Mason era should be over

Coaching is definitely not absolved here, but look at the players on the field. Rudolph is throwing to Holton and Jones. Trey Edmunds and some other scrub running the ball. Tough situation for anyone.

 

The head coaches failure in this situation is not firing the OC and hiring a QB coach. Letting Randy do both is failing.

 

This reminds me of last year when Dobbs pooped the bed vs. Raiders. 2nd string QBs (Duck) are always popular and all the rage until... they are 1st string QBs and lose games.

 

Im actually a litle curious about seeing what Krappyneck shows tomorrow in Atlanta. At least he's got some real world big game experience. Looked like he lost a step when he was still in the league but I wouldn't expect him to look light a reindeer in the headlights ala Rudolph or like a fart in a whirlwind ala duck.

Anyone know if Steelers are one of the 24 teams supposedly showing up?

 

It won't matter who the QB is.
Oline is old and washed up.
No RB.
Receivers can't catch.
O Coordinator throws deep on 3rd and 1. Throws deep on 4th and 1.

 

Just watched mason OSU highlights for the first time. He was dropping dimes left and right what happened to him?

 

I was all critical too w the missed throws and ints but when Mason talks after the game you can see he is a pro, and pros have a way of managing their game in ways we cant see, bummed about the loss and INTs but I am looking to next week, bummed but not doomsday hyper-critical, looking for improvement moving forward

 

I can provide some insight into this because I'm a long time Oklahoma State fan. He had a much better supporting cast in college. He had NFL talent at WR & RB. His offensive lines were average, but they typically gave him time to pass. He had an aggressive OC that allowed him to exploit defenses. At times they ran a "turbo" offense that would snap the ball within a second or two after it was spotted for play. He was put in a position to have a high level of success.

The Steelers' offensive line is really struggling. They can't run the ball, and defenses are keying on the pass rush. This is speeding up the game even faster for a guy with 7 starts under his belt. Throw in the injuries, dropped passes, & penalties and you have a recipe for disaster. The Steelers could go to Hodges or bring in a new player, but that would be like putting a bandage on a gunshot wound. IMO, This team is going to struggle offensively regardless of who's at quarterback because of the supporting cast. I'm not sold on Mason will be a starting level quarterback in the NFL, but he's in a really tough position right now.

 

He's not in college any more

 

Quite a bit I am afraid.


No play makers to start. His offensive line is up there in age sans two players the same. Add the fact that not only Randy does not trust him but Mason himself is still learning the NFL ropes and the fact of the matter is Mason cannot do much of anything.



The fact that he was still fighting hard out there left an impression on me personally. Being down 14 points and throwing four picks is bad in it of itself. No JuJu or James in addition to the O-Line woes compound the Offense's inability to gain any traction even more.


Until Mason gets protection first and foremost to make plays, until those players make those plays, until Mason himself improves rapidly and most importantly, until Randy lets his young QB learn the NFL more than what he has had, expect more of the same.

 

Mark this down Blast you and I have an agreement. I have been a very big supporter for Mason even before the Ben injury. I have watched each of his games and shake my head a lot. I am not sure what happened and I have said here before they need to help him with play calling. However after watching Thursday night holy cow I can't take it no more. The guy is way off on his throws and with us being so close to a playoff spot time to see who else has the hot hand.

Like you I am not ready to give up on Mason however we can't afford to keep this going this way, imo. I know we have injuries and lots of them but maybe a change will help. jmo

 

Rudolph at least showed a little fire. I like that.

 

Get used to Mason being the starter as he should be. He has little help from once an Offensive Line that was close to greatness now reduced to rubble. The loss of Munchak shows. It was a crushing blow to lose him. The offensive line is the major reason for the struggles. That and little help from the receivers and tight ends. And running game? Nonexistent( see offensive line)

I'm not absolving Mason here as he needs to work on footwork, pocket awareness. How about having him roll out more? Remember he has only started 8 games. 8. And getting no help from the QB's coach. Oh that's right, their isn't one.

The Offense as a whole needs to work on figuring this thing out. As we saw when the D struggles it's turn the lights out.

Fitchner: He is not the answer and it shows. He was going to have an easy time if Ben was playing. Exposed. And he was a QB coach?

I don't care if you put in a duck, hamster, otter whatever, even Ben at this point, if the offensive line doesn't get their crap together the struggles will continue.

 

Ok this brings the next question. Has there ever been a qb that has looked subpar like mason and the next year looks great?

 

Also, lets not pretend Big Ben was lighting it up with this O-line, OC, Receivers and Running game before his injury.

 

Not saying MR has close to the same level of talent but go re-watch games from Big Ben's 3rd year in the league (2006).

Now, people will say Ben was F'd up from the bike accident but lets not forget that Mason was knocked unconscious few games ago.

Another example is Drew Brees. Drew was so bad his first few years in SD that they drafted Rivers because they thought he was bust. Again, not saying MR has Brees' talent. He might, he may not. Brees was the last pick of the 2nd round of the NFL draft so him and MR would have had a similar rating coming out of college.

My biggest concern for MR right now is the Coach Randy. The Steelers OC is not very good. It's fine when you have Ben who calls most of the players but now you have a young QB. And on top of that the OC is also the QB coach which is needed now more than ever.

 

Rookie year Peyton Manning, Drew Brees in his time in San Diego, even Ben in 2006. Quite a bit more but those examples stick out. That being, said, each of them has something Mason does not; a competent Offensive Coordinator.


Randy has shown he is not one. Throwing the ball deep and 3rd and 1 in addition to 4th and 1 is the tip of the iceberg for me. Do not even get me started on the 2nd and 20 draw play against Los Angeles.

 

No. Not like this. Rookies can have bad seasons. Sure. But they show flashes of something. Mason shows nothing. Literally nothing. It isn’t just a “oh he needs more talent around him or more time.” He just doesn’t have it. I’ve been saying since the beginning. People told me “watch around the NFL were spoiled.” No dude. There’s a reason everyone outside of the board says Mason is terrible. He is.

 

During the Browns game, Aikman made an observation about Mason that looked correct to me. He said something about his footwork, that Mason was "heavy" legged or similar. This is something that can be corrected. He needs to be lighter on his feet which I would imagine means more weight on your toes and maintaining a throwing posture while side stepping in the pocket.

 

Maybe we should give up on every player after 8 games? Never mind the toughest position to learn and play in the league. Anyone watching the atrocity our OL has become? Like I said the only fight they showed agains Cleveland was at the end. Games are still won and lost in the trenches.

 

This is true but judging his passing needs ability alone he has not been good that’s all. I’m rooting for him I like him

 

That's not entirely true. Drew was coming off shoulder surgery when he left SD. He had a couple decent seasons when he was there.