question about Steeler fans

KS never made it anywhere else either after years of being a QB in the league. you can't tell me he was to old to do it when he left. why didn't he if he was such a gifted QB? he was a gifted athlete more then a gifted qb i always thought. he could have been a heck of a receiver if he bought into it. he wouldn't.

 

I think the draft is such a crap shoot I wouldn't be surprised if this year turned out to be one of the best ever. LOL. There's just no way to know what a guy is gonna be. You can project all you want to but until you see him in NFL action you will never really know. I mean if you could project it Dan Marino would've been playing for the Steelers. Patrick Willis would be playing for the Steelers. Tom Brady would be playing for the Steelers. There's just no way to know. I wouldn't expect just because the draft SEEMS weak that it necessarily will be ya know?

 

no , but there is so much scrutinization of every aspect of these guys careers now, it's much easier to evaluate what they can and can't do. if they do well against big time competition year in and year out, theres a good chance they will have some success at this level too.

most can tell if they are capable or a product of a certain offensive system. there is a difference in top draft ranked qb's then there is the bottom ranked guys, sure both can play the position but some play it better against better competition on a consistant basis.

you will always find guys that fall through the cracks though at all positions. coaching and systems also add to their successes.

 

I like you are an old fan but have 30 yrs. on you so I hope I do not have to wait 25 yrs.for another SB. That would make me 96. I do not this I will be around.

 

im tellin you Gilbride screwed him up. Kordell was great when he was able to react and do what ever the defense was giving him. Gilbride tried to make him a pocket passer and try and read defenses. thats not what made Kordell special. his athletic ability let him do things that no other qb at that time could do.

he had the size and strength of Tebow and the passing ability of Vick. imagine if Vick wasnt so fragile. that was what Kordell was. once Vick was able to be Vick he was pretty awesome. when Kordell was Slash he was awesome. he could pass catch and run LBS over. Kordell was Vick and Tebow combined.

he was never going to be one of the greatest, but if he could of just kept doing what he did best, the Steelers would have made a couple super bowls with him. like RGIII is now. Kordell was almost unstoppable when he was Slash. he was 15 years ahead of his time.

 

I've been a Steelers fan since the late 70s. I agree with a lot of what you said. I was just saying a lot of these exact same things to my wife. I got used to a lot of not-so-great teams through the 80s and 90s, and I was telling her that the reason this season is so severely disappointing is because we've become a lot more accustomed to success since 2004. You get used to, and then you expect it, rather than being appreciative of it.

 

I am over 25 and I call em all names and scream for them to hit the bricks after any loss
Been doing it since I was born I guess

 

I always said if we had not broke Kordell, folks would have said and still be saying, if this kid Vick (when he started) could stay healthy, he would be a young Kordell

 

I am 52 years young, I have watched the Steelers
in good times and bad times. hell I watched them at Pitt Stadium
when they were horrible, Then Chuck Noll came to town, The Emperor
then Joe Greene so on so on, what a way to grow up, Your hometown team
strikes gold. Then the 74 draft, what can I say, greatest team EVER assembled.
The 80's were tough to live thru as were most of the nineties then #7 comes to town
He is the most important Steeler that has played here since the dynasty years, I am sorry all
you young folk, that never seen the dynasty Steelers, and you wonder why guys like me get
frustrated. Kordell Stewart IMHO was a receiver disguised as a QB (very inaccurate).Odonnell took the money and ran.
He was also mediocre, so since Bradshaw, you have had 1 franchise QB and that is #7.
I am dissappointed in Ben, I think he can be so much more. I am on record that I have not enjoyed
watching the Steelers Oh probably since they won the Superbowl against the Cards. Which Ben should
have been voted MVP. I personally do not like the Defense that they play, and do not like the play calling
of either OF the last 2 OC but that could be because of personnel? In general, I am confident that the
Rooney's will field a competitve team, unfortunatley that team may not be to exciting to watch.
Barring injury, I think Ben has 5 good years ahead of him, we better make hay in those five
years because you never know how long it will be until you get another franchise QB. For the record,
alot of other board members think I am against the Steelers, this is totally false. I just want
the Steelers to be the BEST they can possibly be. Around here, our fans goal is always the SUPERBOWL
anything less is not acceptable. if your standing still, somebody is passing you up.

 

Very interesting post. I am well over 25, but was a wee thing in the early 70s, though I did watch with the family as long as I've been alive. That said, just the name Tommy Gun makes me cringe every time. Felt so bad with the way Steelers "fans" in Pittsburgh treated him after he left. Good or bad, no previous player deserves to be targeted like he was, not to mention his family.

 

I'm in my late 50"s. I lived in the Burg for 42 years before moving here. Been to quite a few games at Three Rivers with my dad but never at Heinz. I know ya need new younger talent eventually, and I know money is Always an issue BUT I hate to see veterans leave, especially when I think they MIGHT have another year or two left in them. As far as Ben goes I feel he needs to stay and we need to put a healthy supporting cast in front of him. Besides too many big changes at once could have an adverse effect on the team. JMO

 

to be honest o'donnell was a decent qb for us. to bad he's only remembered for those two throws. he would have been a good fit for haley's type of offense.

 

the Steelers have always been pretty good about letting guys go with a year or so left in the tank. how many ex Steelers went on to be great somewhere else? not too many. the Steelers FO does a great job of knowing when a guy is about done.

i think Hampton, Keisel, Batch, Lefty, Foote and Harrison all fit that category this year. possibly Ike, Starx and Troy also. those 3 all probably have a couple good years left. Starx will be back for sure. i cant see any olineman being cut until exhibition season is over. they need bodies.

 

Lifetime fan here, and i'm 71 so none of you youngsters have really seen what lean times are with this team, I have to agree with some statements here, that the younger fans think going to the playoffs every year is automatic and an entitlement, but it took 40 years for this team to win it's first championship and those true thick skinned fans that supported them through those hard times have to be admired for being the true backbone of what this team has accomplished, without them sticking with them through those lean years this team would have went broke and folded up playing in the small market they called home. Big Ben has earned the right with 3 superbowl appearances 2 wins to finish his career out on this team, as long as he can be productive I will support him, you dont draft some green tomato and bench the guy who won 2 SBs for ya....

 

The Steelers also seemed to do better about picking players with not only future potential, but the "Steeler personality" of wanting to actually play for THIS team and doing so for a long time. That hasn't seemed like the case the last couple of years. I think you're right about knowing when people are "done", but I will say that the kind of mass-release we've seen of lots of guys at once (an unfortunate but necessary consequence of building a solid, stable team over a number of years) has more of a mental effect than a physical one. We can pick up good bodies, but you lose that history and the motivation veteran players brought to the team. I feel like I keep harping on the lack of fire this year, but it just feels like that was one of our biggest issues where we continuously beat ourselves (not ignoring the injuries, but we had plenty of guys willing and able to step up to help on that front).

 

To add to this-

I've been a Steelers fan for 40 years now this month. In the big picture, the franchise will get a total free ride for me for life, because of the championships they won in the 1970's when I was a kid. For me at least it meant more for them to win it all in those days- I had some tough times then personally and those teams got me through those times, for which I will always be grateful.

The most frustrating times for me as a fan were not the 1980's. They were instead the Cowher years, with all the near misses and home playoff losses. I'm still not over losing the 1994 AFC championship game at home to an inferior Chargers team. In the 1970's the Steelers had Terry Bradshaw, and until Ben came in 2004, the team did not have a championship caliber quarterback, which is why it took 26 seasons between championships. That the Steelers won the Super Bowl in 2008-09 with what I believe was the worst offensive line in all the time I've been watching the team, must in part be credited to the Qb, don't you think?

Super Bowl championships are a precious thing. They are rare, and many football fans never see their teams win even one of them. Remember this.

This season is frustrating to me too- because I believe that if a 23 yard field goal had been made last week, then the Steelers, despite all their faults, would be going to the playoffs again.

After the loss to Denver last year, I posted that I felt that an era had ended, and a new transition period was coming. I got ripped by a few people for saying that, but in hindsight, I believe this to be correct. I also strongly believe that in order for the new transition period to be successful, the Steelers need a new offensive star to take some of the load off of Ben- in my opinion, this needs to be a big time running back capable of 1,200 yards or more in a season.

P.S- I've said this before, but as other oldtimers can attest, if this board had been around back in the 1970's, there would still be plenty of people complaining about Bradshaw, Harris, and Noll, among others!

 

I'm one of the old guys. Watched Steelers since 1963 while in high school. You're right, loveembig, I'm spoiled. Loved the Steelers of the 70s, after suffering through the 50s and 60s. I was the old man who said he was embarrassed to wear my Steelers jersey after the San Diego loss. This team had no heart, no fire, no desire. I blame it on Tomlin. The men were not prepared to play each and every game. Worst attitude I have ever seen from any Steelers team. Ike Redman said that he was not surprised by this team's failure. Something is going on in the locker room, and it isn't good. In my day Lambert or Greene would handle any problems. And no one crossed Greg Lloyd.
It looks like a team that plays for pay and not for love of the game.

 

Bingo!

 

I have been a Steelers fan since 1975.

 

I think it's great that the age mix of the members on this board and the various mix of number of years of being a Steeler fan is so broad. I've been a fan for 54 years since I was a freshman in high school in 1958. The Steelers have been one of the most important and enjoyable parts of my life and I can't be thankful enough that I was lucky enough to have lived my life being a fan of the greatest football franchise of all time. There are a lot of different opinions on this board and that often causes some arguements and some disagreements. But the common thread that ties us together is the fact that we all care about, follow and support our team (THE PITTSBURGH STEELERS). How could anyone ask for more that to have the greatest team that there has ever been be the team we root for and enjoy. There will always be ups and downs and this ends up being a somewhat down year but we know to hang tough and the up years are coming, They alway have and always will.