on the Giants, Steelers, Ravens, and later in 2017- the Houston Texans. He made his first professional catch while with Houston for 3 yards. Ryan resigned with the Steelers in 2018, but was waived and placed on IR for the 2018 season after an undisclosed injury.

NFL

Zumwalt, Jordan

Card: Leaf Draft 2014
Acquired: 2014, Box Breaker

Jordan Zumwalt played linebacker at UCLA from 2010 to 2014.  He finished his time at the college with 216 total tackles (141 solo, 75 assisted), 20 tackles for loss, 5 sacks, 3 interceptions for 56 yards- taking one to the house for a TD, and one forced fumble.  Considered an over achiever, teams thought he needed to polish his game at the pro level, but could easily find himself a home as a special teams player or backup linebacker.

The Steelers selected Jordan in the 6th round of the 2014 NFL Draft.  He spent both 2014 and 2015 on injured reserve. In 2016, Zumwalt hit the field in the preseason and coaches were impressed by his play- however he was waived during final cuts.

I don’t know why but I got thoroughly turned off by Leaf after 2014, however for me it may have had something to do with risk versus reward, them floating ‘wood’, or a bit of me just being plain greedy. Point being is when I go spend my shrinking budget dollar, it goes typically to either Sage or Leaf. In the end Sage won that battle.  So other than design what became the main driving factor between my choices? Well quality of name would be next- but when the quality is the same- it simply came down to quantity and Sage trumped Leaf in spades.  Sage offers 3-4 autographs per box as opposed to Leaf which offered just 1-2 for the same price point.

NFL

Matthews, Mike

Card: Sage 2016
Acquired: 2016, Box Breaker

At 6’2″, 290, Texas A&M Center Mike Matthews was simply just not big enough to be considered one of the top centers in the 2016 NFL Draft. Scouts loved his tenacity, bloodlines (son of Bruce Matthews and brother of Jake Matthews), technique, and football IQ. He was expected to be a free agent- sign and stash/ long term project, to see what a team could develop out of him with a few years in the weight room.

Mike signed with the Cleveland Browns after the draft, and was listed as the 3rd center on the team behind Cam Ewing and Garth Gerhart. He was a late cut in 2016, but in February 2017 Mike signed with Pittsburgh- unfortunately an injury late in training camp ended his season. Mike kept at it however, and in May of 2018, he signed with the Miami Dolphins who were looking for depth on the offensive line.