Tainted Talent VS This

Games are just SO different this year than from, Like the last 5 or so...Used to watch those games...Ben lighting it up, AB " Damn was he good " Bell, JuJu, Conner and go wow, they are so good! Same game" alot of times " D plays like hot garbage, few turnover, and lose the game...Offense rolled all game, And lost

This year... Complete opposite, Great smothering Defense that flies around with turnovers and sacks...Offense stinks but, these guys are playing hard! Without all the Bull****, Drama, pointing fingers...And acting like Divas...Wish we were better, But starting next year...I think we will be

 

Would this team be better with any or all of AB, Ben or Bell in their prime. Sure.

We would we be better with the current AB or Bell? Clearly not.

Next season will tell if the Ben who started this season is who he was or does he still have anything left in the tank.

 

This

 

AB burned through two teams since he left the Steelers, and ended up out of the league. Leveon Bell has been a below average running back on a terrible football team. The Steelers are 8-6 even without them. Those guys needed us, way more than we needed them.

 

Hey steelersrule6.

Hey steelersrule6.

Yes, yes Ben did. Factual. Still, 42 points by us and we do not win. This is just inexcusable and unacceptable. That is a very rare occurrence I would think in any NFL game over the history of the league. Ben has had a negative history with Jacksonville I believe. The one Cornerback (his name slips me now) for Jacksonville has had a career by itself against Ben. I am not sure if he had one of those picks in that game. I think he did. Too lazy to look him up right now (smile). Take care.


STEELWINDS AKA The East Side Kid

 

Hey Roonatic.

I take it you are not a big JC fan by your response. IMO the guy is not bad. I would even go as far to say a bit above average. My frustration with him is his availability which is due to him constantly being injured. When healthy, he is our best RB option. I have stated several times here that I have to wonder if his body is really at 100% after all that he has been through with not just the Cancer but also the medical treatment(s) that he received?

Once again, when I talk about his Cancer, I want to make it clear that I have no medical credentials at all and am just brainstorming here.

However, one would think that both the disease and the treatment(s) although done, and hopefully forever, still have to have some negative lingering effects on his body that may take time for him to fully recuperate from.

Here, I think of the 101 drug commercials on TV and when the voice-over rattles through all of the negative side effects from those medications. Whatever James treatment(s) were, I would guess may have also weakened his body to some degree and although he is Cancer-Free, his body still may not be at 100% strength. Just a thought.

I did do some research on this concept but did not find anything concrete to support my hypothesis. However, I have seen enough "regular" (Non-athletes) people with Cancer and some look so very frail and weak. Now add in that JC plays professional football. That in itself is so "punishing". Just for the "regular" player, with no medical history like JC, gets physically punished all season long. The man is simply "Courageous" and I respect him to the tilt.

I know this does not help us with his availability but it does put life into perspective. Whether he continues with football or not the man is living out an awesome dream. To play collegiate football at the University of Pittsburgh and then turn around and get drafted by the Steelers. Great for him again! And if it ends tomorrow for him by chance (hopefully not), at least he has this wonderful chapter in his life's biography. Great again for him!


STEELWINDS AKA The East Side Kid

 

Steelwinds hey

I love James Conner.
I wish that Steeler fans could spell his name right .

 

Bens a competitor & relies on his god given talent far too often. Father time is knocking at his door & he's still refusing to answer. Needs a fire lite under him & a kick in the butt but I regress.
I think Bell could have helped this season if he wasn't so greedy.

 

Hey Roonatic.

I jus was not sure about your position on JC from the in your original post. I really just did not know which way to take it. My bad, (As the students would say.) for my misinterpretation. Given that, as I said the Cancer stinks and hopefully that chapter of his life has been put way behind him forever. On the other hand, as I mentioned, he is living a dream that only a select few in this world get a chance at. He seems to be humble and appreciative of all the good things that I mentioned in his life's journey up to this point. Hopefully, he stays that way. If I was a betting man I think he will. Even if football ended for him today.

I think sometimes that some fans do not associate the man under the helmet with having all of the same human needs, wants, desires, problems etc.. just like the rest of us have. I remember Troy Polamalu, said something to the effect: "That I love life, and since football is part of my life, I then love football". I looked it up but could not find the exact wording but that was the gist of it. It was great to hear that perspective of Life first football wherever after that. I kind of get that vibe from JC.

Side note: Oh yeah, the spelling of JC's name. I get your frustration. Me too at times. I may have been guilty of that in the past. I know that this is a recreational Message Board. A place to "cool-out" and not worry too much about the proper usage of the King's English. Trust me, you can tell by my posts that I am pretty much a "Type A Personality regarding spelling, grammar etc.

For me, in part it is just the teacher in me. Plus, the way a person communicates, especially through writing leaves an impression to the audience that they are communicating to. Given that, and the nature of the board, I probably need to "chill" a little. Don't laugh now. Sometimes I will write my post in Microsoft Word and use some of the applications in the program to refine it before I post. Believe it or not I kind of enjoy that. Also, that is done in part because, like this one I know that many of my posts are quite extensive. I also do it because on more professional forums, like the online classes that I build for my students, I heavily emphasize proper English.

You should hear some of the complaints from college professors about the students coming out of High School today and their writing skills, or lack there of. I take it personal. The funniest thing but not funny at the same time, are the college students using Text acronyms in their papers. Are you kidding me! Just Wow! Take care.


STEELWINDS AKA The East Side Kid

 

Times. They are a changin.

 

I've always acknowledged that the talent level would drop off with Bell and Brown gone, but the Steelers would have needed to overpay their talent to keep them.
Remember the huge salary the Raiders offered Brown.
And the offer Bell turned down from the Steelers, before sitting a year and getting a smaller contract (although with a lot guaranteed) from the Jets.

Imagine that the Steelers would have had to cut Heyward and Hayden (salary cap) to afford keeping Bell and Brown.
It wouldn't have been worth it.

 

I guess the biggest question is can we maintain the level of play with the DL, grow as a LB group, and get better as a secondary. If that happens next season, our defense will be legitimately elite.

I can't see how our offense gets any worse next year. Is that even possible? So if our offense just gets some stability next year, along with what I said about our defense, we should have a lot to be hopeful for.